The Killarney railway line was a

branch railway A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Industrial spur An industr ...

in the

Darling Downs The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generall ...

region of

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 travelled from

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Castl ...

and operated from 1884 to 1964. StateLibQld 1 241267 Killarney Railway Station

Along with approval for the Fassifern and Crows Nest branches in 1880 came parliamentary approval for this branch. Although the owner of the large

Canning Downs Canning Downs was the first residential establishment built by a white person on the Darling Downs in Queensland, Australia. It is located a short drive from the town of Warwick and originally extended south east to Killarney and the McPherson ...

station offered land to enable a direct route from Warwick to Killarney, a more circuitous route was chosen to serve surrounding farms. It meant that the branch line ran 44 kilometres east from Warwick and then south to Killarney rather than take a direct 32 kilometre route through Canning Downs. The

Southern railway line The Southern railway line serves the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. The long line branches from the Western line at Toowoomba, west of Brisbane, and proceeds south through Warwick and Stanthorpe to the New South Wales/Queensl ...

reached Warwick in 1871. The terminus was then on the northern side of the

Condamine River The Condamine River, part of the Balonne catchment that is part of the Murray-Darling Basin, drains the northern portion of the Darling Downs, an area of sub-coastal southern Queensland, Australia. The river is approximately 500 kilometers (31 ...

. After construction of a bridge over the river and extension of the line south to

Stanthorpe Stanthorpe is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Stanthorpe had a population of 5,406 people. The area surrounding the town is known as the Granite Belt. Geography Stanthorpe lies on the New ...

, a stop at East Warwick became

Warwick railway station Warwick railway station serves the town of Warwick in Warwickshire, England. The station is served by Chiltern Railways (who manage the station), and also less frequently by West Midlands Trains. It is located around half a mile north of the ...

and the old terminus was renamed Mill Hill railway station. The branch line to Killarney left the Southern Line a little beyond Mill Hill at what was called Killarney Junction. The Killarney branch opened as far as Emu Vale on 2 June 1884 and then to Killarney on 24 August 1885. Sidings for the first stage were located at Hermitage, Glencairn, Swan Creek, Karcaruda, Mount Sturt, Yangan and Rockbrae whilst in the second stage Danderoo, Wiyarra,

Tannymorel Tannymorel is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Tannymorel had a population of 161 people. History The name ''Tannymorel'' comes from a village in Ireland and means ''a ben ...

() and Grayson () were stops. For the duration of the branch, a train ran six days a week. Grain traffic and cheese from a Yangan factory constituted its major cargo and, after the discovery of coal at Mount Colliery east of Tannymorel, it too contributed greatly to the profitability of the line. From 1930, a

railmotor Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it. Steam railcars Overview In th ...

operated the run. The

Mount Colliery Tramway 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 ...

, a private 5 km-long horse tramway, opened in 1908. The tramway joined the line at

to transport coal from a nearby mine to the railway. The Killarney line, together with the colliery tramway, closed on 1 May 1964.

References

External links

1925 map of the Queensland railway system
{{Railway lines in Queensland , state=expanded Closed railway lines in Queensland Railway lines opened in 1885 Railway lines closed in 1964 Darling Downs 1885 establishments in Australia 1964 disestablishments in Australia

See also

References

External links