The story of this place
When the Story Bridge opened in July 1940, it was the longest cantilever bridge in Australia, built during the depths of the Great Depression specifically to provide employment for thousands of struggling Queenslanders. Engineer John Bradfield — the same man who designed the Sydney Harbour Bridge — oversaw the project. The bridge was named after John Douglas Story, a public servant who championed Queensland's public works. Workers earned 10 shillings a day and were grateful for it.
The bridge required 12,000 tonnes of steel and took 5,000 workers six years to build. During World War II, it became a strategic asset — Brisbane served as General Douglas MacArthur's headquarters for the Pacific campaign, and the bridge carried troops, supplies and the entire war effort across the river. Today, adventure climbers scale its 80-metre arch for views over the city that MacArthur surveyed from below.