Clarence is a location in
New South Wales
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, 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 ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It was originally a railway outpost on the
original railway line across the
Blue Mountains, but by 1908 when Clarence was used as headquarters for the
Ten Tunnels Deviation
The Ten Tunnels Deviation is a heritage-listed section of the Main Western Line between Newnes Junction and Zig Zag stations in Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by the New South Wales Government Railways and bui ...
works, the town population had flourished to over 5,000 residents, the majority being the navvies employed on the deviation works. When the deviation was opened in 1910, the town population quickly fell, despite a new platform built on the new deviation.
History
Clarence was originally a railway outpost on the
Main Western railway line
The Main Western Railway is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs through the Blue Mountains, Central West, North West Slopes and the Far West regions. It is with operational & under construction & repairs.
Description o ...
. The original railway station was opened in 1869 and closed in 1910 when the
Zig Zag Railway
The Zig Zag Railway is an Australian heritage railway, situated near Lithgow, New South Wales. It was opened by the not-for-profit Zig Zag Railway Co-op as an unpaid volunteer-staffed heritage railway in October 1975, using the alignment of th ...
was bypassed for the
Ten Tunnels Deviation
The Ten Tunnels Deviation is a heritage-listed section of the Main Western Line between Newnes Junction and Zig Zag stations in Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by the New South Wales Government Railways and bui ...
.
Population
In the 2016 Census, there were 200 people in Clarence. 74.6% of people were born in Australia and 87.6% of people spoke only English at home.
Zig Zag Railway
In 1975, the
Lithgow Zig Zag
The Lithgow Zig Zag is a heritage-listed former zig zag railway line built near Lithgow on the Great Western Line of New South Wales in Australia. The zig zag line operated between 1869 and 1910, to overcome an otherwise insurmountable ...
, which had been abandoned for 65 years was taken over by the Zig Zag Railway enthusiast enterprise. Narrow gauge track was laid on the alignment and several withdrawn ex-Q.R steam locomotives were imported for use on the Zig Zag tourist line. Today, it is one of Australia's most well-known tourist lines and the original station at
Clarence Clarence may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Clarence County, New South Wales, a Cadastral division
* Clarence, New South Wales, a place near Lithgow
* Clarence River (New South Wales)
* Clarence Strait (Northern Territory)
* City of Clarence, a l ...
has since been restored for use as the terminus.
There is the nearby Clarence Colliery, opened in the 1970s, that was closed and then re-opened again. It is served by a loop line that branches off
Newnes Junction.
See also
References
*
*
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Communities in the Blue Mountains (New South Wales)
City of Lithgow