South Australian Railways (GRG42)

The first Ordinance or Act of Parliament regulating the construction of railways in South Australia was passed in March, 1847. The Railways Clauses Consolidation Act (No. 7 of 1847) did not authorise the construction of any specific railway but it outlined the conditions, responsibilities, limitations and privileges, applying to any "Companies" who might undertake the construction and operation of any particular railway. The actual setting up of individual railways was allowed through the passing of "Special" Acts of Parliament.

In February 1850 a Private Act was passed authorizing the construction of a railway by the Adelaide City and Port Railway Company. This railway was to extend from the stone quarry below the Legislative Council building along the Port Road to Port Adelaide, with a branch to the North Arm.

Sir Henry Edward Fox Young, Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia, along with Captain Thomas Lipson, R.N., examined Encounter Bay with a view to establishing a canal or railway with the River Murray, so as to open up the river to the sea. In a letter to the Secretary of State for the Colonies (Earl Grey), dated 6th April, 1850, Sir Henry recommended that Port Elliot was the most suitable location for a harbour and that a jetty, stone breakwater and moorings be constructed at Port Elliot; a jetty at Goolwa; and a railway, for animal traction, from Port Elliot to Goolwa.

The colonists at Port Adelaide expressed disapproval of the Port Elliot - Goolwa railway and saw it as hindering the development of Port Adelaide, as it would divert traffic from the colonys capital and port. Following petitions and counter - petitions from both parties, the Legislative Council passed a resolution to appoint a Select Committee to enquire into the matter. However Sir Henry Young objected to the Select Committee, stating that the Legislative Council had no authority of the expenditure of the Crown moiety of the Land Fund, from which the Port Elliot - Goolwa railway was financed. Therefore in the latter part of 1851 the work was proceeded with at Port Elliot, with the Port Elliot - Goolwa Tramway being completed in 1854 with no official function being used to mark the occasion.

Meanwhile there was little progress on the Adelaide City to Port Adelaide railway. Under the Private Act of 1850, the Company was to have completed five miles of railway within eighteen months. However in October, 1851 following the expiry of that prescribed time none of the line had been laid. The Governor through the Legislative Council passed an Act to appoint a Board of Undertakers to construct the Adelaide - Port Adelaide railway using Government funds. Under this Act (No. 1 of 1851) five years was allowed for its completion and the gauge was to be 5ft 3in instead of the 4ft 8.5 in as originally proposed. John Ellis and Thomas Shepherd were appointed as two of the Undertakers in Oct. 1851 and Benjamin Babbage was enlisted as the chief engineer.

The services of Isambard Brunel, chief engineer of the Great Western Railway Company, were engaged as consulting engineer and agent in England. In February, 1853 Thomas Shepherd resigned and William Hays was appointed to replace him. Three locomotives, "Adelaide", "Victoria" and "Albert", manufactured by Fairbairns in Manchester, England, arrived in Port Adelaide in November, 1855 on the "Theodore". Following trial runs in February and March, 1856, the Adelaide City - Port Adelaide railway was finally opened in March, 1856 having cost 186,000 pounds sterling and within the prescribed time limit.

During the construction of the railway to Port Adelaide, the Adelaide to Gawler Town Railway Act (No. 18 of 1854) was passed. Progress on the construction of this railway was good and the line was completed in October, 1857, with a short branch from Dry Creek to the Stockade at Yatala.

Despite the completion of the Adelaide City - Port Adelaide Railway in March, 1856, the Board of Undertakers continued to function until June, 1856, when the South Australian Railway Act (No. 27 of 1855-56) was passed. This Act authorised the appointment of South Australian Railway Commissioners and to vest in them the control of railways. In March, 1857, William Hanson, Richard Colley and John Brown were appointed Commissioners, however in January, 1859 James Hill was appointed to replace William Hanson, he having resigned from the position. During 1858 two further Acts of Parliament were passed to authorise the construction of railways. In January, 1858 the Gawler Extension Railway Act (No. 10 of 1857-58) was passed to provide for the extension of the railway line from Gawler to Freeling and in December, 1858, another Act (Kapunda Railway Act, No. 2 of 1858) was passed to further extended this railway to Kapunda.

Following an Act of Parliament (No. 12 of 1858) to subject the Railway Commissioners to the control of the Commissioner of Public Works, the Railway Commissioners Act (No. 11 of 1859) was passed in September, 1859. This Act vested the powers and functions of the South Australian Railway Commissioners in the Commissioner of Public Works, who issued direction to the Manager, Edward J. Peake, who was replaced by C.S. Hare in 1861 and who was in turn replaced by H.C. Mais in 1865. During the period from 1859 to 1887 the expansion of the railway system in South Australia grew rapidly, including the construction of the Great Northern Line from Gawler to Burra, which was completed in 1870. With the line to Kapunda being completed in August, 1860 these two copper-mining districts became major railheads. In addition, a number of isolated 3ft 6in gauge railways were constructed during the 1870s inland from Port Augusta, Port Pirie, Port Wakefield, Kingston and Beachport. These lines were designed to provide port facilities for their respective agriculture hinterlands. As the other railway lines within the colony were constructed using 5ft 3in gauge there were inevitable breaks of gauge as the connected with the 3ft 6in railway system, at Terowie, Hamley Bridge and Wolseley.

