Victor Harbor railway line, South Australia

The Victor Harbor line is a broad gauge railway line in South Australia. It branches from the Adelaide-Melbourne railway at Mount Barker Junction and then runs south to Victor Harbor.

History

South Australia’s first railway venture was the opening of the Goolwa to Port Elliot horse tramway in 1854. The line ran from Goolwa on the Murray River to an ocean harbour at Port Elliot, later extended to a safer harbour at Victor Harbor. This line was used to move freight between the shallow-draft vessels navigating the Murray, and coastal and ocean-going vessels, without either having to traverse the narrow and shallow mouth of the river with unpredictable currents. The line was extended northwards to Strathalbyn in 1869, the connection from Adelaide reaching the town in 1884 and completing the link. [cite web
url=http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide11.htm
title=Lineside Guide - Goolwa to Pt Elliot
publisher=www.steamranger.org.au
accessdate=2008-04-22] Until 1884 trains south of Strathalbyn were hauled by horse power, but between 1883 and 1885 the section to Currency Creek was rebuilt to steam railway standards. [cite web
url=http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide7.htm
title=Lineside Guide - Strathalbyn to Sandergrove
publisher=www.steamranger.org.au
accessdate=2008-04-22]

Australian National operated passenger services on the Strathalbyn to Victor section were withdrawn in 1980,cite web
url=http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/history.htm
title=SteamRanger Enthusiast Pages - Our history
publisher=www.steamranger.org.au
accessdate=2008-04-22] with the SteamRanger Tourist Railway established in 1986 to operate tourist trains on the line. First the lines beyond Strathalbyn were operated by SteamRanger train crews, later extending to the entire line. In 1995 gauge conversion of the Adelaide-Melbourne railway cut the broad gauge Victor Harbor line off from the rest of the network, and volunteers took full responsibility for maintaining the track from Mt Barker Junction to Victor.

tations

*Littlehampton

*Mount Barker
*Bugle Ranges
*Gemmells
*Strathalbyn
*Sandergrove
**Nurragi
**Milang
*Finnis
*Black Swamp
*Currency Creek
*Goolwa
*Middleton
*Port Elliot
*Victor Harbor

ee also

*SteamRanger

References

External links

Stations:
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide0.htm Mt Barker Junction]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide2.htm Mt Barker]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide6.htm Strathalbyn]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide10.htm Goolwa]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide13.htm Victor Harbor]

Line:
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide1.htm Mt Barker Junction - Mt Barker]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide3.htm Mt Barker - Strathalbyn]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide7.htm Strathalbyn - Goolwa]
* [http://www.steamranger.org.au/enthusiast/guides/guide11.htm Goolwa - Victor Harbor]

Further Reading

"The Victor Harbor Line" Harvey, Dean Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin July;August;September, 1992 pp155-169;179-195;207-220