Dubbo railway station
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Dubbo railway station is a
heritage-listed This list is of heritage registers, inventories of cultural properties, natural and man-made, tangible and intangible, movable and immovable, that are deemed to be of sufficient heritage value to be separately identified and recorded. In many ...
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
and
bus interchange A bus station or a bus interchange is a structure where city or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. While the term bus depot can also be used to refer to a bus station, it generally refers to a bus garage. A bus station is l ...
located on the Main Western line in
Dubbo Dubbo () is a city in the Orana Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest population centre in the Orana region, with a population of 43,516 at June 2021. The city is located at the intersection of the Newell, Mitchell, and Gol ...
in the
Dubbo Regional Council The Dubbo Regional Council is a local government area located in the Central West and Orana regions of New South Wales, Australia. The council was formed on 12 May 2016 through a merger of the City of Dubbo and Wellington Council as part of a ...
local government area of
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
, Australia. The station serves the city of Dubbo and was opened on 1 February 1881. The station is also known as Dubbo Railway Station and yard group. The property was added to the
New South Wales State Heritage Register The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...
on 2 April 1999. The station and associated yards were designed by the office of the Engineer-in-Chief of the NSW Government Railways, under the direction of
John Whitton John Whitton (1820, near Wakefield, Yorkshire, England – 20 February 1898), an Anglo–Australian railway engineer, was the Engineer-in-Charge for the New South Wales Government Railways, serving between 1856 and 1890, considered the Father of ...
. Dubbo was a major railway centre, being the junction for the Main Western, Molong-Dubbo and
Coonamble Coonamble is a town on the central-western plains of New South Wales, Australia. It lies on the Castlereagh Highway north-west of Gilgandra. At the 2016 census, Coonamble had a population of 2,750. It is the regional hub for wheat growing and ...
lines and maintaining a sizeable locomotive depot. The Troy Junction–Merrygoen railway line also branches off close to the station. Dubbo was the limit for heavier 36, 38 and 60 class locomotives, with smaller locomotives taking over for journeys further west. The station previously had a bay platform, which was removed in August 1988. Rail services east from Sydney Central terminate at Dubbo and there are now services by coaches to the north west.


Services

Dubbo was served by the '' Western Mail'' from Sydney Central until services ceased in November 1988. At Dubbo, it connected with the ''
Far West Express The Far West Express was an Australian passenger train operated by the New South Wales Government Railways from December 1957 until September 1975 from Dubbo to Bourke, Cobar and Coonamble. It connected at Dubbo in the morning with the overnig ...
'' to Bourke,
Cobar Cobar is a town in central western New South Wales, Australia whose economy is based mainly upon base metals and gold mining. The town is by road northwest of the state capital, Sydney. It is at the crossroads of the Kidman Way and Barrier H ...
and
Coonamble Coonamble is a town on the central-western plains of New South Wales, Australia. It lies on the Castlereagh Highway north-west of Gilgandra. At the 2016 census, Coonamble had a population of 2,750. It is the regional hub for wheat growing and ...
. In September 1975, the
Public Transport Commission The Public Transport Commission (PTC) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales responsible for the provision of rail, bus and ferry services in New South Wales, Australia from October 1972 until June 1980. Upon dissolution, responsi ...
introduced six Denning coaches to replace all train services north and west from Dubbo. Today, Dubbo is served by
NSW TrainLink NSW TrainLink is a train and coach operator in Australia, providing services throughout New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, along with limited interstate services into Victoria, Queensland and South Australia. Its primary interc ...
's daily '' Central West XPT'' service operating to and from Sydney Central. NSW TrainLink also operate road coach services from Dubbo to Lithgow, Cootamundra,
Broken Hill Broken Hill is an inland mining city in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia. It is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Highway (B79), in the Barrier Range. It is ...
, Bourke,
Nyngan Nyngan () is a town in the centre of New South Wales, Australia, in the Bogan Shire local government area within the Orana Region of central New South Wales. At the 2016 census, Nyngan had a population of 1,988 people. Nyngan is situated on th ...
and
Lightning Ridge Lightning Ridge is a small outback town in north-western New South Wales, Australia. Part of Walgett Shire, Lightning Ridge is situated near the southern border of Queensland, about east of the Castlereagh Highway. The Lightning Ridge area i ...
.