This was overcome at Hamley Bridge by the conversion of 200 miles of 3ft 6in track from Hamley Bridge to Gladstone, via Moonta in 1927, however it only moved the break of gauge to Gladstone.

The former Port Elliot - Goolwa Tramway was extended to connect with Victor Harbour and Strathalbyn in the 1860s and by 1885 it became part of the Adelaide - Victor Harbour rail link. The extension of the line from Kapunda to Morgan in 1878 joined Adelaide with the River Murray and thus any hope that Victor Harbor might become an important harbour for overseas ships was curtailed. The Main Northern Line from Adelaide to Peterborough was extended to Quorn in 1882 and by January, 1891 it had reached Oodnadatta, some 688 miles (1101kms) from Adelaide.

The line from Port Augusta, through Quorn, to Oodnadatta was transferred to the Commonwealth Government in 1911, under the Northern Territory Surrender Act. The 3ft. 6in. gauge line from Port Pirie was also extended (in 1887) through Peterborough to Cockburn on the N.S.W. border. The Silverton Tramway Co. provided a connecting line from Cockburn to Broken Hill and thus Port Pirie became a major port for the export of raw and processed minerals (lead, zinc and silver) from the mines of Broken Hill.

With the passing of the South Australia Railway Commissioner Act, (No. 414 of 1887), the role of administering the railways in South Australia was again vested in three Railway Commissioners. In April 1888, Joseph Smith (Chairman), Henry Hill and Andre Neill were appointed as the Railway Commissioners. An amendment to the S.A. Railway Commissioners Act of 1887 in December, 1894 reduced the number of Railway Commissioners from three to one, with Alan G. Pendleton being appointed in May, 1895.

Early in the 20th century the country east of the River Murray was beginning to be serviced by the railway with the building of lines out into the mallee country. In 1903 an Act of Parliament was passed to establish a railway line across the mallee from Tailem Bend to Pinnaroo and in 1909 from Tailem Bend to Yinnanie, via Mindarie. Further extensions were added to this line in 1912 to Waikerie, Loxton, Peebinga and Paringa, thus providing a comprehensive service to the whole of the mallee country.

In June, 1909, A.G. Pendleton retired from the position of South Australian Railways Commissioner and he was replaced by Alexander B. Moncrieff, who served in that role until he resigned in 1916. James McGuire was appointed Acting South Australian Railways Commissioner in May, 1916 until William A. Webb became the Chief South Australian Railways Commissioner in November, 1922.

The expansion of the railway system through the Eyre Peninsula, initially from Port Lincoln in 1905 and ultimately to Cape Thevenard in 1914, Penong on the Far West coast in 1918 and Buckleboo in 1923 opened up large areas of South Australia for agricultural development during this first few decades of this century.

A further amendment to the South Australian Railway Commissioners Act in December, 1921 included the provision for two Commissioners, one of which shall be the Chief Commissioner. The appointment of W.A. Webb in 1922 was designed to encourage the re-habilitation of the South Australian Railways which were suffering a considerable financial loss. When the S.A. Railways were transferred from the control of the commissioner of Public Works to three Railway commissioners in 1888, they inherited a railway system that had grown spasmodically, based on the pattern of settlement. In addition the railways had to compete with the coastal trade for revenue from freight and with rapid expansion early this century S.A.R. had accumulated a large deficit by the early 1920s.

In seven years from 1922 to 1929, W.A. Webb managed to lift the terminally ill South Australian Railways to one of the best systems in Australia. He faced considerable opposition from both Parliament and the public and intense criticism. Prior to 1922 sound business management principles were unheard of in the South Australian Railways and it was Webb's intention to make the S.A.R. pay. However, he soon realised this goal was impossible to achieve and he then resolved to effect the greatest possible economies for the system. Why the S.A.R. can never pay is an extremely complex matter and is too detailed to be outlined in this administrative history (briefly, the cost of loans from Great Britain was greater than the income produced).

One of the financial strengths of any railway system is its ability to move large loads of bulk goods with relatively good economic efficiency and it was this area that Webb pursued to overhaul into an economic operation. With respect to passenger traffic, W.A. expressed the strong view, "There is no money in the passenger business .. if you drove them away you would not lose anything. It is, however, a service that must be provided for the people".

