railways
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WESTERN AUSTRALIA’S
RAILWAY BEGINNINGS
Click here for a PDF map of the extent of railways in WA in 1938.
WA’s first railway was built by The Western Australian Timber Company, a privately owned company who built the line from its timber mill at Yokonup, inland from Geographe Bay, to its jetty at Lockeville, near Busselton. The Lokeville-Yokonup line was 12 miles (19.3km) of narrow-gauge, 3 foot 6 inches (107cm) track and was opened in June 1871. For the first three months the rail line was worked by horses until the first steam locomotive arrived. It travelled at 25km/hour on iron rails.
Another line was built around the same time from Jarrahdale to Rockingham but this line had wooden rails and a locomotive that averaged 20km/hour.
In 1877 the first government agency with a responsibility for railways was established. It was known as the Department of Works and Railways. The first government owned railway line carried lead-copper from Northampton to Geraldton, a distance of 34 miles (55km). It opened in July 1879.
The first carriage in 1879
Geraldton/Northampton service
Rail Heritage pic
The “mixed” day to day operation of this railway included a locomotive hauling several goods wagons with passenger carriages and a brake-van at the end. It transported lead and copper ore, bales of wool, sandalwood, general goods and first and second class passengers. A one-way trip took about three hours.
The carriages or “cars” were built by the Metropolitan Railway Carriage and Wagon Company of Birmingham, England. They each had one first class and two second class compartments, seating 22 passengers (six in first class and sixteen in second class). First class had comfortable padded seats. Second class had wooden benches. Lighting was by oil lamps. The coachwork and frame was made of teak and the interior and roof was made of pine. Each coach was 4.9 metres long, 2.3 metres wide, 3.2 metres high and weighed 4.25 tonnes.
With the rapid increase in WA’s population during the 1890s and the growth and diversity of industry, the need for fast and efficient transport was necessary. Railway construction that had begun in the 1870s, now dramatically increased. In June 1879 work started on a line joining Fremantle to Perth and Guildford and on the 1st March 1881, the first metropolitan line was opened. By 1885 the track had been further extended to York.
In 1894 the privately owned Midland Railway Company built its own line from Midland Junction through the wheat-lands to Walkaway near Geraldton. This company had been largely underwritten by The National Bank, but with bad debts mounting and severe losses to investors such as Alexander Forrest occurring, the venture soon soured.
The Government railway workshops were based at Fremantle but with increased investment and a commitment to building more railways, the Acting General Manager of Railways, C.Y. O’Connor, suggested several new sites for them in 1891. In 1892, 260 acres of land fronting the Helena River was bought at Midland Junction. Many business men and politicians opposed this move, but in 1897 a running shed which had a turntable for locomotives, water tanks, pits and cleaning facilities was built there. In 1900, workshops commenced at the Midland site. By 1904 machinery and staff were moved there too. Workers who still lived in Fremantle travelled to and from work on a special train known as the rattler.
Between 1886 and the1890s the assortment of railways including the Great Southern Railway, the Eastern Railway, the Northern Railway and the Midland Railway had been constructed, managed and operated independently of each other. These railways were then merged into one large system known as the “Western Australian Government Railways” as part of the first Premier of Western Australia, John Forrest’s plan to develop the colony.
Alongside the train system, electric trams were introduced to Perth in 1899 and by 1914 the Government had bought the tram companies out. Electric trams also began running between Kalgoorlie and Boulder in 1902. They continued to run until 1952.
After the great construction projects initiated during the gold rush era of the 1890s, Western Australia’s population continued to spread into the agricultural regions. From 1906, under Premiers, Moore and Scaddan, land grant schemes established new farmers in the central wheatbelt. These governments promised to build new railways that would allow every farmer to be within 24 km of rail transport.
In 1923, after the end of World War 1, the Premier, James Mitchell, signed an agreement that would enable 75,000 British emigrants to live in Western Australia. Many of these were expected to take up new wheat farms in the eastern wheatbelt and the building of light agricultural railway lines supported them.
Small settlements along the railway usually included a railway siding, an elevated water tower, shunting and stock yards, one main street, an assortment of shops, a post office, a bank, a garage, a small school house and a handful of houses. There might also be a church, a community hall, a hotel and a rest centre organised by the Country Women’s Association.
