Much of the trouble associated with transporting bulky foodstuffs, such as flour and grain, is finding an inexpensive way to move the produce from areas of surplus to areas of need. In the early 1800s, transporting a tonne of flour from Maitland to Armidale farms cost 100 pounds (Ferry 1999, Godwin 1983). The local homesteads in the Armidale area grew and ground their own wheat, a less expensive activity. Eventually, the station mills were replaced by larger steam mills within the town.

The amount of flour produced exceeded the need of the local population so Godwin (1983) suspects the excess was transported to other areas for profit. The Hunter Valley wheat industry suffered a series of bad crops in the 1860s, creating a new market for the Armidale millers. However export markets were limited because of the lack of affordable transport (Ferry 1999).

Many endeavours were made to obtain efficient transport in Armidale. When the train line reached Tamworth in 1874, cartage of a tonne of flour by dray dropped from twelve pounds in the 1860s to thirty shillings by train (Walker 1966). The transport improved when in 1883 the train line reached Armidale. Armidale's population increased as a result of the arrival of the railway, so there was an increased local market for flour (Ferry 1999). However, the final boundaries, which kept Armidale isolated, crumbled with the building of a bridge over the Hawkesbury River in 1889 (Ferry 1999) The bridge spelt the end of Armidale's wheat production as better quality flour was more easily imported from Sydney.

Train, 1880s