Demerara-Essequibo Railway
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The Railways of Guyana comprised two public railways, the Demerara-Berbice Railway and the Demerara-Essequibo Railway. There are also several industrial railways mainly for the
bauxite Bauxite () is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)), and diaspore (α-AlO(OH) ...
industry. The Demerara-Berbice Railway is the oldest in South America. None of the railways are in operation in the 21st century.


Demerara-Berbice railway

The Demerara-Berbice Railway, built in then
British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies. It was located on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first known Europeans to encounter Guia ...
(now
Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...
), was the first railway system on the
South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
n continent. It was 4 ft 8½ ins (1,435 mm)
standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...
and first operated by the Demerara Railway Company, a private concern, but sold to the Colonial Transport Department of the Government, which assumed control from 1 January 1922.


Route

The railway ran for along the coast from the capital and main port Georgetown in
Demerara Demerara (; , ) is a historical region in the Guianas, on the north coast of South America, now part of the country of Guyana. It was a colony of the Dutch West India Company between 1745 and 1792 and a colony of the Dutch state from 1792 unti ...
to Rosignol in
Berbice Berbice () is a region along the Berbice River in Guyana, which was between 1627 and 1792 a colony of the Dutch West India Company and between 1792 and 1815 a colony of the Dutch state. After having been ceded to the United Kingdom of Great Brita ...
, whence it was connected by ferry steamer across the Berbice River to
New Amsterdam New Amsterdam (, ) was a 17th-century Dutch Empire, Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''Factory (trading post), fac ...
.


History

The bill proposing the construction of the railway was passed in July 1846. The railway was designed, surveyed and built by the British-American architect and artist
Frederick Catherwood Frederick Catherwood (27 February 1799 – 27 September 1854) was an English artist, architect and explorer, best remembered for his meticulously detailed drawings of the ruins of the Maya civilization. He explored Mesoamerica in the mid 19th ...
. All the railway stations, bridges, stores and other facilities were constructed by John Bradshaw Sharples. Financing was provided by the Demerera Sugar Company who wished to transport their product to the dock of Georgetown. Construction was in sections with the first, from Georgetown to Plaisance, opening on 3 November 1848. The opening day's festivities featured the death of one of the railway's directors by being run over by the locomotive. An extension to Belfield was completed in 1854, to
Mahaica Mahaica is a village located in region 4 of Demerara-Mahaica in Guyana. Mahaica is often used as a subregion for the adjoining villages near the Mahaica River like Hand-en-Veldt, Good Hope, Chelsey Park, and Jonestown The Peoples Temple Ag ...
in 1864 and finally to Rosignol during 1897–1900. In 1948 the railway system in Bermuda was dismantled and sold 'lock, stock & barrel' to the government of British Guiana (as the country then was) to rejuvenate the former system. The locomotives (petrol or diesel ust 2 and coaches were fully restored, the latter being painted dark green. In 1953 the public lines in the colony carried 1,772,954 passengers and 92,769 tonnes of freight. A bold plan to extend the railway south to Brazil was never proceeded with. The public railway system was dismantled in stages by then President
Forbes Burnham Linden Forbes Sampson Burnham (20 February 1923 – 6 August 1985) was a Guyanese politician and the leader of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana from 1964 until his death in 1985. He served as Prime Minister of Guyana, Premier of British Guia ...
, and closed in 1972. The Lamaha Street terminus of the Demerara-Berbice Railway was converted into a bus terminal subsequent to the closing of the railway.


Service

Following the opening in 1848, there were two return trains per day between Georgetown and Plaisance. In 1922 there was one train each week day, departing Georgetown at 08:00 and returning in the evening. The Georgetown-Rosignol railway service ended in 1972.


