The Beaudesert Shire Tramway was a

narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge narrower than standard . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with tighter curves, smaller structu ...

tramway which operated from Beaudesert to

Lamington A lamington is an Australian cake made from squares of butter cake or sponge cake coated in an outer layer of chocolate sauce and rolled in desiccated coconut. The thin mixture is absorbed into the outside of the sponge cake and left to set, gi ...

and

Rathdowney Rathdowney or Rathdowny () is a town in southwest County Laois, Ireland. It lies some 32 km southwest of Portlaoise in the Irish Midlands, at the point where the R433 regional road from Abbeyleix to Templemore is crossed by the R435 fro ...

in the

Scenic Rim Region The Scenic Rim Region is a local government area in West Moreton region of South East Queensland, Australia. Established in 2008, it was preceded by several previous local government areas with histories extending back to the early 1900s and b ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia, It was one of 15 light railways built and operated by Divisional Boards and Shire Councils in Queensland. The line carried passengers and cargo. It operated from 1903 to 1944. It was initially profitable and seen as a great success for the local shire council. The tramway is credited with opening up the agricultural lands of the upper

Logan River The Logan River ( Yugambeh: ''Dugulumba'') is a perennial river located in the Scenic Rim, Logan and Gold Coast local government areas of the South East region of Queensland, Australia. The -long river is one of the dominant waterways in South ...

History

The Tabragalba Divisional Board, predecessor of the

Beaudesert Shire The Shire of Beaudesert was a local government area located in South East Queensland, Australia, stretching from the New South Wales border, along the Gold Coast hinterland to the urban fringes of the cities of Brisbane and Ipswich. The Shire c ...

, proposed the construction of the Tramway in 1899. Approval was granted on 23 October 1901 and the Beaudesert Tramway Committee was formed on 3 March 1902. The Tramway opened from Beaudesert to Innisplain and Lilybank (later renamed Christmas Creek) on 10 October 1903 with Sir Herbert Chermside,

Governor of Queensland The governor of Queensland is the representative in the state of Queensland of the monarch of Australia. In an analogous way to the governor-general of Australia at the national level, the governor Governors of the Australian states, performs c ...

, officiating at the opening ceremony at Tabooba Junction. In August 1907, it was decided to extend the line to Rathdowney from Innisplain. At the same shire meeting an extension from

Christmas Creek The Christmas Creek, a perennial stream that is part of the Macleay River catchment, is located in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features Christmas Creek rises below Roses Knob, about east by north of the ...

was also agreed upon. In 1910, a loan for the extensions was granted. The Christmas Creek to

extension opened in October 1910 and the Innisplain to Rathdowney extension in March 1911. The total cost of construction was £92,770. In 1918, residents of Urbenville in northern

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

unsuccessfully agitated for an extension from Rathdowney to the west of Mount Lindesay. Services ran between Beaudesert and Rathdowney three times per week. The main traffic was timber, dairy produce and livestock which were trans-shipped to the

Queensland Rail Queensland Rail (QR) is a railway operator in Queensland, Australia. Owned by the Queensland Government, it operates local and long-distance passenger services, as well as owning and maintaining approximately 6,600 kilometres of track and relate ...

ways Beaudesert line. Early traffic was promising. For example, in the 1905-1906 financial year the Tramway carried 6,712 passengers, of cream, 2,854 pigs, of general merchandise, of other agricultural produce and of

timber Lumber is wood that has been processed into dimensional lumber, including beams and planks or boards, a stage in the process of wood production. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, wi ...

. During the 1920s the movement of timber was gradually decreasing. The tramway was used to transport postal mail to Rathdowney. Extension of the New South Wales North Coast railway line from

Kyogle Kyogle () is a town in the Northern Rivers region of northern New South Wales, Australia. It falls within the local government area of Kyogle Council. At the 2016 census, Kyogle had a population of 2,751 people. Kyogle is known as a "gateway" ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

commenced in 1926 and generated additional traffic on the tramway carrying construction materials. This led to considerable delays with services unable to run to the timetable. Rathdowney and nearby towns were served by the interstate line from 1930. Traffic volume on the line experienced significant decreases starting from this time. Following the "encroachment" of the standard gauge line and increasing competition from road transport, the Shire approached the

Government of Queensland The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutional monarchy was form ...

to take over the Tramway but the Minister for Railways declined. With declining traffic, the Tramway ceased operations on 30 Sep 1944. The rails and rolling stock were sold, and the Beaudesert Tramway Committee was abolished on 31 December 1945.

Queensland State Archives The Queensland State Archives is the lead agency for public recordkeeping in Queensland, Australia. It is the custodian of the largest and most significant documentary heritage collection about Queensland. Established in 1959, Queensland State ...

Agency ID10855, Beaudesert Tramway Committee

Route

See map
Beaudesert Tramway 1935
* Main line ** Beaudesert ** Josephville ** Laravale ** Tabooba * East branch **

(formerly Lilybank) ** Hillview **

* West branch ** Innisplain ** Dulbolla ( Running Creek) **

Locomotives

Rolling stock

The Tramway owned locomotives, passenger carriages capable of carrying 70 people and goods vans, with timber wagons and other rolling stock hired from

ways.

Remains

Much of the Tramway reservation is now on private property, although substantial portions are visible from public roads such as the

Mount Lindesay Highway Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

. The Tramway station at Rathdowney still exists. Tramway Road at Christmas Creek is built on the former tramway reservation.

Gallery

References

External links

{{Coord, 28, 10, 28, S, 152, 54, 13, E, display=title Railway lines opened in 1903 Railway lines closed in 1944 Closed railway lines in Queensland 3 ft 6 in gauge railways in Australia 1903 establishments in Australia 1944 disestablishments in Australia Scenic Rim Region