History

Most of the stone structures comprising Dubbo Railway Station were built between 1879 and 1881 in preparation for its opening in 1881. The station master's residence was completed that same year. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, some additions were made to the precinct, including: *1891 - construction of the lamp room and wool stage; *1893 - Dubbo West rail siding; *1897 - carriage shed; *1898 - the western end platform extension; *1893 - opening of the Dubbo-Coonamble rail line; *1904 - installation of a cart weighbridge and extensions to the
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
end of the platform; *1908 - grain shed. Numerous additions and alterations were made in the first two decades of the early 20th century, decreasing in frequency into the 1930s and 1940s. By 1975, passenger services to Bourke,
Cobar Cobar is a town in central western New South Wales, Australia whose economy is based mainly upon base metals and gold mining. The town is by road northwest of the state capital, Sydney. It is at the crossroads of the Kidman Way and Barrier H ...
and Coonamble were replaced by a road coach services connecting with the trains at Dubbo Railway Station. The 1980s saw demolition of several by-then anachronistic structural elements including the municipal gas siding, the livestock loading facility, the
Darling Street Darling Street is a 3.1 kilometre street in Sydney, Australia running from Victoria Road to Balmain East ferry wharf. It is the main thoroughfare and high street of the suburbs of Rozelle Rozelle is a suburb in the inner west of Sydney, ...
gate house and the Institute Hall (relocated elsewhere). The Dubbo-
Molong Molong is a small town in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia, in Cabonne Shire. History The name Molong comes from the Aboriginal word for 'all rocks'. William Lee of Kelso is said to have had cattle in the area by 1819. ...
line was decommissioned in 1988. Dubbo Railway Station remains an operational station on the western line, operated by RailCorp, although the station master's residence is now in private ownership.


Description


Buildings

The station building is a type 5 stone first class station building, erected in 1881, with platform
awnings An awning or overhang is a secondary covering attached to the exterior wall of a building. It is typically composed of canvas woven of Acrylic fiber, acrylic, cotton or polyester yarn, or vinyl laminated to polyester fabric that is stretched tig ...
cantilevered via
brackets A bracket is either of two tall fore- or back-facing punctuation marks commonly used to isolate a segment of text or data from its surroundings. Typically deployed in symmetric pairs, an individual bracket may be identified as a 'left' or 'r ...
on steel posts. The station contained a railway refreshment room accommodation, also completed in stone in 1881.Lot 200/DP1165856 There are two adjacent residences, the station master's house located at Talbragar Street,Lot 2/DP 1006205 being a type 4 building, completed in 1881 in stone; and at 106 Darling Street, being a type 11 building in stone, originally used as a locomotive straight
shed A shed is typically a simple, single-story roofed structure that is used for hobbies, or as a workshop in a back garden or on an allotment. Sheds vary considerably in their size and complexity of construction, from simple open-sided ones de ...
.Lot 4/DP 1006205


Structures

The railway station platform faces were completed in 1881 in stone; and the location pump house was completed in
corrugated iron Corrugated galvanised iron or steel, colloquially corrugated iron (near universal), wriggly tin (taken from UK military slang), pailing (in Caribbean English), corrugated sheet metal (in North America) and occasionally abbreviated CGI is a ...
, attached to the bridge, and completed .


Modifications and dates

*1879-81 - most of the stone structures of the station built in preparation for its 1881 opening. Station master's residence built 1881. *1891 - lamp room and wool stage built. *1893 - Dubbo West siding added. *1896-1900 - removal shop front (and rear?) at No 73. *1897 - carriage shed added. *1898 - western end platform extension made. *1903 - Dubbo-Coonamble line opened. *1904 - installation of cart weighbridge and extensions to Sydney end of the platform. *1906 - addition of a transhipping shed. *1908 - grain shed added. In the first two decades of the 20th century, numerous additions and alterations were made, decreasing in frequency into the 1930s and 1940s. By 1975, passenger services to Bourke, Cobar and Coonamble were replaced by a road coach service, connecting with trains at Dubbo. The 1980s saw demolition of several by-then anachronistic structural elements including the municipal gas siding, livestock loading facility, Darling Street gate house and Institute Hall (relocated). In 1988, the Dubbo-Molong line was decommissioned. In 2015, the Dubbo railway station was an operational rail station on the western line only, although the residence at 106 Darling Street is now in private ownership.


Heritage listing

Dubbo station and residences is one of the few groups of buildings on the NSW system constructed in stone and one of the very few stone first class railway stations built. The surviving stone platform faces are rare and of high significance. The site is of high significance as it is situated adjacent to some excellent early industrial buildings used in relation to the railway and the railway hotel. The group is an important element in the townscape of Dubbo which is an historic centre which relies on tourism and its historic theme. The whole of the railway station group is of very high significance to the development and history of Dubbo and the railway system. Dubbo railway station was listed on the
New South Wales State Heritage Register The New South Wales State Heritage Register, also known as NSW State Heritage Register, is a heritage list of places in the state of New South Wales, Australia, that are protected by New South Wales legislation, generally covered by the Heritag ...
on 2 April 1999 having satisfied the following criteria. The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales. This item is assessed as historically rare. This item is assessed as scientifically rare. This item is assessed as archaeologically rare. This item is assessed as socially rare.


See also

* List of railway stations in New South Wales


References


Bibliography

* *


Attribution

* *


External links

*
Dubbo station details
Transport for New South Wales {{Transport for New South Wales railway stations, Western Region=y, state=collapsed Easy Access railway stations in New South Wales John Whitton railway stations Railway stations in Australia opened in 1881 Regional railway stations in New South Wales New South Wales State Heritage Register Dubbo Bus stations in Australia Articles incorporating text from the New South Wales State Heritage Register Main Western railway line, New South Wales