Few new railway lines were built during the year that W.A. Webb was Railways Commissioner, as it was his role to overhaul the existing system. However in 1929 he was responsible for building the new Adelaide Railway Station, replacing the English covered all-weather facility with the present American-style railway station.

W.A. Webbs unpopularity reached its highest point in 1929 and despite him issuing "Railway Facts", in which he attempted to outline the situation, his contract finally expired in May, 1930 after six months as Acting Commissioner.

Charles B. Anderson was appointed to replace W.A. Webb as Railways Commissioner in May, 1930 and he remained in that position until the appointment of Robert H. Chapman in January, 1947. The economic depression of the late 1920s had its effect on the expansion/maintenance of the South Australian railways in the early 1930s. As a result the reduction of income from freight and passengers services necessitated a massive reduction of expenditure. However by 1935-36 increasing business lifted in S.A.R. from its economic depression. In December, 1935 an Act of Parliament (No. 2242 of 1935) was passed to approve an Agreement between the Commonwealth and State (S.A) governments to construct a railway line from Port Pirie to Port Augusta, via Red Hill. The construction of this railway line was designed to shorten the time taken to travel from Western Australia to the Eastern States.

The rehabilitation of the Islington Workshops in the 1920s and their consequent boom in the 1930s allowed for greater confidence in the training of skilled people in the manufacture of railway rolling stock in South Australia, not only to service S.A.R. but also other rail networks throughout Australia.

In addition to servicing the railways the Islington Railway Workshops were used for the production of armoured vehicles, aeroplane parts and other equipment required for the defence forces. With the outbreak of the Second World War the manufacture of gun carries, shells and aircraft components was increased to assist the War effort.

Following the Second World War and the appointment of Robert Chapman as Railway Commissioner in January, 1947, the South Australian Railways turned to investigating the possibility of standarizing the railways of Australia. In December, 1946 the South Australian Parliament passed an Act (No. 31 of 1946) to authorize the execution by or on behalf of the State an agreement between the Commonwealth, N.S.W., Vic, and S.A. in relating to the standardisation of certain railways. The different gauges of railway in each of those states had created a great deal of inconvenience for both freight and passenger traffic and it was time this situation was remedied. Western Australia had 3ft 6in gauge, New South Wales, 4ft 8.5in, Victoria, 5ft 3in and South Australia has all three widths of track. The unification was still years away as the Commonwealth could not agree with the States and the States among themselves on how the cost would be shared.

With the development of the Leigh Creek Coalfields in the early 1940s, it was decided to construct a railway linking the coalfields with a port, namely Port Augusta, in 1950 and from Leigh Creek to Marree in 1954. The construction of a line from Leigh Creek to Port Augusta and therefore further south, allowed Leigh Creek to be the principle supplier of brown coal for the electricity needs of South Australia.

John A. Fargher was appointed Railways Commissioner in 1953, who in turn was replaced by Ronald J. Fitch in 1965. During the regimes there was the discontinuance of several railway services throughout South Australia between 1953 and 1973. This was brought about by the increased reliance on fast road transport both for freight and passenger services. In March, 1974, Murray L. Stockley was appointed to the position of temporary Railways Commissioner, with the retirement of R.J. Fitch. Despite the closure of several lines, an agreement was set up between the State of South Australia and the Commonwealth, in relation to the construction of a standard gauge railway between Tarcoola, S.A. and Alice Springs, N.T. to by-pass the existing line to the Centre, via Oodnadatta. This old line was very susceptible to flooding and thus became unreliable for both passenger and freight traffic.

The South Australian Parliament passed an Act (No. 60 of 1975) in August, 1975, setting up an agreement between the State and the Commonwealth in relation to the acquisition of all non-metropolitan railways by the Commonwealth government via the Australian National Railways Commission. This agreement was signed by both the Prime Minister and the Premier of South Australia and its signing brought to an end the administration of the South Australian Railways Commissioner in 1975 and the establishment of the State Transport Authority's control over metropolitan railways.

Types of records created by the South Australian Railways, 1940-1960:

A handy guide to SAR forms, labels, volumes, labels and envelopes is the 'Stationery Booklet' produced by the Comptroller's Branch. The booklet also gives alphabetical lists of series created and how long they were to be retained if not deemed permanent.

A copy of the booklet, dated June 1960, is to be found in GRG56/5 'R' folder.


