Hawkesbury River road bridge opening

Details

Identifiernot specifiedDate5-May-45Photographernot specifiedKeywordsHawkesbury River Road BridgePeats Ferry Road BridgeKangaroo PointRoadsBridgesDescriptionInitial communication from the early settlement in Newcastle to Sydney was by sea and for some years the only means of land travel was by Howes Track, following approximately the current road from Windsor through Richmond, Putty and Bulga to Singleton. In 1830, the route to Wiseman's Ferry and Wollombi was opened to vehicular traffic and became the principal route for overland travel between Sydney and the Hunter River.

Shortly after the road via Wiseman's Ferry was opened, George Peat, a ship builder, obtained grants of land either side of the Hawkesbury River at Kangaroo Point and Mooney Point. He used this land for cattle grazing. To send his cattle to market he built on the river bank a two masted sailing lugger for use between the two points.

The presence of Peat's boat encouraged travelers to use the shorter route as an alternative to Wiseman's Ferry, although this remained the better developed route. Travelers between Sydney and Brisbane Water also used Peat's boat and by 1845 the lugger was in use as a ferry between Kangaroo Point and Mooney Point. In 1847, George Peat developed Peat's Ferry Road (now the Pacific Highway) as a track from Sawyer's Road at Berowra Valley to Kangaroo Point.

No record exists of the period 1860 to 1888 but it is believed that James Cole operated a private punt between Kangaroo Point and Mooney Point. However, the circuitous route via Wiseman's Ferry remained a more improved and more popular route with travelers. On the opening of the railway line to Newcastle in 1886, crossing the Hawkesbury River at nearby Brooklyn, Peat's Ferry ceased to operate, and it was not until 1930 that a ferry service was re-established.

The first motor lorry arrived in 1908 and motor vehicle transport steadily replaced steam and horse drawn transport.

By the 1920s there was extreme pressure for improved and new roads. The Main Roads Board was established in 1925 and one of its first undertakings was to construct a new sealed highway from Hookham's Corner at Hornsby to Peat's Ferry. The road was completed in 1930 and the first of two diesel ferries for motor vehicles, the George Peat and Frances Peat, became operational. These ferries operated up until World War 2 when they were removed to serve in New Guinea.

Built during World War II and opened in 1945, the steel truss road bridge links the Central Coast and the north with Sydney and the south across the Hawkesbury River.

Photograph shows the opening of the Pacific Highway Bridge also known as (Peats Ferry Road Bridge and Hawkesbury River Road Bridge) on 5 May 1945.

Location

SuburbKangaroo PointGeotag^[1]5" X 7" glossy black & white photograph.

Related to

PlaceKangaroo Point

Provenance

External LinkPeats Ferry Bridge back to full speed after $39 million restoration

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Hawkesbury River road bridge opening