The Amiens railway line was a

branch railway A branch line is a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a Main line (railway), main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Branch lines may serve one or more industries, or a city ...

in the

Granite Belt The Granite Belt is an area of the Great Dividing Range in the Darling Downs region of Queensland and the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. The Granite Belt is centred on the town of Stanthorpe. The cool, high country of the gr ...

region of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, branching from the Southern Line at

Cottonvale Cottonvale is a rural locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. It borders New South Wales and contains the town of Cotton Vale. In the , Cottonvale had a population of 153 people. Geography The South Western railway line ...

between

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon, Warwickshire, River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined wit ...

and

Stanthorpe Stanthorpe is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Stanthorpe had a population of 5,286 people. The area surrounding the town is known as the Granite Belt. Geography Stant ...

. The Amiens line was the highest in southern Queensland, with the railway reaching an elevation of 946 metres above sea level at Pozieres.

History

Construction of a 20-kilometre railway line west of Cottonvale to the village of

Amiens Amiens (English: or ; ; , or ) is a city and Communes of France, commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme (department), Somme Departments of France, department in the region ...

was authorised in 1919 to assist returned soldiers who had been granted land in the region. The Amiens branch was designed to serve an agricultural area developed for the settlement of returned servicemen after the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. For this reason, all the stations along the line were named after battlegrounds on the Western Front –

Fleurbaix Fleurbaix (; ) is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France about northeast of Béthune and west of Lille, at the border with the department of Nord. A stream, the Becque du Biez, flows through the com ...

, Pozieres,

Bullecourt Bullecourt () is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department department in the Hauts-de-France region region of northern France. Geography Bullecourt is situated on the Upper Cretaceous plain of Artois between Arras and Bapaume, east of the A1 ...

, Passchendaele,

Bapaume Bapaume (original Dutch name Batpalmen) is a Communes of France, commune in the Pas-de-Calais Departments of France, department in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region of northern France. Geography Bapaume is a farming and light indus ...

and

Messines Messines may refer to: * Mesen (in French: Messines), a village in Belgium **Battle of Messines (disambiguation), World War I battles * Messines, Quebec, a municipality in Canada * São Bartolomeu de Messines São Bartolomeu de Messines, also ref ...

. The line was not built to convey passengers but rather to transport fruit from the soldiers' orchards to markets in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

and

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. Construction commenced in 1919 and the line was opened on 7 June 1920. Edward, Prince of Wales travelled the length of the Amiens branch in a

royal train A royal train is a set of railway carriages dedicated for the use of the king or other members of a royal family. Most monarchies with a railway system employ a set of royal carriages. If the monarch is an emperor the proper term is imperial tr ...

to officially open the line on 26 July 1920. The line closed on 28 February 1974. The railway station signs from the Amiens railway line are now on display at the Stanthorpe Heritage Museum.

References

"Toowoomba to Wallangarra" A History of the Line by Greg Hallam 2001 "Triumph of the Narrow Gauge: A History of Queensland Railways" by John Kerr 1990 Boolarong Press, Brisbane

External links

1925 map of the Queensland railway system
{{Railway lines in Queensland , state=expanded Closed railway lines in Queensland Railway lines opened in 1920 Railway lines closed in 1974 Darling Downs 1920 establishments in Australia 1974 disestablishments in Australia

History

See also

References

External links