Bridge 602, Salt River, York-Merredin Road, Shackleton

Values

• The place is representative of the type of timber bridges constructed in the Wheatbelt during the 1950s and the subsequent ‘refurbishment’ of most of these in the latter part of the twentieth-century.
• The place may represent the use of European migrants in bonded labour schemes as part of Main Roads’ bridge construction gangs in the 1950s.
• The place may have some association to the damage caused by extensive clearing for new farmland in the Wheatbelt.
• The place may represent the work of local governments in road bridge construction in the Wheatbelt.

Physical Description

Bridge 602, Salt River, York-Merredin Road, Shackleton comprises a road bridge with a timber superstructure on concrete abutments. The bridge measures 14 metres in length, and 8 metres in overall width. The bridge was constructed in 1953 and a concrete overlay was applied in 1986. White-painted timber and iron guard rails line both sides.

History

Shackleton is situated in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, approximately 45 kilometres northeast of Quairading and 30 kilometres southwest of Bruce Rock. The Wheatbelt region of Western Australia wraps around the north and east side of the metropolitan area, includes the Avon Valley, and extends from Jurien Bay in the northwest, Lake King in the southeast, and the Shire of Yilgarn in the east. The area is predominantly mixed farming, namely wheat and sheep.
Agricultural settlement of the region began in the Avon Valley in 1831 and, although a route from Perth to Albany was surveyed in 1830 it remained a sand track in the 1840s. In 1836 grazier Stephen Parker took up a selection at Dangin, 7 kilometres southwest of Quairading. However, it was not until 1859 that his son began to clear the land and establish the property. The town of Quairading was established in 1907 and the railway built in 1908. The area quickly developed with much of the land being taken up for farming.
The Merredin district was settled from the 1880s, when sandalwood cutters began working the area and pastoralists began to take up leases. With the discovery of gold in the Southern Cross and Kalgoorlie/Coolgardie areas in the 1890s, transport between Perth and the goldfields was required. The Eastern Railway, which had been constructed as far as Northam in 1886, was extended to Kalgoorlie. There was a timber State Hotel at Wongan Hills but it was decided that a brick hotel should be constructed in Bruce Rock at this time as it was a larger centre, and in 1912, there were already 600 people in the Bruce Rock district. In June 1918, the East Avon Road Board became the Bruce Rock Road Board.
After WWI British ex-service personnel were granted free passage to migrate to Australia. The result was almost 6 million hectares of land being set aside for the Soldier Settlement Scheme with the eastern Wheatbelt, and its network of railways, being identified as well-suited to this scheme.
The 1920s were prosperous as returned soldiers and eastern states farmers were attracted to new agricultural areas and low land prices. By 1925 the rural economy was prospering and Bruce Rock’s town centre and community responded to this influx. In 1929 the Great Depression hit and many were forced to abandon their land but the rural sector made a good recovery. The 1930s saw the beginnings of mechanisation of the rural sector and small land holdings were taken over and incorporated into larger farms. After World War II the War Service Land Settlement took up blocks in the Bruce Rock area and the new generation of soldier settlers gave a renewed impetus to the Bruce Rock Road District. Infrastructure and community facilities were required and the town expanded considerably. The 1950s were prosperous and saw large-scale expansion of the wheat industry. Shackleton originated as a railway siding when the Quairading to Bruce Rock railway line opened in 1913. However, a townsite was not established there until 1951. The surrounding area had been developed privately in the preceding years.
Following WWII the region saw increased economic growth and stability and both the State and local governments invested in infrastructure. However by the 1970s many families were forced to leave the Quairading district due to the economic downturn.
According to the data held by Main Roads (Wheatbelt) Bridge 602, Salt River, York-Merredin Road, Shackleton was constructed in 1953.

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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.