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Sydney Architecture
Images- Glebe Light
Rail (former goods line) |
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See also page on
Rozelle Tram
Depot |
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architect
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George McRae |
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location
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Runs from Darling
Harbour to Lilyfield, under Glebe. |
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date
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1853-1911 |
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style
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various |
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construction
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stone, brick |
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type
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Government
railway |
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.jpg) .jpg) |
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The METRO LIGHT RAIL (tram) is Sydney's newest transport system which runs from Central Station to the Sydney Casino and the Sydney Fish Markets (Wentworth Park stop) and continues on through Glebe to Lilyfield, the two main stations are Glebe for the central area of Bridge Road and Jubilee
Park for Glebe Point.
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| History
of Rail Transport in Glebe
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| |
Whilst history was made in 2000 with the
extension of the light rail system to Lilyfield, the suburbs of
Glebe and Lilyfield were once served by an extensive
government-owned tramway infrastructure.
The
Darling Harbour Line
Sydney's original goods station was opened in
1855. It was located just east of the passenger terminal near
Redfern and handled all goods traffic in and out of Sydney (except
for local firewood which was unloaded at Newtown). The goods station
at Darling Harbour (DH) opened soon afterwards and was once one of
the largest depots in the world, occupying almost 65 acres. When the
branch line to DH was built, it only ran to the toll bridge at
Pyrmont. The line passed through the oldest railway tunnel in NSW
(running below Railway Square and the current UTS/'Marcus Clark'
building). Services on the line to DH were limited by the shallow
depth of the harbour (restricting the size of ships), shortage of
wharves and the expensive toll on the privately owned Prymont Bridge
which provided access to the CBD.
Pyrmont Bridge was
purchased by the government in 1884 and the toll was removed. The DH
yard was then further expanded towards Union Street. Increased
demand on Redfern resulted in DH being expanded in 1875 from six
people handling 35,19 tons to volumes exceeding 152,543 tons in
1879. In 1890, extensions across Union Street were erected to
service the newly build coal wharves.
| By
1915 it was obvious that movement of goods trains in and out
of DH via the suburban lines was interfering with the
passenger timetables. Numerous freight-only lines around
Sydney were constructed in 1919 (including a double track
from Canterbury below Lewisham viaduct through Leichhardt,
Rozelle, Glebe and Pyrmont to Darling Harbour). |
A tram
departs the Rozelle Depot (adjacent to Harold Park) bound
for Sydney University and the city.
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It is over the
section of this historic rail line (between Bridge Road, Glebe and
Catherine Street, Lilyfield) that The Society's members and friends
travelled in an inaugural trip using a Light Rail Vehicle (LRV) in
July 2000, stopping at Glebe, Jubilee Park, Rozelle Bay and
Lilyfield. Darling Harbour continued in use until 1984 when
operations ceased to make way for the current tourist and trade
exhibition development.
The
Bellevue Street Rail Bridge
In 1919 the NSW Government Railway built the
first reinforced concrete railway bridge on its system over the
northern end of Bellevue Street, Glebe. The experimental single span
was restricted to 21ft in length and supported the goods line which
was being built at the time from Rozelle to DH. Whilst The Society's
inaugural trip did not travel over this small but historic bridge,
full public service crosses it continuously.
The
Western Goods Line
The viaducts were built across Wentworth Park
and Jubilee Park in 1919 and have heritage significance today. In
its heyday this line had up to forty train movements a day. It
closed in January 1996, by which time it saw only weekly use to the
Edwin Davey Flour Mill (adjacent to Metro Light Rail's (MLR) present
terminus at Wentworth Park Station).
|
Modern trams
(aka Light Rail Vehicles) now
use the viaduct over Bi-Centennial Park.
|
The
Glebe Point Tunnel
This double track tunnel is 500m long
and runs from Pyrmont Bridge Road to Jubilee Park, passing
below Glebe Point Road. The western portal is adjacent to
the former Rozelle Tram Depot. Both portals now frame MLR's
Glebe and Jubilee Park Stations
The
Glebe Point Line
The tramway service along Glebe Point
Road to the Point was opened in 1892 using steam tram motors
and trailer cars.
|
It was the
first western suburbs line to be converted to electric operation in
1900 and it used power from the Ultimo Powerhouse. A six-minute
service was provided on weekdays, increasing to four minutes during
peak hours and on Saturday evenings. Trams ran every 15 minutes on
Sunday mornings, and at six-minute intervals for the rest of the
day. The city terminus of the Glebe Point service was Millers Point,
located to the west of Circular Quay. Services continued until 23
November 1958, when buses replaced the then "unfashionable
trams" as a method of public transport. Old tram lines still
exist under the surface of Glebe Point Road.
|
An
R1 class tram at Stop 30 in Glebe Point Road opposite
Palmerstone Avenue (January 1958).