Sources:

1. Anderson, C.B., "Railways" p.1 (in GRS 286)
2. Railway Clauses Consolidation Act, 1847 (No. 7 of 1847)
3. Act of Parliament, (No. 1 of 1850) (Private Act)
4. Anderson, C.B., p4
5. GRG 24/6/ A(1850)/1718, 2204 - Letters to the Colonial Secretary.
6. Anderson, C.B., p.2
7. Ibid, p.3
8. Act of Parliament, No. 1 of 1850 (Private Act)
9. Act of Parliament, No. 1 of 1851 (Private Act)
10. South Australian Government Gazette, Oct. 9, 1851, p.682
11. Anderson, C.B., p.5
12. South Australian Government Gazette, Feb. 3, 1853 p.84
13. Drennan, J. (Compiler) "Adelaide Railways" p.5 (GRG 42/135/1)
14. Anderson, C.B., p.6
15. Ibid, p.7
16. Ibid, p.6
17. South Australian Government Gazette Mar. 26, 1857, p.266
18. South Australian Government Gazette Jan. 20 1859, p.45
19. Parliamentary Paper No. 31 of 1860
20. Parliamentary Paper No. 25 of 1862
21. Parliamentary Paper No. 40 of 1865
22. Anderson, C.B., p.7
23. Ibid, p.7
24. Ibid, p.7
25. Ibid, p.7
26. Ibid, p.8
27. Ibid, p.8
28. Ibid, p.8
29. Ibid, p.8
30. Ibid, p.8
31. South Australian Government Gazette, Apr. 12, 1888, p.762
32. South Australian Government Gazette, May 9, 1895, p.1158
33. Act of Parliament, No. 832 of 1903
34. Act of Parliament, No. 980 of 1909
35. Act of Parliament, No. 1088 of 1912
36. South Australian Government Gazette, May 20, 1909, p.954
37. South Australian Government Gazette, May 18, 1916, p.1034
38. South Australian Government Gazette, Nov. 16 1922, p.1092
39. Act of Parliament, No. 882 of 1905
40. Act of Parliament, No. 1142 of 1913
41. Act of Parliament, No. 1292 of 1917
42. Act of Parliament, No. 1595 of 1923
43. Act of Parliament, No. 1486 of 1921
44. Jennings, R.I., "W.A. Webb", p.102
45. Ibid, p.120
46. Drennan, J. (Compiler), "Adelaide Railways", p.10 (GRG 42/135/1)
47. South Australian Government Gazette, Nov. 28, 1929, p.1182
48. South Australian Government Gazette, Jan. 16, 1947, p.280
49. Annual Report of the South Australian Railways, 1935-36
50. Act of Parliament, No. 2242 of 1935
51. South Australian Government Gazette, Jan. 16, 1947 p.280
52. Act of Parliament, No. 31 of 1946
53. Acts of Parliament, No. 54 of 1950 and No. 42 of 1954
54. South Australian Government Gazette, Oct. 22, 1953 p.1053
55. South Australian Government Gazette, Nov. 4, 1965 p.1561
56. South Australian Government Gazette, Mar. 8, 1973 p.862
57. Act of Parliament, No. 104 of 1974
58. Act of Parliament, No. 60 of 1975
59. Act of Parliament, No. 81 of 1976

Related agencies:

GA 93 South Australian Railway Commissioners [I] 1856-1859
GA 41 Commissioner of Public Works 1859-1887
GA 18 South Australian Railway Commissioners [II] 1888-1894
GA 94 South Australian Railways Commissioner 1895-1975
GA 89 Comptroller of Accounts South Australian Railways 1880-1878
GA 95 Superintendent's Office, Adelaide Division, South Australian Railways 1923-1929
GA 96 Office of the Superintendent of Traffic, South Australian Railways 1865-1878
GA 97 Accountant and Collector of Revenue, South Australian Railways 1872-1880
GA 98 Office of Accountant and Traffic Supervisor, South Australian Railways 1856-1869
GA 99 Locomotive Engineer's Department South Australian Railways 1878-1900
GA 100 Office of Manager of Railways 1860-1876
GA 101 Chief Engineer's Office 1909-1978
GA 102 Engineer-in-Chief Department 1867-1906
GA 103 Decimal Currency Committee of the South Australian Railways 1963-1966
GA 104 Chief Mechanical Engineer 1900-1978
GA 109 Maintenance Branch of Engineer-in-Chiefs Department 1889-
GA 110 Office of the Secretary, South Australian Railways 1896-1978?
GA 111 Railways Industrial Officer 1924
GA 112 Suggestions and Inventions Committee, South Australian Railways 1920-1925
GA 113 Officers Board, South Australian Railways 1891-1922
GA 114 Classification Board, South Australian Railways 1931-1935
GA 123 Resident Engineers Office n.d.
GA 124 Railways Construction Commission 1874-1875
GA 125 Office of General Superintendent n.d.
GA 130 War Railway Committee 1941-1945
GA 183 Railway Salaried Officers (S.A.) Classification Board n.d.
GA 190 Railway and Tramways Department 1874-1888
GA 191 Office of the Divisional Superintendent, Peterborough 1878-1978