White Bridge

Parent Place or Precinct

12125 Mandogalup Townsite

Statement of Significance

Historic Value: The place is associated with the Peel Estate drainage project,
which involved draining lowland swamps to open up new tracts of land for farming.

Social Value: The place is a well-known crossing of the main Mandogalup
drain, once characterised by its white-painted timber structure, and contributes to the community’s sense of place.

Representativeness: the decision to build a drainage scheme to establish agricultural land over existing swamps demonstrates the prevailing view of the Inter War period which prioritised agricultural land over the existing wetlands.

Level of significance: Some.

Physical Description

The place comprises a simple road bridge crossing the open drain that extends southwest from Mandogalup.
Culverts on either side of the bridge have been constructed with laterite stone and concrete and incorporate sloping buttresses. Dense planting enclosed by steel railing block to the view of the culvert from the southern side of the road.
On the north side, the culvert extends approximately 6 metres along the length of the drain, lining the inner banks. A concrete circular channel runs beneath the road, providing free flow for water in the drain. The drain, constructed during the Inter-War period, can be clearly seen on either side of Anketell Road, comprising narrow but deep drains characterised by their mounded earth banks.

History

The area east of Mandogalup was the starting point for the Peel Estate drainage project which commenced in the 1920s, whereby lowland swamps were drained to reveal more fertile soil than the surrounding dry land could provide. The drains were designed by engineer-incharge, Richard Anketell, and the main drain started east of Mandogalup, passing through Beenyup, The Spectacles, Bollard Bulrush Swam, Baldivis and Folly Pool, onto Mandurah where it discharged into the sea.
The crossing at Anketell Road, known as White Bridge, was most likely first constructed in the 1920s as part of the Drainage scheme works, and was originally a timber bridge, 18 metres long and painted white, explaining its name. The earlier bridge structure was replaced by the existing stone and concrete culvert construction in the 1960s.

Integrity/Authenticity

Integrity: High
Authenticity: Low

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

Publish place record online (inHerit):

Last Update

Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.