Sandstone Branch Railway

Sandstone Branch Railway
Sandstone Branch Railway
	Map of railway in location to the rabbit-proof fence, and Meekathara railway line on left
Overview
Status	Closed
Locale	Mid West, Western Australia
Termini	Mount Magnet; Sandstone;
History
Commenced	1909
Opened	1 August 1910
Closed	28 May 1949
Technical
Line length	150 km (93 mi)
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Route map
Route map
	Legend
	This diagram: view; talk; edit;

Sandstone Branch Railway (also known as the Black Range railway) was a branch railway line between Mount Magnet and Sandstone in the Mid West region of Western Australia.

History

It was built in 1910,^[1]^[2] and closed in 1949;^[3] it was lifted in 1950.^[4]

Route

It was connected to the Mullewa – Meekatharra railway at Mount Magnet.

Locations on line

Mount Magnet – 481 miles (774 km) (from Perth)
Warrambu – 504 miles (811 km)
Mount Ford – 510 miles (820 km)
Paynesville 525 miles (845 km)
Intersection with No 1 Rabbit Proof Fence at 543 miles (874 km)
Anketell – 547 miles (880 km)
Jundoo – 550 miles (890 km)
Sandstone – 575 miles (925 km)

An interactive map of the Sandstone line is available at OpenStreetMap.^[5]

Proposed link to Leonora

Prior to^[6] and after construction, there were suggestions of connecting to the railway line at Leonora, approximately 100 miles (160 km) south east of Sandstone.^[7] Such a connection would have created a loop line linking the Northern Railway^[which?] with the Eastern Goldfields Railway. The proposal was not successful.

Reputation of branch line

The railway was considered by the railway commissioner of the time in the mid-1930s to be the worst railway in Western Australia.^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]

Post-Second World War austerity issues were given as part of reason for closing in 1948 due to shortage of 45-pound (20 kg) rails for the required repairs to remain open.^[12]

Legacy

The Sandstone railway goods shed built in 1910 was considered to be of heritage significance, having survived long after closing of the line.^[13] The Sandstone railway station and the station master's house have been demolished but the goods sheet remains on the Shire of Sandstone heritage list, which also includes a railway tank stand and a railway dam at Sandstone.^[14]

At Mount Magnet, the railway station and platform, railway dam, railway bridge and the railway workers houses are on the Shire of Mount Magnet heritage list.^[15]

Notes

^ 1 August 1910 – page 69, or WN 83Quinlan, Howard; Newland, John R; Australian Railway Historical Society. New South Wales Division (2000), Australian railway routes 1854 to 2000, Australian Railway Historical Society – New South Wales Division, ISBN 978-0-909650-49-0
^ "WESTERN AUSTRALIA". The Argus. Melbourne. 19 July 1910. p. 7. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ Mount Magnet to Jundoo closed 31 December 1949, Jundoo – Sandstone closed 28 May 1949 – from page 69 Quinlan, Howard; Newland, John R; Australian Railway Historical Society. New South Wales Division (2000), Australian railway routes 1854 to 2000, Australian Railway Historical Society – New South Wales Division, ISBN 978-0-909650-49-0
^ "Sleepers Sleep on Sleepers?". The Sunday Times. Perth. 3 February 1952. p. 6. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Relation: Mount Magnet-Sandstone Railway (8780689)". 10 October 2019.
^ "The Black Range Railway". Kalgoorlie Miner. WA. 8 March 1907. p. 4. Retrieved 23 November 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "The Lawlers district". The West Australian. Perth. 9 October 1911. p. 9. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Sandstone railway". Geraldton Guardian and Express. WA. 22 July 1933. p. 1. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Commissioner's comment". The West Australian. Perth. 20 July 1933. p. 14. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Sandstone Railway". The Mullewa Mail. Vol. 39, no. 1951. Western Australia. 9 September 1933. p. 7. Retrieved 21 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Commissioner's comment". Western Mail. Perth. 27 July 1933. p. 26. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ "Sandstone to get road link". The Sunday Times. Perth. 19 December 1948. p. 5. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.
^ John Taylor Architect; Sandstone (W.A. : Shire). Council; Heritage Council of Western Australia (2002), Conservation plan for Railway Goods Shed (1910), Sandstone, Western Australia, distributed by the Heritage Council, retrieved 22 October 2012
^ "Railway Goods Shed (former), Sandstone". inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au. Heritage Council of Western Australia. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
^ "Shire of Mount Magnet Heritage Places". inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au. Heritage Council of Western Australia. Retrieved 29 July 2024.

[1] 1 August 1910 – page 69, or WN 83Quinlan, Howard; Newland, John R; Australian Railway Historical Society. New South Wales Division (2000), Australian railway routes 1854 to 2000, Australian Railway Historical Society – New South Wales Division, ISBN 978-0-909650-49-0

[2] "WESTERN AUSTRALIA". The Argus. Melbourne. 19 July 1910. p. 7. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[3] Mount Magnet to Jundoo closed 31 December 1949, Jundoo – Sandstone closed 28 May 1949 – from page 69 Quinlan, Howard; Newland, John R; Australian Railway Historical Society. New South Wales Division (2000), Australian railway routes 1854 to 2000, Australian Railway Historical Society – New South Wales Division, ISBN 978-0-909650-49-0

[4] "Sleepers Sleep on Sleepers?". The Sunday Times. Perth. 3 February 1952. p. 6. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[5] "Relation: Mount Magnet-Sandstone Railway (8780689)". 10 October 2019.

[6] "The Black Range Railway". Kalgoorlie Miner. WA. 8 March 1907. p. 4. Retrieved 23 November 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[7] "The Lawlers district". The West Australian. Perth. 9 October 1911. p. 9. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[8] "Sandstone railway". Geraldton Guardian and Express. WA. 22 July 1933. p. 1. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[9] "Commissioner's comment". The West Australian. Perth. 20 July 1933. p. 14. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[10] "Sandstone Railway". The Mullewa Mail. Vol. 39, no. 1951. Western Australia. 9 September 1933. p. 7. Retrieved 21 July 2024 – via National Library of Australia.

[11] "Commissioner's comment". Western Mail. Perth. 27 July 1933. p. 26. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[12] "Sandstone to get road link". The Sunday Times. Perth. 19 December 1948. p. 5. Retrieved 22 October 2012 – via National Library of Australia.

[13] John Taylor Architect; Sandstone (W.A. : Shire). Council; Heritage Council of Western Australia (2002), Conservation plan for Railway Goods Shed (1910), Sandstone, Western Australia, distributed by the Heritage Council, retrieved 22 October 2012

[14] "Railway Goods Shed (former), Sandstone". inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au. Heritage Council of Western Australia. Retrieved 29 July 2024.

[15] "Shire of Mount Magnet Heritage Places". inherit.stateheritage.wa.gov.au. Heritage Council of Western Australia. Retrieved 29 July 2024.

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