Editing Moruya, New South Wales (section)

==Moruya granite==
[[File:Moruya Quarry 1929 SLNSW FL3325215.jpg|thumb|Moruya Quarry, New South Wales, 1929]]
Moruya is known for its [[granite]] stone that was used to build significant Australian landmarks, including the [[Sydney Harbour Bridge]]. The granite used in the Harbour Bridge pylons was quarried in the area. The proximity of the quarries to the water meant it could be easily transported to Sydney. Quarrying for granite commenced in the district in the late 1850s by brothers Joseph and John Flett Louttit, who were from the [[Orkney Islands]]. Their quarry on the south side of the river produced stone for many Sydney landmarks, including the columns of the [[General Post Office, Sydney|General Post Office]] in [[Martin Place]], and the base of the [[James Cook|Captain Cook]] statue in [[Hyde Park, Sydney|Hyde Park]].

[[File:MoruyaQuarry.JPG|thumb|right|Moruya Quarry]]
The Moruya Quarry, also known as the Government Quarry, opened in 1876 on the northern bank of the Moruya River. From 1925 to 1932, the Harbour Bridge works had 250 [[stonemason]]s employed and relocated to Moruya by the contractor to produce {{convert|20000|cuyd|abbr=on}} of dimension stone<ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article160081733 |title=Moruya Granite |newspaper=[[The Sydney Mail|Sydney Mail]] |volume=XL |issue=1042 |location=New South Wales, Australia |date=16 March 1932 |access-date=23 March 2017 |page=13 |via=[[National Library of Australia]]}}</ref> for the bridge pylons, 173,000 blocks, and 200,000 yards of crushed stone that was used as aggregate for concrete. Moruya granite was also used for the [[Sydney Cenotaph]] in Martin Place. During the seven years of this work, a small town of about 70 houses grew up near the quarry called Granitetown; little remains of the town today. The quarry had a [[Tramway (industrial)|tramway]] that closed in 1931.<ref>Tramways of the Sydney Harbour Bridge Granite Quarry - Moruya ''[[Light Railways]]'' issue 133 July 1996, pp. 3-9</ref><ref>Coat hanger turns 80' ''[[Track & Signal]]'' issue 16/1 February 2012, p. 61</ref> The wharf that was used by the quarry stood until around 2008, but was pulled down and replaced by a fishing platform.<ref>{{Cite web|date=16 December 2008|title=Moruya quarry wharf to make way for fishing platform|url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-12-16/moruya-quarry-wharf-to-make-way-for-fishing/241496|access-date=6 February 2021|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|language=en-AU}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|date=26 October 2010|title=A NOMINATION FOR THE RECOGNITION OF MORUYA GRANITE QUARRY COMPLEX & GRANITE TOWN AS SIGNIFICANT ENGINEERING HERITAGE SITES|url=https://portal.engineersaustralia.org.au/system/files/engineering-heritage-australia/nomination-title/HRP.Moruya%20Granite%20Quarries.Nomination.April%202016.pdf}}</ref> 

The Moruya Quarry is operated by the New South Wales Department of Infrastructure, Planning, and Natural Resources. A third quarry west of the Moruya Quarry was operated by the Ziegler family.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://granitetown.com.au/moruyahistory/ |title=Moruya History — Granite Town Music Festival |website=granitetown.com.au |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304073537/http://www.granitetown.com.au/moruyahistory/ |archive-date=4 March 2016}} </ref>