Infrastructure

There were three major bridges on the line, all constructed of steel, across the
Mahaica Mahaica is a village located in region 4 of Demerara-Mahaica in Guyana. Mahaica is often used as a subregion for the adjoining villages near the Mahaica River like Hand-en-Veldt, Good Hope, Chelsey Park, and Jonestown The Peoples Temple Ag ...
,
Mahaicony Mahaicony is a community that is made up of several villages in East Coast Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Guyana. Mahaicony's physical boundaries on the coast is from De Hoop village in the west to Calcutta village in the east. Central Mahaicony inc ...
and Abary Rivers. There were 17 stations on the Demerara-Berbice Railway: * Georgetown * Bel Air * Plaisance *
Beterverwagting Beterverwagting, also Betterverwagting or abbreviated to B.V., is a village in Guyana, on the East Coast of the Demerara River. History On 8 May 1840, 62 former slaves pooled their savings together and bought plantation Beterverwagting from Baro ...
*
Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...
* Nonpareil * Enmore * Golden Grove * Belfield *
Clonbrook Clonbrook is a village in the Demerara-Mahaica region of Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetow ...
*
Mahaica Mahaica is a village located in region 4 of Demerara-Mahaica in Guyana. Mahaica is often used as a subregion for the adjoining villages near the Mahaica River like Hand-en-Veldt, Good Hope, Chelsey Park, and Jonestown The Peoples Temple Ag ...
* de Kinderen *
Mahaicony Mahaicony is a community that is made up of several villages in East Coast Demerara, Mahaica-Berbice, Guyana. Mahaicony's physical boundaries on the coast is from De Hoop village in the west to Calcutta village in the east. Central Mahaicony inc ...
* Belladrum * Lichfield * Fort Wellington * Rosignol


Rolling stock

In 1936, the Colonial Transport Department owned 16
locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pull train, push–pull operation has become common, and in the pursuit for ...
s, 39 coaches and 283 goods wagons.


Locomotives


Demerara-Essequibo railway


Route

Guyana's second railway, the Demerara-Essequibo Railway, was 3ft 6ins (1067mm) gauge and ran for along the West Coast of Demerara from
Vreed en Hoop Vreed en Hoop is a village at the mouth of the Demerara River on its west bank, in the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region of Guyana, located at sea level. It is the location of the Regional Democratic Council office making it the administrativ ...
on the left bank of the
Demerara River The Demerara River is a river in eastern Guyana that rises in the central rainforests of the country and flows to the north for 346 kilometres until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. Georgetown, Guyana's largest seaport and capital, is situated on ...
to
Parika Parika is a port village located in the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region of Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indi ...
on the
Essequibo River The Essequibo River (; originally called by Alonso de Ojeda; ) is the largest river in Guyana, and the largest river between the Orinoco and Amazon River, Amazon. Rising in the Acarai Mountains near the Brazil–Guyana border, the Essequibo flows ...
.


History

Its first section was laid from Vreed-en-Hoop to
Greenwich Park Greenwich Park is a former hunting park in Greenwich and one of the largest single green spaces in south-east London. One of the eight Royal Parks of London, and the first to be enclosed (in 1433), it covers , and is part of the Greenwich World H ...
c1899 and it was extended to Parika in 1914. The Demerara-Essequibo railway service ended in 1974.


Service

In 1922 there were three return trains each day, timed to interconnect with arriving and departing steam ferries.


Infrastructure

By 1974 there were eight railway stations along the Demerara-Essequibo line: *
Vreed-en-Hoop Vreed en Hoop is a village at the mouth of the Demerara River on its west bank, in the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region of Guyana, located at sea level. It is the location of the Regional Democratic Council office making it the administrativ ...
*
Windsor Forest Windsor may refer to: Places *Detroit–Windsor, Michigan-Ontario, USA-Canada, North America; a cross-border metropolitan region Australia New South Wales *Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area Queen ...
* Hague * de Kinderen * Tuschen * Vergenoegen * Greenwich Park *
Parika Parika is a port village located in the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region of Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indi ...
There were sidings to the sugar factories of Leonora and
Uitvlugt Uitvlugt (pronounced "owt-flut") is a village in the Essequibo Islands-West Demerara region of Guyana. On the coastal public road on the west bank of the Demerara River, it lies immediately to the west of Stewartville, Guyana, Stewartville and to t ...
. A number of minor stops, called platforms, were located between the stations, e.g., at Crane, Blankenberg, Den Amstel, Cornelia Ida, Stewartville, De Willem,
Farm A farm (also called an agricultural holding) is an area of land that is devoted primarily to agricultural processes with the primary objective of producing food and other crops; it is the basic facility in food production. The name is used fo ...
. There was one railway bridge of steel construction across the Boeraserie River.