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DEVELOPMENT OF THE
GREAT SOUTHERN REGION
The construction of the Great Southern Railway played a major role in the development of Katanning and the Great Southern region. As a result of the opening of the railway, Katanning became a major hub for transport throughout the region. With branch lines to various centres, Narrogin and Wagin also flourished.
The Katanning station became one of the busiest on the line between Albany and Northam. In later years branch lines were built to Pingrup and to Donnybrook via Kojonup and Boyup Brook. Both of these lines have now closed to rail traffic although the line as far as Nyabing is still in place in mid 2017.
Although the main Northam – Albany line is still in use it is no longer the major transport life-line it was in its earlier years as much of the traffic is now hauled by road. The steam era finished on the Great Southern Railway in 1971 and the overnight rail passenger services finished in 1978.
Perth – Katanning – Pingrup Rail Motor Passenger Service
Driving the Last Spike
(Photo ARHS Archives)
RAILWAY STATIONS
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KATANNING RAILWAY STATION
Original Railway Station c1900
with school and goods shed in background,
The original railway station was constructed early in 1889, when the railway line was established. The railway was officially opened in February 1889, with settlers from all over the district gathering to meet the first trainload of passengers. Continue reading [ 2 ]
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BROOMEHILL RAILWAY STATION
The town of Broomehill owes its creation to the Great Southern Railway, which was completed in 1889. The railway runs from Beverley to Albany. Broomehill is named after Sir Frederick Napier Broome (1842–96) who was then the Governor of Western Australia.
The Broomehill (or Broome Hill at the time) railway station was constructed by the West Australian Land Company and opened on 1 June 1889. The station was manned from its opening up until 30 September, 1921. It remained unattended until its closure and removal in the late 1990’s.
BROOMEHILL STATION MASTERS
F. Nicholas – 1 June 1889 to 1894
R. J. Drown – 1894 to July 1889
J. Hardman – July 1898 to March 1899
F.W. Jones – March 1899 to March 1901
H. Dutton – March 1901 to December 1901
J. Cuneo – December 1901 to July 1908
T.L. Warner – July 1908 to February 1909
J. Glynn – February 1909 to March 1909
M. Stormon – March 1909 to May 1910
J. W. Burgess – May 1910 to December 1912
T. Stone – December 1912 to April 1914
A. Gordon – April 1914 to August 1920
H.J. Fimmell – August 1920 to 30 September 1921
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WOODANILLING RAILWAY STATION
The WA Land Co, who owned the Great Southern Railway (From Beverley to Albany), opened on the 1st of June 1889 and Round Pool (later renamed Woodanilling) was listed as one of the original sidings. Read more
Original Woodanilling Railway Station
BRANCH LINES
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KATANNING – KOJONUP RAILWAY
With the Great Southern Railway having been completed and a town established at Katanning, rural development started to expand between Katanning and Kojonup and further westward. Agitation started with the government to have a branch line built between the two towns with a view to having it extended to Bunbury at a later date.
The the branch line finally opened on 10 April, 1907 during the Moore Ministry. Continue reading
Kojonup Railway Station c1950
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KATANNING-PINGRUP RAILWAY
The WA Government Railway to Nyabing began construction in 1910, and in April 1912 the Katanning – Nampup (Nyabing) Railway line officially opened by Premier Scadden in January 1913). Nampup was later renamed Nyabing.
In 1923 this line was extended to Pingrup and this ceremony was officiated by Governor Newdegate. A special luncheon was held for this occasion, which was provided by the local women. In 1951 the railway service from Nyabing to Pingrup was suspended by the government and in 1960 it closed. However, the following year the line did open on a seasonal basis. Continue reading
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KATANNING-TAMBELLUP-ONGERUP
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Ongerup Branch railway, also known as the Tambellup, Gnowangerup to Ongerup railway, is a former railway in Western Australia although most of the trains operating on this branch line originated from Katanning to the north..
The 94.1-kilometre (58.5 mi) Tambellup to Ongerup branch line from the Great Southern Railway main line between Perth and Albany was opened to Gnowangerup on 1 July 1912, and finally through to Ongerup on 6 January 1913. The line was developed to provide direct access for the expanding wheat production area to the port at Albany. The line was authorised for construction under the Tambellup-Ongerup Railway Act 1911. A timetable from 1937 shows two trains per week leaving Ongerup on Tuesdays at 06:55 and Fridays at 04:00. Lengthy connections of around 12 hours were available at Katanning for Perth, arriving approximately 30 hours after leaving Ongerup.
