North Mount Lyell Railway
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The North Mount Lyell Railway was built to service the North Mount Lyell mine in West Coast Tasmania at the start of the Twentieth Century to take ore from Gormanston east of the West Coast Range to the Crotty smelters, and then on to Pillinger in the Kelly Basin of Macquarie Harbour, from where it was shipped out.
The North Mount Lyell Railway had exceptionally easy grades compared to its competitor the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company which ran its Abt rack system railway through very steep grades from Queenstown to Regatta Point.
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[edit] History
[edit] Operation
The line was opened for passengers 15 December 1900, and was taken over by the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company on 16 July 1903. The line was serviced by a small rail motor similar to that on the Lake Margaret Tram in the last years of operation. Due to failure of the Crotty smelters and the North Mount Lyell operations in general, and the amalgamation of the Mount Lyell and North Mount Lyell mines and companies, the railway had a short operational life, closed to passengers in July 1924 and closed in 1929.
[edit] After closure
The railway bridge at the King River and the old rail formation were utilised right up to the damming of the River and the creation of Lake Burbury by the Hydro Electric Commission in the 1980s. The railway formation between the Linda Valley and the old locality of Darwin is now under water.
The railway formation between Mount Owen and Mount Jukes was known as the Kelly Basin Road during the No Dams campaign of December 1982 - and was a location of interaction between members of the Tasmanian Police and protesters.
[edit] Today
It is still possible to drive to the Kelly Basin Road, where a turnoff to the left (gated and locked) will eventually lead to the proposed Franklin Dam location. If the explorer continues on the Kelly Basin Road (the old formation) they will eventually reach a bridge, at which point the explorer must take to foot to complete the journey to Kelly Basin. Walking time is 3 to 4 hours one way, but an easy grade.
At Kelly Basin, little remains to indicate that it was once a bustling railhead and wharf. Old wharf pilings can be located, and the remains of a rusting boiler and other scrap iron. Bottle collectors have returned from fossicking expeditions to Kelly Basin with some remarkably well preserved specimens.
[edit] Stopping Places
- Gormanston (branch from Linda 1900-1903 only)
- Linda
- Crotty -- previous name King River until 1902
- Crotty Smelters (siding)
- Darwin
- Ten Mile
- Pillinger (Kelly Basin)
[edit] References
- Atkinson, H.K. (1991). Railway Tickets of Tasmania. ISBN 0-9598718-7-X.
- Blainey, Geoffrey (2000). The Peaks of Lyell, 6th ed., Hobart: St. David's Park Publishing. ISBN 0-7246-2265-9.
- Lines, William J. (2006) Patriots : defending Australia's natural heritage St. Lucia, Qld. : University of Queensland Press, 2006. ISBN 0-70223-554-7
- Rae, Lou. The Abt Railway and Railways of the Lyell region. Sandy Bay: Lou Rae. ISBN 0-9592098-7-5.
- Whitham, Charles. Western Tasmania - A land of riches and beauty, Reprint 2003, Queenstown: Municipality of Queenstown.
- 2003 edition - Queenstown: Municipality of Queenstown.
- 1949 edition - Hobart: Davies Brothers. OCLC 48825404; ASIN B000FMPZ80
- 1924 edition - Queenstown: Mount Lyell Tourist Association. OCLC 35070001; ASIN B0008BM4XC
- Whitham, Lindsay (2002). Railways, Mines, Pubs and People and other historical research. Sandy Bay: Tasmanian Historical Research Association. ISBN 0-909479-21-6.
