Brinkworth railway station, South Australia

Former railway station in South Australia, Australia

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Brinkworth

Brinkworth railway station, (4 March 1994)

General information
Location| Main Street, Brinkworth, South Australia
Coordinates| 33°41′46″S 138°24′16″E﻿ / ﻿33.696047012157514°S 138.40433282007714°E﻿ / -33.696047012157514; 138.40433282007714
Operated by| Australian National
Line(s)| Hamley Bridge-Gladstone railway line
Distance| 155 kilometres from Adelaide
Platforms| 2
Tracks| 2
Construction
Structure type| Ground
Other information
Status| Closed, mostly demolished
History
Opened| 2 July 1894
Closed| 1968 (passengers)
20 February 1990 (freight)
Services
| Preceding station  | Australian National Railways Commission | Following station

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Blyth

towards Adelaide

|  | Gladstone railway line |  | Yacka

towards Gladstone

Preceding station  | Australian National Railways Commission | Following station

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Terminus |  | Kadina-Brinkworth railway line |  | Condowie

towards Kadina

Brinkworth railway station was located at the junction of the Hamley Bridge-Gladstone railway line and the Kadina-Brinkworth railway line. It served the town of Brinkworth, South Australia.

## History

[edit]

Brinkworth railway station opened when the railway line from Snowtown and the line from Blyth to Gladstone reached it on 2 July 1894. Both lines were originally built as narrow gauge 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in).[1] Brinkworth was eventually described as “the Great Junction of the Blyth, Snowtown and Gladstone Railways”.[2]

On 1 August 1927, both lines were gauge converted to 5 ft 3 in (1,600 mm).[3]

The station itself was built as a big wooden railway station with luggage rooms, waiting rooms, porter's rooms, residences for the station master and foreman and porters etc. A railway refreshment rooms was set up in Brinkworth in 1895 and operated until 1941 servicing both Gladstone and Moonta trains.[4][5] A concrete weir and a four million gallon capacity reservoir was constructed to the east on Magpie Creek to serve the railway complex. Grain silos were later added in 1956, 1969 and 1970 to handle bulk grain transportation by road.[6]

The railcar service to Moonta ceased by 1972.[7] In 1959, passenger services to and from Brinkworth to Adelaide began to be served by new South Australian Railways Bluebird railcars but they too ceased by 1982. The line from Gladstone through Brinkworth to Adelaide was closed on 29 March 1989 with the grain trade being let to road transport [8] and the remaining line from Snowtown closed on 20 February 1990. The lines and the rail yards through Brinkworth were removed after 1991. The station building was demolished in November 1996 due to it being eaten by white ants.[9][10]

The Peppertree Trail, a 2.4 km long trail now runs along the old track, from the original stockyards to the junction where the lines diverged to Blyth or Snowtown.[11] The old railway turntable, the water tower, 2 disused railway platforms and a goods crane are all that remain of the station today along with various other remnants like old farming instruments, a section car on display and various information signs telling the history about the town, the railways and the station.[12]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Snowtown, a Railway Crossroads". Snowtown Museum. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
2. ^ "Brinkworth Historical Walk". Walking SA. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
3. ^ "Railways – Gladstone SA". Retrieved 4 September 2024.
4. ^ denisbin (24 May 2018), Brinkworth. Information booth and old SAR railways sign at the site of the former Brinkworth Railway Station., Flickr, retrieved 4 September 2024
5. ^ "Railway Station, Brinkworth". State Library of South Australia. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
6. ^ "HERITAGE SURVEY OF THE LOWER NORTH" (PDF). South Australian Department of Environment and Planning. 1983. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
7. ^ "Interactive Maps of Railways and Colonisation in South Australia". railmapsa.au. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
8. ^ Quinlan, Howard; Newland, John (2000). Australian Railway Routes 1854 - 2000. Redfern: Australian Railway Historical Society. pp. 56, 58. ISBN 0 909650 49 7.
9. ^ denisbin (24 May 2018), Brinkworth. Information board and photograph of the now demolished and removed Brinkworth Railway Station., Flickr, retrieved 4 September 2024
10. ^ Contemplari (11 May 2017), Brinkworth Railway - The Farmer's Friend provided grain bulk handling and transport by rail. Rail transport ended in 1989 to be followed by road transport. Mid North South Australia, Flickr, retrieved 4 September 2024
11. ^ "Brinkworth Historical Walk". Walking SA. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
12. ^ Outdoorstype (17 September 2023). Across the Condowie Plains - The Old Line from Snowtown to Brinkworth - What's Left?. Retrieved 4 September 2024 - via YouTube.