The line went via Tambellup, Dartnall, Toolbrunup, Pallinup, Gnowangerup, Formby, Kebaringup, Borden, Laurier, Toompup and Ongerup. Water supply for the trains was provided at Formby.
In 1918 a barracks was constructed on Eldridge Street for railway workers based in Ongerup. The building survived the closure of the railway and now houses the Ongerup and Needilup District Museum, opened in 1978.
In 1986 the Gnowangerup Railway Station building was closed as a working station and remained unused until 2000, when it was dismantled and moved to the Lily Vineyard, near Borden, where it was rebuilt in 2003 as a restaurant.
The section of line from Gnowangerup to Ongerup was closed on 13 October 1957 as part of the State Government’s raitionalisation of railways program. The Tambellup to Gnowangerup section was closed in July 2007.
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KATANNING – KOJONUP – BUNBURY BUS SERVICE
A road-bus service was provided from Bunbury to Katanning and return in 1950. Although the days it ran changed over the years it was discontinued in 1978 after the Perth-Albany passenger train service ceased to operate. Continue reading
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THE BEGINNING
GREAT SOUTHERN RAILWAY
GREAT SOUTHERN RAILWAY
From: Australian Railways Wiki
The Great Southern Railway (GSR) was built, owned and operated by the Western Australian Land Company, a company set up specifically for the purpose by Anthony Hordern, that operated from Beverley to Albany in Western Australia between 1886 and 1896. In 1896 the Western Australian Government Railways took over this company and the railway route also kept the name.
The first sods for the railway were turned on 20 October 1886. This occurred simultaneously at Beverley and Albany by Lady Broome and the Governor Sir Frederick Broome respectively. The final spike was driven on 14 February 1889, 122 miles (196 km) north of Albany. The official opening of the line was on 1 June 1889.
The construction of the railway was significant for the development of economic activity in the region and led to the establishment of grain and sheep grazing, along with the development of towns such as Katanning, Broomehill, Tambellup, Mount Barker and Woodanilling. Continue reading
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W.A. LAND COMPANY
Prior to the construction of Fremantle Harbour, Albany, some three hundred miles and a five day coach journey to the south, was the main deep-water port for the colony of Western Australia. The lack of adequate port facilities with good transport links to the growing agricultural districts was hampering development in the colony.
The W.A. Land Company was started in London by New South Wales businessman, Anthony Hordern, to build the Great Southern Railway on a “Land Grant” scheme. Read more
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WESTERN AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT RAILWAYS
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) was the operator of railway services in the state of Western Australia between October 1890 and June 2003. Owned by the state government, it was renamed a number of times to reflect extra responsibility for tram and ferry operations that it assumed and later relinquished. Westrail was the trading name of WAGR from September 1975 until December 2000, when the WAGR’s freight division and the Westrail name and logo were privatised. Its freight operations were privatised in December 2000 with the remaining passenger operations transferred to the Public Transport Authority in July 2003. Continue reading
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A thesis by Thomas Goode
The University of Notre Dame Australia
2021
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This thesis examines the circumstances surrounding the building of the Great Southern Railway as a land-grant railway in the colony of Western Australia in the 1880s and its purchase by the government in 1896.
In the early 1880s the steamship companies bringing mail and passengers from overseas and the eastern colonies, preferred Albany to Fremantle, adding an uncomfortable three to four day journey to the capital Perth. To overcome this difficulty, the government proposed to build a railway from Albany to the existing network at Beverley.
This railway was to be funded by grants of land to the private company building the railway. As background to this decision, the first part of this thesis examines the way governments used the technology of railways in Europe, North America, and the eastern colonies of Australia to solve social and economic challenges.
CLICK HERE
Great Southern Railway
MEMORIAL CAIRN
Situated where the two sections of the railway met.
(one from Beverley and the other from Albany)
CLICK HERE
RAILWAY NEWS
News from old newspapers relating to the railways both
in Katanning and on the Great Southern Railway.
CLICK HERE
railways.