Mittagong Railway - 100 yr - Mittagong, NSW, Australia
S 34° 27.146 E 150° 26.907
56H E 265598 N 6184723
Near the Mittagong Railway Station is a stone stela, with a plaque to commemorate 100 years of Railway to Mittagong.
Waymark Code: WMYHDX
Location: New South Wales, Australia
Date Posted: 06/16/2018
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From the article about the 150 year anniversary celebration of the Mittagong Railway Station, the stone that the metal plaque is embedded in, is a block of the local trachyte. The plaque reads:
Mittagong Railway Centenary
1867-1967
Unveiled by
The Hon. T.L. Lewis M.L.A.
Minister for Lands & Mines
4.3.67
"The single-track Great Southern Railway opened from Picton to Mittagong in March 1867, and to Goulburn in May 1869."
'The Berrima District Post of March 7, 1967 said: “For a moment it seemed the clock had been turned back one hundred years when the vintage steam train pulled into the station with over one hundred passengers dressed in gay 19th century costumes. Every vantage point was taken as five hundred people crowded onto the platform awaiting the arrival of the train. The Police Pipe Band played in the square. It was the biggest day ever for Mittagong.”'
'Mr T Boyle, representing the Commissioner for Railways, gave an address, stating that the construction of the line from Sydney to Goulburn reached Liverpool in 1856. By 1863 it had reached Picton and by 1867, Mittagong. Cobb & Co coaches ran a service to Goulburn from Mittagong. “In those days the trip to Mittagong took four hours. Today the speedy passenger trains cover the distance to Sydney in just under two hours”.' [Excerpts from the article in the local newspaper, "Southern Highland News", of March 16, 2017: Mittagong Railway]
The railway line to Mittagong helped it and the surrounds grow with the ability to move produce a lot easier. It wasn't until 1969 that steam trains ceased using the line, being replaced by diesel locomotives.
The website link below is actually for the sesquicentenary, of 2017 for the Mittagong Railway line and Station.
Visited: 2013, Saturday, 20 January, 2018