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The
Lilyfield Line
Between April 1909 and November 1958,
electric trams provided services from the city to the
original terminus at nearby Piper Street, Lilyfield. The
track was progressively duplicated and extended to a
crossover facility on the deck of the Bridge in 1925. The
road level station and entrance constructed for the Metro
Light Rail system stands adjacent to where once 'light rail'
vehicles of a previous era performed safe working
procedures. |
|
Special thanks to www.glebesociety.org.au
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|
Heritage Register
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 |
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| Item
Name: |
Darling
Harbour Rail Corridor |
| Location: |
West
side of Darling Harbour to Pyrmont , Darling Harbour
& Pyrmont |
|
| Primary
Address: |
West
side of Darling Harbour to Pyrmont
Darling Harbour & Pyrmont
NSW |
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| Area/Group/Complex: |
|
Group ID: |
|
| Item
Type: |
Built |
Group: Transport
- Rail |
Category: Railway |
| Owner |
|
| Current
Use: |
Light Rail |
| Former
Use: |
Goods Rail |
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| Assessed
Significance: |
6 |
Endorsed
Significance: |
|
Statement
of
Significance: |
The
Darling Harbour goods line was part of the first
railway opened in New South Wales in 1855, the
current corridor corresponds with that purchased
from the Harris family in 1853 for this purpose. It
therefore has a high degree of significance as a
place. The Ultimo Road Bridge is believed to be
constructed in the 1850s, and is therefore one of
the only remaining features of the original railway
which joined Darling Harbour and Granville (Parramatta
Junction) in 1855. The siting of the railway along
what was the edge of Darling Harbour strongly
influenced the development of Pyrmont and Ultimo.
Because of it, woolstores, engineering works and
other industries were built here after the 1870s,
giving this part of Ultimo its industrial, rather
than residential, flavour. The site also contains
two railway bridges. The Railway Square road
overbidge (outside the curtillage of this listing)
built in 1855 is historically significant as the
oldest railway bridge to be constructed and still in
use in New South Wales. It is a strong connection to
the first railway construction and the original
Redfern (Sydney) Station. The Ultimo railway
underbridge is a mid 19th century construction with
classic revival inspired cast iron columns and mid
19th century sandstock brick abutments. Both items
are assessed individually as historically rare,
scientifically rare, archaeogolically rare and
socially rare. |
Historical
Notes
or Provenance: |
It is
difficult to judge whether the Ultimo Rail Corridor
site would have had any aboriginal occupation.
European development of the site occurred by the
mid-19th century, when maps and plans indicate
buildings on the George Street frontage. The 1853
plan indicates a stream or creek running from George
Street across the site some 20 metres north of the
street frontage. Such watercourses were often the
source of food and water for the Aboriginal people
of Sydney. A similar geographic scenario existed for
the study area. The former swampy areas directly to
the north of George Street (now Central railway
yards, Carlton Brewery) drained via creeks such as
that indicated in the 1853 plan into Darling Harbour.
Darling Harbour itself was known before the 1830s as
Cockle Bay due to the extensive Aboriginal shell
middens on its shores. It is therefore more than
likely that the vicinity of the subject site was at
least intermittently visited or occupied by
Aboriginal people in the course of gathering food or
making camps. European occupation of the study area
occurs by the 1790s when much of the land in the
Pyrmont/ Ultimo peninsula was granted to members of
the military. By 1804 John Harris had consolidated
much of these holdings into the Ultimo Estate,
Governor King had granted this part of the Ultimo
Estate to Harris in December 1803. In 1830-31 a
strip of land along the north side of George Street
was sold as town allotments, with buildings
indicated to the east of the subject site by 1836.
This strip had been built out by 1843, shown on the
map of that year. John Harris died in 1838, leaving
the Ultimo Estate divided between his brothers, and
eventually their families. The complexities of the
wills and land transfers meant that the property
remained jointly owned by the family until late in
the 1850s, although small parcels were often leased.