Industrial railways

The industrial railway systems continued to operate following the closure of the public system and included several at
bauxite mining Bauxite () is a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content. It is the world's main source of aluminium and gallium. Bauxite consists mostly of the aluminium minerals gibbsite (), boehmite (γ-AlO(OH)), and diaspore (α-AlO(OH) ...
sites and another linking
Port Kaituma Port Kaituma is a small village within the Barima-Waini administrative region of Guyana. It became known internationally as a gateway village to the Peoples Temple settlement in nearby Jonestown. It has long been a hub for mining in the area. ...
and
Matthew's Ridge Matthews Ridge is a small village within the Barima-Waini administrative region of Guyana. The village name comes from the name of a public official, Matthew Young, as well as the ridges in the area. The village is divided into three sections, He ...
in the Northwest District. In 1897, a (
metre gauge Metre-gauge railways ( US: meter-gauge railways) are narrow-gauge railways with track gauge of or 1 metre. Metre gauge is used in around of tracks around the world. It was used by several European colonial powers including France, Britain and ...
) industrial railway was built between Rockstone and
Wismar Wismar (; ), officially the Hanseatic City of Wismar () is, with around 43,000 inhabitants, the sixth-largest city of the northeastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and the fourth-largest city of Mecklenburg after Rostock, Schwerin and ...
(nowadays called Linden) across the watershed between the Demerara and Essequibo Rivers. The Essequibo River was hard to navigate, but the
Demerara River The Demerara River is a river in eastern Guyana that rises in the central rainforests of the country and flows to the north for 346 kilometres until it reaches the Atlantic Ocean. Georgetown, Guyana's largest seaport and capital, is situated on ...
was suitable for ocean-going ships. The railway line gave access to the gold fields, balatá and hardwood plantations. In 1936, the company owned 14
locomotive A locomotive is a rail transport, rail vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. Traditionally, locomotives pulled trains from the front. However, Push–pull train, push–pull operation has become common, and in the pursuit for ...
s and 272 goods wagons. The railway was closed in the 1940s.


Bibliography

* The British Guiana Government Railways, article Railway Magazine January 1964
The Old Railway Station, Lamaha Street
Cummingsburg Cummingsburg, or historically Cumingsburg, is a ward in Georgetown, Guyana. It began as 500-acre plantation, La Bourgade about 1759. When Thomas Cumming, a Scotsman, bought the property, he developed a town plan with residential and commercial lots ...
,
National Trust of Guyana The National Trust of Guyana is a 1972 Guyana, Guyanese Building Preservation Trust, conservation organisation to protect and conserve monuments of historic and national importance. Their main function is to preserve objects of national interest as ...
. * UK
Directorate of Overseas Surveys The Ordnance Survey International or Ordnance Survey Overseas Directorate its predecessors built an archive of air photography, map and survey records for the United Kingdom from 1946 to 1999. The Ordnance Survey International Collection (formerly ...
1:500,000 map of Guyana NE sheet, 1972.
History of the British Guiana Railway System – Georgetown to Mahaica, Part 1
Shammane Joseph,
Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily pri ...
, 2008-12-25.
History of the British Guiana Railway System – Georgetown to Mahaica, Part 2
Shammane Joseph,
Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily pri ...
, 2009-02-12.
History of the British Guiana Railway System – Georgetown to Mahaica, Part 4
Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily pri ...
, 2009-07-09.
History of the British Guiana Railway System – Georgetown to Mahaica, Part 5
Shammane Joseph,
Stabroek News The ''Stabroek News'' is a privately owned newspaper published in Guyana. It takes its name from ''Stabroek'' , the former name of Georgetown, Guyana. It was first published in November 1986, first as a weekly but it later changed to a daily pri ...
, 2009-11-07.


See also

*
Transport in Guyana The transport sector comprises the physical infrastructure, docks and vehicle, terminals, fleets, ancillary equipment and service delivery of all the various modes of transport operating in Guyana. The transport services, transport agencies provid ...


References

{{South America in topic, Rail transport in Rail infrastructure in Guyana Economic history of Guyana