page_title: Normanton to Croydon railway line
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Normanton to Croydon railway line / History
caption_attribution_description: English: George Phillips, Sandgate, 1907 George Phillips was the author of the book Pioneer Railways for Queensland, published in Brisbane by Watson and Ferguson in 1892. (Description supplied with photograph).
context_page_description: The Normanton to Croydon railway line is a heritage-listed railway line in the Gulf Country of northern Queensland, Australia. The railway line linking Normanton in the Shire of Carpentaria to Croydon in the Shire of Croydon was built between 1888 and 1891 and is the last isolated line of Queensland Rail still in use. It utilises an innovative system of submersible track with patented steel sleepers and retains buildings of considerable architectural and technical interest at its terminus in Normanton. The only train to operate on the line is the weekly Gulflander service operated by a Gardner diesel propelled railmotor and carriages TP1809 and TP1811.
  It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
context_section_description: In 1867 William Landsborough investigated the Norman River area to select a port site to serve the pastoral stations south of the Gulf of Carpentaria. With him was George Phillips who shortly thereafter surveyed the chosen site of Normanton. Phillips later supervised the construction of the Normanton to Croydon Railway, and retained an interest in the area, serving as Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Carpentaria in the 1890s.
  A railway line between Normanton and Cloncurry had been discussed as early as 1883 and was approved by Queensland Parliament in 1886. This was a difficult stretch for carriers and a rail link would have been valuable to pastoral stations in the area and was planned to serve the Cloncurry Copper Mine. At that time, it was intended to eventually link the new line from Normanton with the Great Northern Railway at Charters Towers to provide access to the port of Townsville.
  However, in November 1885 a major gold strike was reported at Belmore pastoral station, 145 kilometres (90 mi) east of Normanton and by the end of 1886 the population of the Croydon field was 2,000, rising to 6,000 in the following year. Transportation was a major problem and access to this field became more important than the link to Cloncurry. It was decided to divert the line to Croydon.
  The line was technically innovative, in response to the terrain and conditions. The country was flat but difficult for conventional railway tracks due to flooding, lack of suitable timber for sleepers and termite attack. In 1884 Phillips patented a system for taking railways across such country which utilised special U-section steel sleepers laid directly on the ground. During floods the line could be submerged without washing out the ballast and embankments normally used, so that it could quickly be put back into service when the waters subsided. The steel sleepers were also impervious to termite attack, and although initially more expensive than timber sleepers, were cheaper to lay and maintain. The bridges along the line were also designed to be submersible. This system was particularly suited to the Gulf country and was specified for the Normanton to Croydon line with Phillips engaged to supervise the construction.
  Tenders were called in July 1887. The first line laid was between the Normanton railway station site and the Margaret and Jane landing at Normanton wharf in order to bring materials from ships to the railway station site. That section of railway line has not survived.
  Some problems were encountered with constructing the line because of the difficulty of maintaining a constant and adequate supply of Phillips sleepers. They were cast at the Toowoomba Foundry at Woolloongabba in Brisbane and also in Glasgow, but in order to keep construction going, timber sleepers were used on some sections and timber was also used for some bridges, originally designed to be made of steel.
  The construction method involved clearing a three-metre wide band ahead of the rail which was stumped, ploughed, harrowed, rolled and lightly ballasted. The U-shaped sleepers were then laid on this prepared surface and the rail attached to them by special clips. The construction train then passed over them forcing the U shape down into the ground and depressing the sleepers for above half their depth. Soft spots were then packed. The finished rails were intended to be 25 to 50 millimetres (0.98 to 1.97 in) above the surface. However, in practice the sleepers became more deeply embedded with time.
  The next section to be built was 61 kilometres (38 mi) from Normanton to Haydon (17°58′07″S 141°28′59″E) starting in May 1888, opening on 7 May 1889. The route for the line was finalised in 1889 and opened to Paterson's, now Blackbull (17°56′35″S 141°45′23″E) on 15 December 1890 and to Croydon railway station on 20 July 1891.
  The buildings for the terminus at Normanton consisted of a station with a large arched carriage shade and a goods shed, all constructed of corrugated iron on timber frames, although the framework for the station building was used to con
caption: George Phillips, 1907
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