Flinders Bay Branch Railway
Encyclopedia
A branch railway from Busselton to Flinders Bay, in South Western Western Australia
Originally part of the M.C.Davies
Timber railway system, which ran between the two jetties at Hamelin Bay
and Flinders Bay
(supposedly to be able to load timber regardless of the prevailing weather). The rails were light and the line was poorly constructed, and oriented towards rough workings of the timber railway system.
The railway was taken over in 1924 and connected with Busselton. Although a slow service due to the lighter rails and steep gradients, the branch was important for the dairy industry in the region.
Usually known as the Flinders Bay branch, it ran until 1957. It was one of three branches in the Western Australian Government Railways
system that relied on the important Msa garratt
steam engine to be able to move the loads over steep and difficult gradients.
Railway station in xxx miles xxx chains
.
(Some names of sidings and locations might have been used during the Group Settlement Scheme
era, and not necessarily retained in later locality names)
Most of the railway formation and structures were removed close to closure. The Flinders Bay engine shed, and some parts of the railway yard were not immediately removed and remained intact until the late 1950s.
A limited number of photographs exist of the stopping platform at Flinders Bay, but very few exist of the Flinders Bay Jetty.
At one stage in the 1970s, Railway Bus Drivers had the opportunity to stay overnight in a small railway cottage/shed at the bay-side edge of the Flinders Bay yard.
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
Originally part of the M.C.Davies
M. C. Davies
Maurice Coleman Davies was a timber miller in the early history of Western Australia. He created the M.C.Davies Karri and Jarrah Timber Company, a timber empire that employed hundreds of men, laid over a hundred kilometres of private railway, and even built its own private ports for exporting of...
Timber railway system, which ran between the two jetties at Hamelin Bay
Hamelin Bay, Western Australia
Hamelin Bay is a bay and a locality on the south west coast of Western Australia between Cape Leeuwin and Cape Naturaliste. It is named after French explorer Jacques Félix Emmanuel Hamelin who sailed through the area in about 1801...
and Flinders Bay
Flinders Bay
Flinders Bay is a bay and locality that is immediately south of the townsite of Augusta, Western Australia, and close to the mouth of the Blackwood River and lies to the north east of Cape Leeuwin.-Bay:Flinders Bay...
(supposedly to be able to load timber regardless of the prevailing weather). The rails were light and the line was poorly constructed, and oriented towards rough workings of the timber railway system.
The railway was taken over in 1924 and connected with Busselton. Although a slow service due to the lighter rails and steep gradients, the branch was important for the dairy industry in the region.
Usually known as the Flinders Bay branch, it ran until 1957. It was one of three branches in the Western Australian Government Railways
Western Australian Government Railways
Western Australian Government Railways was most common name of the Western Australian government rail transport authority from 1890 to 1976. It is, in its current form, known as the Public Transport Authority of Western Australia....
system that relied on the important Msa garratt
Msa garratt
The WAGR Msa class was a class of Garratt steam locomotive constructed at the Western Australian Government Railways Midland Railway Workshops in Australia.The class was preceded on the WAGR system by the M and the Ms Garratts...
steam engine to be able to move the loads over steep and difficult gradients.
Stopping Places
Distances listed after name is that from PerthPerth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
Railway station in xxx miles xxx chains
Chain (unit)
A chain is a unit of length; it measures 66 feet or 22 yards or 100 links . There are 10 chains in a furlong, and 80 chains in one statute mile. An acre is the area of 10 square chains...
.
- BusseltonBusselton, Western Australia-Growth and development:According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics the Shire had a permanent resident population of 25,950 in 2004 with the town of Busselton accounting for 67% or 17,400 of the total. The Shire's permanent population is expected to continue to increase significantly to...
- 148 mi 58 ch (239.3 km) - Vasse - 155 m 32 ch (249.9 km)
- Marybrook - 159 mi 6 ch (256.0 km)
- Quindalup - 161 mi 77 ch (162.0 km)
- Yallingup - 165 mi 63 ch (266.8 km)
- Yelverton/Lennox - 170 mi 0 ch (275.2 km)
- Metricup
- Walburra
- Marmalup/Harmans - 173 mi 56 ch (279.5 km)
- Cowaramup
- Rosin/Bramley
- Margaret RiverMargaret River, Western AustraliaMargaret River is a town in the South West of Western Australia, located in the valley of the eponymous Margaret River, south of Perth, the state capital. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River....
- Narawarry
- Witchcliffe/PullinWitchcliffe, Western AustraliaWitchcliffe is a small town in the South West region of Western Australia, located a few kilometres south of Margaret River on the Bussell Highway.The name originates from a cave in the area, Witchcliffe cave, that was recorded by a surveyor in 1900...
- Forrest Grove
- Boranup/Brumvale
- Arumvale
- Dianella
- KarridaleKarridale, Western AustraliaKarridale is a small township in the south-west of Western Australia. Its postcode is 6288 and is located just north of Augusta and south of Margaret River between Caves Road and Bussell Highway. A newer township was built a short distance north east of the original Old Karridale following fires...
- 204 mi 52 ch (329.4 km) - Kudardup - 209 mi 58 ch (337.5 km)
- AugustaAugusta, Western AustraliaAugusta is a town on the south-west coast of Western Australia, where the Blackwood River emerges into Flinders Bay. It is the nearest town to Cape Leeuwin, on the farthest south-west corner of the Australian continent. In the 2001 census it had a population of 1,694; by 2006 the population of...
- 213 mi 78 ch (344.4 km) - Flinders Bay/Barrack Point - 215 mi 61 ch (347.2 km)
(Some names of sidings and locations might have been used during the Group Settlement Scheme
Group Settlement Scheme
The Group Settlement Scheme was an assisted migration scheme which operated in Western Australia from the early 1920s. It was engineered by Premier James Mitchell and followed on from the Soldier Settlement Scheme immediately after World War I...
era, and not necessarily retained in later locality names)
Most of the railway formation and structures were removed close to closure. The Flinders Bay engine shed, and some parts of the railway yard were not immediately removed and remained intact until the late 1950s.
A limited number of photographs exist of the stopping platform at Flinders Bay, but very few exist of the Flinders Bay Jetty.
At one stage in the 1970s, Railway Bus Drivers had the opportunity to stay overnight in a small railway cottage/shed at the bay-side edge of the Flinders Bay yard.
Reference
- Higham, Geoffrey Where was that? An Historical Gazetteer of Western Australia, Winthrop, W.A. Geoproject Solutions Pty Ltd. ISBN 0-646-44186-8