Australian Overland Telegraph Line

Planting the first pole on the Overland Telegraph line to Carpentaria.

The Australian Overland Telegraph Line was a 3200 Kilometre telegraph line that connected Darwin with Port Augusta. The construction of the line fell to Charles Todd, South Australian Superintendent of Telegraphs. Completed in 1872 the Overland Telegraph Line allowed fast communication between Australia and the rest of the world. An additional section was added in 1877 with the completion of the Western Australian section of the line. Many consider it to be one of the great engineering feats of the 19th century.

Conception and Competition

By 1855 speculation and discussion about possible routes for the connection of Australia to the new telegraph cable to Java and then to the world had intensified. Among the possible routes were Ceylon to Albany in Western Australia, and from Java to Darwin, then on to Burketown in north western Queensland to connect the eastern states.

Competition between the colonies to develop the North to South was fierce. Victoria organised and expedition lead by Burke and Wills to cross the continent from Broken Hill to the Gulf of Carpentaria in 1860. This expedition was a failure and resulted in the loss of life. The South Australian Government recognised the economic benefits in becoming the centre of the telegraph network. It offered a reward of £2,000 to encourage an expedition to find a route between South Australia and Darwin.

John McDouall Stuart attracted by the reward set out with Captain Charles Sturt on his 1844 expedition to Central Australia. Following the 1844 expedition Stuart made two unsuccessful attempts to cross the continent, both times falling just short of his goal. On December, 1861 Stuart set out on his third expedition to reach the North coast of Australia. On July 24 1862, seven months later Stuart's expedition reached the North coast at a place they named Chambers Bay, after a sponsor of their expeditions.

South Australia again strengthened its position for the telegraph line in 1870 with the South Australian Parliament authorising the construction of a telegraph line between Adelaide and Port Augusta, 300km to the North. The provocative move by South Australia caused outrage in Queensland who considered the route between Darwin to Burketown a more attractive option.

The Construction of the Overland Telegraph Line was on a strict schedule. The cable from Java was to reach Darwin on 31 December 1871 and severe penalties would apply if there was no land link to connect to. There would be 18 months to construct 3,200 km of line, telegraph stations and residences.

Construction

Charles Todd as head of the project devised a timetable to complete the immense project on schedule. Todd divided the route into three regions; the northern and southern sections which would be handled by private contractors and the central section which would be constructed by his own department. The telegraph line would comprise of 3,000 steels postseach 6 metres (no less than 20 per mile), insulators, batteries, wire and other equipment, ordered from England.

Todd put together a team comprising of men from all walks of life; surveyors, linesman, carpenters, labourers and cooks. The team left Adelaide with horses, bullocks and carts loaded with provisions and equipment for many weeks. The Central section of the line would be surveyed by the explorer John Ross. William Dalwood and Joseph Derwent arrived in Darwin onboard the SS Omeo with 80 men and the equipment required to construct the Northern section of the line from Darwin to Tennant Creek. The southern section from Port Augusta to Alberga Creek was contracted to Edward Meade Bagot.

The North line was progressing well until the onset of the wet season in November 1870. Heavy rain up to 10 inches a day water-logged the ground and made it impossible for any work to progress. Worsening conditions including rancid food and mosquitoes spread disease the men went on strike on 7 March 1871. Weeks later the overseer, McMinn decided to recind the contract for the North section of the line. The Government was now forced to construct the central and Northern sections of the line. This placed considerable pressure on the South Australian Government and the government teams. They would now have to build an extra 700km of line. It was another six months before fresh teams arrived in Darwin. These new men were lead by engineer Robert Patterson.

When the central and Southern sections were nearing completion, this lead Patterson into taking a different strategy in the construction of the Northern section. The section would be divided into 4 sub-sections with the majority of the men starting on the most northerly section. If the construction deadline was missed the gap could be filled by using a pony express. During the same time the cable from Java reached Darwin on 18 November 1871 and was connected the next day.

Because of the construction problems still facing the northern section, the Queensland government called for the abandonment of the project. This was dismissed. On the due date there will still over 300km of line to erect. During this time Todd began visiting workers along the line; his intentions were to relieve their spirits. On 22 May 1872 Todd sent a message along the incomplete line. The message took 9 days to reach Adelaide.

The Overland Telegraph Line was overdue and talk of compensation began. The cable between Java and Darwin failed on its first test. This ended any further talk of compensation. On 22 August 1872 the line was joined at Frew's Ponds. Todd was given the honour of sending the first message along the completed line.

"WE HAVE THIS DAY, WITHIN TWO YEARS, COMPLETED A LINE OF COMMUNICATIONS TWO THOUSAND MILES LONG THROUGH THE VERY CENTRE OF AUSTRALIA, UNTIL A FEW YEARS AGO A TERRA INCOGNITA BELIEVED TO BE A DESERT +++"

In 1877 an additional section of line was completed, linking the people of Western Australia to the rest of the world.