The Strahan–Zeehan Railway, also known as the "Government Railway", was a railway from Strahan to

Zeehan Zeehan is a town on the west coast of Tasmania, Australia south-west of Burnie. It is part of the West Coast Council, along with the seaport Strahan, and neighbouring mining towns of Dundas, Rosebery and Queenstown. History The greater ...

on the west coast of

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. It linked two private railways: the

Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company was a Tasmanian mining company formed on 29 March 1893, most commonly referred to as ''Mount Lyell''. Mount Lyell was the dominant copper mining company of the West Coast from 1893 to 1994, and was based in ...

railway line (now known as the

West Coast Wilderness Railway The West Coast Wilderness Railway is a reconstruction of the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company Mount Lyell railway in Western Tasmania between Queenstown and Regatta Point, Strahan. The railway is significant because of its Abt rack syst ...

) between Queenstown and

Regatta Point Regatta Point is the location of a port and rail terminus on Macquarie Harbour (West Coast, Tasmania). Port Regatta Point is often assumed into the name of the locality across the bay in Macquarie Harbour, Strahan, Tasmania. The other ports ...

, and the

Emu Bay Railway The Emu Bay Railway was a Tasmania, Australian railway company. The railway was significant during full operation, in that it linked the Tasmanian Government Railways system at Burnie with that at Zeehan that further linked to the Mount Lyell ...

between

and

Burnie Burnie is a port city on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. When founded in 1827, it was named Emu Bay, being renamed after William Burnie, a director of the Van Diemen's Land Company, in the early 1840s. , Burnie had an urban popul ...

. Early photographs of the Strahan wharf and buildings adjacent taken from the north usually have the

railway track A railway track (British English and UIC terminology) or railroad track (American English), also known as permanent way or simply track, is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, railroad ties (sleepers, ...

s in the lower section of the photograph, as the line followed the shore from Regatta Point around the bay before passing northward in what is considered to be West Strahan today. The line ran parallel to Ocean Beach before heading towards Zeehan. It was a critical link, due to the difficulties of shipping negotiating the entrance

Macquarie Harbour Macquarie Harbour is a shallow fjord in the West Coast region of Tasmania, Australia. It is approximately , and has an average depth of , with deeper places up to . It is navigable by shallow-draft vessels. The main channel is kept clear by the ...

and was essential during the

1912 North Mount Lyell disaster The North Mount Lyell disaster (also known as the Mount Lyell disaster and North Mount Lyell fire) refers to a fire that broke out on 12 October 1912 at the Mount Lyell Mining and Railway Company operations on the West Coast of Tasmania, killing ...

. The

track gauge In rail transport, track gauge (in American English, alternatively track gage) is the distance between the two rails of a railway track. All vehicles on a rail network must have wheelsets that are compatible with the track gauge. Since many d ...

of the lines between Burnie was the same all the way to Queenstown. Flooding and fire affected the most important link, the Henty Bridge, at stages in the line's history. 1920 was one year where the break in the line is recorded. The line was heavily reliant upon the mining industry and its fortunes, and traffic reduced drastically at times of mining down-turns. Following its closure, parts became tracks and eventually the formation was made into the

Zeehan-Strahan Road Zeehan-Strahan Road (also known as the ''Strahan to Zeehan road'') is a road that links Strahan with Zeehan in Western Tasmania. It runs parallel to Ocean Beach for a distance and crosses the Henty River at the beach's northern end, before ...

Dates

The line was opened on 4 February 1892, and it was closed 2 June 1960.

Stations and stopping places

* Silver Bell * Austral * Oceana Junction * Professor * Grieves Siding * Eden * Powell's Siding * Mallana—renamed Fowler's Siding * Henty Bridge—renamed Koyule (1926) * Henty * Beach Road—also known as Ocean Beach * Bellinger * Opah—renamed Stella (1903) * West Strahan * Strahan Wharf *

Dates

Stations and stopping places

See also

References

Further reading