Humphrey Pumps, Cobdolgla, Murray River

Developed and patented by English engineer Herbert Alfred Humphrey, these pumps were chosen for the Cobdogla irrigation scheme because they made the most efficient use of the available timber fuel. The pumps ran on gas produced from wood (producer gas) in a plant designed by W F Saunders AMIEAust and built by May Brothers of Gawler.

The pumps were designed and built by the Scottish firm of William Beardmore and were the only two of their kind installed in the Southern Hemisphere. They supplied irrigation water between 1927 and 1965.

In 1986 The Engineering and Water Supply Department completed the restoration of what is now the world’s only working Humphrey pump.

In 2010 the pumps were awarded an Engineering Heritage National Landmark. With a new category of Marker available, the installation was reclassified as an Engineering Heritage International Marker in 2015.

Cobdogla Pumping Sation, February 2010.

Taken from: Forward P.D. & Subagio N. 1986, ‘Restoration of a Humphrey Pump to Full Operation’, 3rd National Conference on Engineering Heritage, Adelaide 1‐3 December 1986.

Mixture inlet and scavenge valves on the combustion head of the pump.

The top of the water tower, which sits below ground. The water in this tower rises and falls as the pump operates.

The gas bags with the gas supply pipe and valves at the front.The gas pipes to the pump can be seen at the rear of the distant bag.

View of one of the pumps, taken from ground level.The green structure is the combustion head. The canopy above the pump is connected to a ventilating fan to remove any escaping gas.

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Humphrey Pumps, Cobdolgla, location map.

Engineering Heritage Recognition Program

Marker Type	Engineering Heritage National Marker (EHNM)
Award Date	2010
Marker Type	Engineering Heritage International Marker (EHIM)
Award Date	2015
Heritage Significance	The pump works with high efficiency and strength without the use of any rotating flywheel, solid piston, connecting rod, rotating crank or bearings of any kind. The pumps work essentially as a four stroke engine, with water as the moving piston. It is the simplicity and elegance of the design which makes it so unique.
Nomination Document	Available here.
Ceremony Booklet	Not Available.
Interpretation Panel	None Installed.