The long and winding history of Bells Line of Road

Updated July 21 2015 - 12:56pm, first published 12:30pm
The current North Richmond bridge, soon after it was built, with the first bridge to the right, built 1860. Pictures: courtesy KCHS
The current North Richmond bridge, soon after it was built, with the first bridge to the right, built 1860. Pictures: courtesy KCHS
Kurrajong Road looking towards North Richmond Bridge. Pughs Lagoon is in the mid-ground.
Kurrajong Road looking towards North Richmond Bridge. Pughs Lagoon is in the mid-ground.

BELLS Line of Road was marked in 1823 by Archibald Bell who, with the help of Aboriginal guides, found an alternative road to Bathurst. For many years Bells Line was little more than a stock route, rarely used in comparison to the Great Western Highway, which from the 1860s onwards also had the railway line running parallel to it.