Lahey's Canungra Sawmill Complex, Industrial heritage site in Canungra, Australia.
Lahey's Canungra Sawmill Complex is a former sawmill at 10–26 Finch Road, Canungra, established in 1884 on land leased from Robert Christie beside what is now Christie Street. The site retains concrete foundations and machinery remnants from timber processing, with separate areas for sawing, planing and storage. The mill was rebuilt after fires in 1897 and 1906, and the 1906 rebuild added a drying kiln and planing machine shed.
David Lahey began building the mill on 2 October 1884 on land leased from Robert Christie. Machinery arrived by steamer up the Logan River and was hauled to the site by bullock teams. Fires destroyed the mill in 1897 and 1906, each time followed by a larger rebuild; the Lahey family sold it in 1921 and it closed around 1935.
The Lahey family built worker cottages near the mill, creating a settlement that eventually grew into the town of Canungra. These homes show how mill employees and their families lived close to their workplace.
The site is located along Finch Road in Canungra and consists mainly of archaeological remains that you can explore on your own. Visiting during daylight hours works best since the remains sit on open ground.
The mill's tramway reached 26.5 kilometres of track in total, including a branch up Flying Fox Creek and a sub-branch to an aerial ropeway on Beech Mountain. In 1915 alone it hauled 15,000 long tons of logs to the mill.
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