Burra railway station was located on the Roseworthy-Peterborough railway line. It served the township of Burra, South Australia.
Burra | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The Burra railway station building pre-restoration, June 2008. | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | Railway Terrace, Burra, South Australia | ||||||||||
| Elevation | 474 m | ||||||||||
| Owned by | South Australian Railways 1860 - 1978 Australian National 1978 - 1997 | ||||||||||
| Operated by | South Australian Railways 1860 - 1978 Australian National 1978 - 1986 | ||||||||||
| Line(s) | Roseworthy-Peterborough line | ||||||||||
| Distance | 164 kilometres from Adelaide | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 2 | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||
| Structure type | Ground | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Status | Closed | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opened | 29 August 1870 | ||||||||||
| Closed | December 1986 | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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History
editOpening
editBurra railway station opened on 29 August 1870 as part of the extension of what was then the Northern Extension Railway to Burra.[1] A wooden and corrugated iron structure was built at the time of its opening but was soon replaced by the present building. The original arched roof over the tracks and platforms was retained at this time, but later demolished in 1935. The cast iron water tank and the water columns are adjacent to the station building. By 1883 the wooden building at Burra proved inadequate for the large numbers of passengers passing through the station. This new Victorian-style station, complete with refreshment rooms, was built by October of that year. The refreshment rooms were closed on 1 July 1936.[2] The railway line was extended further north to Hallett and Terowie on 15 December 1880.[3]
Closure
editIn 1978, the station and all associated infrastructure was included in the transfer of South Australian Railways to Australian National. Regular passenger services ceased in December 1986. The last passenger train north of Burra was a Steamrail Victoria tour using Victorian locomotive R761 on 6 June 1987 with the line north of Burra being closed and removed by 1993.[4] The last passenger train to use the remaining line to Burra was a SteamRanger tour hauled by former SAR steam locomotive 621 and recently acquired diesel locomotive 958 on 19 September 1992. 958 was used to lead the train back to Adelaide as the turntable at Burra was too small to turn 621. On 1 November 1997, Australian Southern Railroad acquired a 50-year lease on the rail corridor and total ownership of the rail infrastructure as part of Australian National's South Australian freight assets sale to ASR. Grain trains last operated to Burra in January 1999. The last light engine movement ran to Burra on 12 March 2004 with Australian Railroad Group (formerly ASR) locomotive 843.[5]
Present day
editIn 2010, restoration works began on the neglected railway station and was completed by April 2016.[6][7] A historic carriage was placed at the station and the station now houses a display and a bed and breakfast.[8] The grain silos remain but are now served by road. In 2022, residents of Burra appealed to the parliament to restore a train service to Adelaide although no progress has yet been made.[9]
References
edit- ^ "OPENING OF THE NORTHERN EXTENSION RAILWAY". South Australian Register. 30 August 1870. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ Burra Railway Station Complex Archived 29 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine'
This article incorporates text from this source, which is available under the CC BY 3.0 license.
- ^ "OPENING OF THE HALLETT AND TEROWIE RAILWAY". Evening Journal. 15 December 1880. Archived from the original on 28 July 2024. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ https://steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/history/pdfs/r8708a.pdf Steam Extravaganza
- ^ "Burra Railway". www.burrasa.info. Archived from the original on 28 July 2024. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ Smyth, Denis (2014), Burra Railway Station, [Denis Smyth], retrieved 17 August 2024
- ^ "The 'heritage hero' who can't keep his hands off restoration". ABC News. 9 August 2019. Archived from the original on 22 May 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ tdewell (9 January 2019). "Burra Railway Station". Visit Burra. Archived from the original on 26 July 2024. Retrieved 28 July 2024.
- ^ Off the rails: ‘Dying’ SA town appeals for train return
