Lahey's Canungra Tramway Tunnel
| Lahey's Canungra Tramway Tunnel | |
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Locomotive approaching the tunnel on the Canungra Sawmill tramway, 1912
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| Location | Canungra, Queensland, Australia |
| Coordinates | 28°01′23″S 153°10′18″E / 28.0231°S 153.1718°ECoordinates: 28°01′23″S 153°10′18″E / 28.0231°S 153.1718°E |
| Design period | 1900 - 1914 (early 20th century) |
| Built | 1901 - 1903 |
| Official name: Lahey's Canungra Tramway Tunnel | |
| Type | state heritage (built) |
| Designated | 11 April 2005 |
| Reference no. | 602529 |
| Significant period | 1900s (fabric) 1903-c. 1933 (historical period of use) 1940s (wartime storage use) |
| Significant components | graffiti, cutting - tramway, tunnel - tramway |
| Builders | Mr Clark |
 Location of Lahey's Canungra Tramway Tunnel in Queensland
Location of Lahey's Canungra Tramway Tunnel in Queensland
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Lahey's Canungra Tramway Tunnel is a heritage-listed tunnel on Laheys Tramway at Canungra, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1901 to 1903 by Mr Clark. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 11 April 2005.
The Laheys Canungra Tramway Tunnel represents part of a large scale, privately constructed and operated tramway used between 1903 and 1930. The tramway tunnel was cut through solid sandstone, thereby negating any requirements for lining or support structures.
European settlement of the area surrounding the Coomera River commenced in 1843 with the establishment of the Tambourine holding. Early timber harvesting began in the 1860s by Hugh Mahony, who cut and hauled cedar logs to mills in Ipswich.
The Lahey family emigrated from their native Ireland to Australia in 1862. Francis Lahey, his wife and eleven children arrived in Sydney, but immediately travelled north to Brisbane. The family began farming in the Pimpama region in 1870. In 1875 Francis Lahey purchased a sugar mill and sawbench at Tygum, Waterford for his sons.
After being informed of the "good timber" in the region, David Lahey commenced work on the construction of the first sawmill in Canungra on 2 October 1884. During the same year David, John, Isaiah, Thomas and Evangeline Lahey all applied for and were granted selections of land around Canungra totaling over 3,000 acres.
The mill at Canungra flourished during the first sixteen years of operation with timber readily obtained from the immediate area. The Lahey family expanded their business during this time, establishing an office in Brisbane in 1887, saw and planing mills at Beaudesert in 1888, the construction of a new mill at Canungra in 1897 after the original mill was destroyed by fire, and the construction of another mill at Widgee near Hill View in 1898.
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