McKillops Bridge, over the Snowy River

The Snowy River, in its deep gorge between a point close to the Victorian and New South Wales border and the town of Orbost on the river’s flood plain, has always been a dangerous river to cross and has taken many lives of those who dared to cross it.

Aboriginal Australians crossed the river for thousands of years, probably tens of thousands of years, before White Men arrived on the scene. The Ngarigo people of Monaro and the Theddora people of Omeo met for trade, social and cultural reasons from antiquity.

European Settlers arrived in the 1830s and they fared no better. The site at McKellar’s Crossing, as it came to be called, was serviced with a punt for many years and this site became a crossing on a stock route between the Monaro and Gippsland.

In 1931 a contract was let to a Melbourne firm, Gardener Constructions, to build a high-level bridge. This was to be of a structure similar to the extant bridge but with a clearance (over the highest recorder flood peak of the previous 60 years) of three metres. The bridge was built and an opening ceremony was planned for 19 January 1934. On 8 January 1934 a storm produced heavy rainfall over the river above the bridge. The new bridge was washed away later in the day.

A second bridge was commenced very quickly with a greater clearance over the river bed. This time the bridge was made 15 feet higher or 19 feet above the great flood of 1934. The second bridge was completed by December 1935 and the official opening took place at midday on 20 December 1935 and was attended by 250 people.

The bridge has remained in service since the opening with some repairs having been made.

Over the life of the bridge many efforts have been made to improve the condition of the road on the western side of the bridge from Turnback to the bridge approach. The road remains unsealed, narrow steep and dangerous but passing places have been incorporated to make two-way traffic less problematic.

A ceremony was planned for early 2020 after the end of the bushfire season.

McKillops Bridge from the river bed
Source: Owen Peake

Mckillops Bridge - truss details
Source: Owen Peake

McKillops Bridge - single lane timber deck
Source: Owen Peake

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Engineering Heritage Recognition Program

Marker Type	Engineering Heritage Marker (EHM)
Award Date	November 2019
Heritage Significance	McKillops Bridge is of engineering significance as: the longest example of timber deck metal truss bridge in Victoria; a bridge of exceptional height; for its elaborate timber stockbridge and horse-vehicle superstructure; for its excellent integrity and condition; and as a rare surviving example of a concrete, metal-truss and timber bridge. It combines a colonial era all-timber stockbridge with the latest welded-steel technology at the leading edge of world technology at that time. It was claimed to be the longest arc-welded steel truss road bridge in the world, and regarded as one of the standing wonders of Australian road-bridge engineering.
Nomination Document	Available here.
Ceremony Booklet Ceremony Report	Not Available.
Plaque/Interpretation Panel	Not Installed.