The Kerang–Koondrook Tramway was an Australian

private railway A private railway is a railroad run by a private business entity (usually a corporation but not need be), as opposed to a railroad run by a public sector. Japan In Japan, , commonly simply ''private railway'', refers to a public transit railway o ...

broad gauge A broad-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge (the distance between the rails) broader than the used by standard-gauge railways. Broad gauge of , more known as Russian gauge, is the dominant track gauge in former Soviet Union countries ...

, running from Kerang station, on the state-owned

Victorian Railways The Victorian Railways (VR), trading from 1974 as VicRail, was the state-owned operator of most rail transport in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companie ...

Piangil railway line, to the

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray; Ngarrindjeri language, Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta language, Yorta Yorta: ''Dhungala'' or ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is List of rivers of Australia, Aust ...

town of

Koondrook Koondrook ( ) is a town situated on the Murray River, Victoria, Australia. The town is located in the Shire of Gannawarra local government area, north west of the state capital, Melbourne. At the 2016 census, Koondrook had a population of 832. ...

, with intermediate stations at Yeoburn, Hinksons, Teal Point and Gannawarra. Construction of the -long line was initiated by the

Shire of Swan Hill The Shire of Swan Hill was a Local government in Australia, local government area in north-western Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, along the Murray River. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1893 until 1995. From 1939 onw ...

in 1887, under the terms of the Tramways in Country Districts Act 1886, which allowed local governments in country areas to construct tramways, with financial assistance from the Victorian government, to a limit of £2,000 a mile. The tramway was opened in July 1889.Bakewell, Guy, ''A Broad Gauge Tramway'',

Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin ''Australian Railway History'' is a monthly magazine covering railway history in Australia, published by the New South Wales Division of the Australian Railway Historical Society on behalf of its state and territory Divisions. History and pro ...

, March 1971, pp. 49-55 On 31 December 1898, the area of the Shire of Swan Hill centred on Kerang became the Shire of Kerang. By 1920, the tramway's construction had cost £39,229. In 1929, a four-wheel

vertical boiler A vertical boiler is a type of fire-tube boiler, fire-tube or water-tube boiler where the boiler barrel is oriented vertically instead of the more common horizontal orientation. Vertical boilers were used for a variety of steam-powered vehicles an ...

ed locomotive was imported to work the tramway, manufactured by the

Sentinel Waggon Works Sentinel Waggon Works Ltd was a British company based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire that made steam-powered lorry, lorries (steam wagons), railway locomotives, and later, diesel engined lorries, buses and locomotives. History Alley & MacLellan ...

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire (district), Shropshire, England. It is sited on the River Severn, northwest of Wolverhampton, west of Telford, southeast of Wrexham and north of Hereford. At the 2021 United ...

. It was withdrawn in 1941 and scrapped in 1952. There is a description of a journey on the railway in 1938 in an article in the March 1971 edition of the ''Bulletin'', published by the

Australian Railway Historical Society The Australian Railway Historical Society (ARHS) has been a railway organisation concerned with history and preservation of railway heritage at a national level. It has had divisions in every state and the Australian Capital Territory, althou ...

. On 1 February 1952, ownership of the tramway was transferred to the

. In its later years, passenger services on the line were run by a 102hp Walker railmotor, paid for by the Victorian Education Department, to convey school children. The service was withdrawn on 16 December 1976. A

railfan A railfan, train fan, rail buff or train buff (American English), railway enthusiast, railway buff, anorak (British English), gunzel (Australian English), trainspotter (British English) or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally in ...

farewell special on the line, with a train hauled by T356, ran on 20 November 1977. The line was officially closed on 3 March 1981.''Newsrail'', Australian Railway Historical Society (Victorian Division), March 1990, Vol. 18, No. 3

References

External links

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Images from the Koondrook Railway
* Image
Koondrook railway station
* Image
Replica locomotive along with QR open wagon, L-class sheep wagon and a ZL-class guards van
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerang-Koondrook Tramway Defunct railway companies of Australia Closed regional railway lines in Victoria (state) Kerang, Victoria Victorian Heritage Register Victorian Heritage Register Loddon Mallee (region) Shire of Gannawarra