Kirrak coal mine Farewell Wonthaggi 1968

Farewell to the State Coal mine Kirrak near Wonthaggi December 1968: The town of Wonthaggi Victoria Australia came into existence because of the coalfields in the area. The Victorian Railways had been in reliance of coal from New South Wales for the operation of its fleet of steam locomotives but when strikes occurred on the New South Wales coalfields around 1909, the Victorian government opened the Wonthaggi fields as a matter of urgency to have a supply of coal available and Wonthaggi came into existence from about 1911. Such was the urgency, that coal was firstly taken to Inverloch down rough tracks in bullock wagons and then taken by sea to Melbourne. The railway was quikly pushed through to the area and the first trains soon arrived and took up the transportation of the coal to Melborne. There were a number of mines in the area and the history of the mines and railway is written and is most interesting as hardly a trace of all that happend back then remains today. The last state coal mine in the Wonthaggi area was the mine at Kirrak about eight or so kilometres east of Wonthaggi. This mine closed in 1968 and the line to the mine from Wonthaggi was closed on December 28th. On December 14th, the Australian Railway Historical Society Victorian division, ran a special train hauled by steam locomotive D3 639 to Wonthaggi and to Kirrak mine. As the turntable at Wonthaggi had been recently removed, the locomotive was turned at Nyora on the way down, in order to be facing Melbourne for the return. D3 639 took the passenger cars to the mine and returned as far as Wonthaggi with seven loaded wagons of coal and a six wheel brake van. A special diesel locomotive brought the passenger cars back to Wonthaggi. Scenes shown are from 8mm film of the trip. They include a brief look around the mine, the departure of the last steam hauled coal train from the mine with much slipping of the driving wheels due to grass having overgrown the track, a shot from the Yarra parlor car platform on the back of the train on the return while running along the Bass Strait coastline and across the trestle bridge at Kilcunda. Also there is a photo stop at the bridge with passengers able to go onto the rocks and capture the train with the surf in the foreground while it negotiated the top of sand dunes and crossed the Kilcunda trestle bridge. The last scene is of the train climbing up away from the surf to Kilcunda station. The State coal mines and the railway built to the coal fields, constitute a very important chapter in of the early development of Victoria before the advent of roads and present day transportation methods.
Although the last coal line branch to Kirrak from Wonthaggi closed in December 1968, the line from Nyora to Wonthaggi survived amost another ten years and was closed in November 1978.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• trains
• rail
• victoria
• railway
• steam
• locomotive
• coal
• mine
• railroad
• station
• kirrak
• line
• class
• Rail transport

[CAD390]

I'm assuming that crossing over the Bass Highway (between Wonthaggi and Inverloch) was such a long time ago now that warning signals were never installed on that particular crossing? I get the impression that the crossing over Sth Dudley road was the only one fitted with flashing lights and alarms as for the line south-east of Nyora or at least prior to Anderson anyway.

[reidgck]

@CAD390 There wouldn't have been level crossing lights east of Wonthaggi. Road traffic was light those days but South Dudly Road was comparatively busy. At Kilcunda there was and still is a bridge where the line crossed the Bass Highway. I think it still has the height clearance sign on it although no longer serves either road or rail. There maybe were lights at Nyora before the Wonthaggi line closed and surely at the South Gippsland Highway crossing. buth rail and road traffic are no more.

[CAD390]

I know there was once a proposal for the line to be extended to Inverloch which of course never evetuated. I'm assuming though, should it it ever happened though, it would have extended immediately from Kirrak but then again would it be because there coudln't be any sufficient site and gradient for the line to go into the Inverloch township to reach the jetty or near the pub?

[reidgck]

@CAD390 Before the railway arrived at Wonthaggi, history records that coal was taken to Inverloch to be shipped to Melbourne. Perhaps the proposal was for a railway to replace the bullock wagons. Inverloch though is a shallow port and has a dangerous bar and only light boats can use it. Once the railway arrived at Wonthaggi all the coal went directly to Melbourne. A line to Inverloch perhaps could have branched where the Kirrak line turned sharply north and would not have been too hard to build

[utoobeigiveup]

Great video footage it takes me back in 1968 I was 13 at the time I use to live very close to the kirrak line near the cnr of Fincher st and wentworth rd I always use to stand near the tracks and watch the train full of coal go by and the train driver always waved hello to me, I was a cheeky bugger I used pick up all the coal that had fallen off and take it home for the fireplace,

It is just fantastic that someone had foresight to record and preserve such wonderful history ,many thanks.

[reidgck]

@utoobeigiveup We used to pick up coal that had fallen from the trains to use for the fireplace even at Oakleigh in the suburbs. A good supply must have fallen off on many journeys. You could often see people walking along the tracks with bags collecting it. When the train driver applied the brakes quickly, then you could hear all the loaded trucks bumping into one another. When that happened the chances were good that there would be more fallen off and waiting to be collected.

[SubdeaconDavid]

Love to see old lines and infrastructure - thanks!

[trainfan761]

Great footage from the past...I may not have been around, but it's still awesome too see what they used to do.

[westfootscrazy]

Great historical footage from times in the past.

[mattitude67]

Thanks for the upload, a nice trip down memory lane..

great choice in the music added too.