Historic Blackbutt & Tallowwood Timber from Bakers Creek Bridge in Armidale
August 2024
We recently salvaged a new batch of timber from the demolition of the Bakers Creek Bridge in Armidale. This load includes beautiful blackbutt and tallowwood with impressive dimensions—250x100mm and 200x100mm, with lengths reaching up to 5.3 metres. Our team has been hard at work de-nailing, docking, and sorting the load, and we’re happy to be now able to offer it to you for your next project.
Photo: Bridge timbers arriving at Thor's Hammer
Background: The Origin of the Bakers Creek Bridge Timbers
Video courtesy of Armidale Regional Council
From about 2017, as part of their Bridge Renewal Program, Armidale Regional Council has been progressively replacing aged timber bridges to try to improve road safety and infrastructure quality in the region.
This is how we came to the timbers salvaged from Bakers Creek Bridge, which is due to be replaced with a single lane prestressed (compressed) concrete girder structure.
The historic timber has now been denailed, docked, identified for species, measured and sorted, ready for any number of creative uses.
Photo: Docked ends reveal the great quality of this timber.
Types of Creative Projects Suitable For This Timber
This timber, rich in history and character, is ideal for a variety of applications. Please note, however, that while it can be clean dressed upon request, its extensive use as bridge decking under regular vehicle traffic means that it has got particles of gravel in the grain and it would be costly to machine. It is better suited to a wire-brushed finish. Below are some ideas for how this timber can be used:
Photo: Exposed feature beams in our Mildura Street showroom—these are blackbutt
Exposed Feature Beams
The robust and visually striking blackbutt and tallowwood are perfect for creating stunning exposed beams. Whether you're designing a modern space with industrial touches or a rustic interior, these beams will add a unique and historical element to your home.
Photo: Blackbutt / dense brown pergola timbers- Designed by owner architect Shane O'Brien and built by Jack from Gumley Building for Shane & Helen’s south Canberra home. Learn more about this project.
Rustic Pergola Posts & Beams
With a light wire brushing, this timber transforms beautifully into rustic pergola posts and beams. Imagine the presence and durability these large section timbers could bring to your outdoor living areas. We can also re-saw each 200 x 100mm decking board into smaller 100 x 100mm posts, which would be suitable for smaller pergolas and outdoor structures.
Photo: Outdoor tables and benches designed for Kingsborough Village in Kingston.
Custom Tables & Benches
The large dimensions and durability of this timber could make it an awesome choice for a big outdoor table or rough-sawn or wire brushed indoor dining tables and benches with loads of history, texture and character. The natural beauty and grain of the blackbutt and tallowwood will make these pieces stand out as focal points in your home.
We are thinking of making an outdoor table out of these timbers for our client meetings here - stay tuned to our socials for pics when that project goes ahead.
If you’d like to discuss a creative use for this historic bridge timber we’d love to hear from you. Make an enquiry below to speak to one of our designers.