THOMAS BENT, FRANCIS BRADFORD AND ELECTRIC TRAMWAYS IN MELBOURNE 1904-1909
In our first co-presentation for 2023 with Engineering Heritage Victoria, Ken McInnes will speak about the controversies surrounding the electrification of Melbourne’s suburban railway system in the early years of the twentieth century.
In 1904, electrical and mechanical engineer Francis Edwin Bradford (1869-1927), a recognised American electric tramways pioneer, was controversially contracted directly by Thomas Bent, Victorian Minister of Railways, and Premier, to report on and progressively electrify Melbourne’s suburban railway system. This presentation highlights the twists and turns that followed.