Unlike other areas on the outskirts of the city,
including adjoining Pyrmont, Ultimo remained largely
undeveloped up to the mid-19th century. The Sydney
Railway Company, formed in 1849, approached the
Harris family with the prospect of purchasing a
strip of seven acres of land for the construction of
one mile of railway line joining the Sydney railway
terminus near what is now Central Station, with
proposed wharfage facilities at Darling Harbour. The
proposal was accepted by the Harris family who saw
the economic advantages of industrial and port
development on the western side of the Harbour. The
land was sold in 1853, however, like most
international private railway companies, the Sydney
Railway Company fell into financial difficulties and
was taken over by the NSW Government in 1854. The
railway, ultimately connecting Darling Harbour and
Parramatta, was opened in 1855. The railway reserve
of 1853 follows the current corridor and extended
almost to Pyrmont Bridge. A series of cuttings and
embankments carried the railway from the Redfern
terminus (near Central). At George Street (Broadway)
a sandstone bridge, still in existence, carried the
street over the railway cutting. The cutting for the
railway here obliterated evidence of any structures
that fronted George Street. At Ultimo Road, the
northern boundary of the area under study, a bridge
carried the railway over the road. Little
development occurred in the period of almost 20
years following the opening of the railway. The line
divided the peninsula, largely alienating the
Darling Harbour shoreline strip of land from Harris
Street, a factor which was to influence the
development of Ultimo and is still strongly evident
today. Pyrmont Bridge opened in 1857, and it was
intended that there should be a rail and bridge
interchange or terminus, so that goods could be
brought across the Bridge from Sydney (and indeed
the Darling Harbour wharves) and thence transported
by rail, and vice-versa. By 1870 the NSW rail
network had connected to Goulburn and was crossing
the Blue Mountains. Disputes between the Harris
family and the Pyrmont Bridge Company, along with a
decreased demand for woolstores and export from
Darling Harbour stymied the proposed development.
The railway was rarely used apart from the landing
and transport of coal and ballast at Darling Harbour
for the railways. The Harris family demanded
compensation for the stagnated development and in
the 1860s the NSW Government awarded the them
reclaimed land to the east of the railway in the
vicinity of what is now Haymarket, between Ultimo
Road and Hay Street. The Government’s reclamation
of the southern end of Darling Harbour led to the
construction, in 1874, of the Iron Wharf. This was
the first substantial wharfage on the western side
of the Harbour and was conveniently located close to
the railway to enable its use. By 1882 Sydney was
linked by rail to Albury, Hay and Dubbo, and after
the completion of the Hawkesbury River Bridge in
1889 with the Queensland border. By that time all
the major primary production regions of New South
Wales had been connected with Sydney, and therefore
with the Darling Harbour goods line. Industrial
developments from the 1870s onward saw Darling
Harbour emerge as an important intercolonial and
international transport and manufacturing centre.
Thomas Mort established his NSW Fresh Frozen Food
and Ice Company on what is now the site of the
Chinese Gardens in 1875, experimenting with
refrigeration of meat. Mort also had slaughter yards
located over the Blue Mountains at Bowenfels, from
where frozen meat was transported by rail to Sydney.
In 1879 the first refrigerated shipment of meat left
Darling Harbour for England. In 1889 the first
refrigerated rail cars were bringing produce from
all over NSW to Darling Harbour for Sydney’s
consumption as well as international export. The
Atlas Engineering Works at Pyrmont was building
railway engines and passenger and goods rolling
stock from 1878 on land adjacent to the Darling
Harbour line. On the city side of the Harbour,
engineers Peter Nicol Russell & Co. had been
making rolling stock since 1869 in a purpose built
factory only demolished in 1985. Livestock was also
brought to Darling Harbour by rail for export. An
1888 map of the site indicates animal pens located
within and adjacent to the study area south of
Thomas Street, still indicated in the 1897 map of
the site. The 1888 map also shows a number of
buildings concentrated on either side of the railway
line at the Broadway end of the site. The three
buildings on the western side are gone by 1897 which
could suggest they were timber, more or less
temporary structures. In the 1880s Goldsborough
& Co built a woolstore near the railway on the
corner of Fig & Pyrmont Streets, accessible not
only to the rail but also Harris Street. Other
woolstores followed in the ensuing decades, all
conveniently located close by the railway. Around
this time the railway pushed further into Pyrmont.
The Ultimo Power House was built in 1898-99 on the
railway line by which it was supplied with coal, as
was the Pyrmont Power Station some ten years later.
Following the Government resumptions after 1901 and
subsequent wharfage developments at Jones Bay and
Darling Island, the railway expanded and fostered
the industrial boom first predicted in the 1850s. By
the 1910s Darling Harbour south of Pyrmont Bridge
was becoming too shallow for large vessels and was
largely reclaimed in the late 1920s using fill from
Sydney’s underground railway excavation. The Iron
Wharf was demolished and operations concentrated
further to the north. By this time the subject site
had become simply the location of rail lines with no
need for buildings associated with the loading or
unloading of goods. Thus it was to remain for the
rest of the active life of the goods line. By the
1960s many of the woolstores and other port
functions were moving out of Sydney. Road transport
was often a less expensive medium than rail for
transshipment of goods. The functions of the railway
decreased significantly. Finally in the 1980s the
Darling Harbour Redevelopment spelt out the final
chapter of the Darling Harbour goods yards, which
were demolished and redeveloped in 1985-88. Trains
have not generally used the Ultimo railway line
since the 1980s with the exception of occasional use
to bring steam engines to the siding at the
PowerHouse Museum. In the 1990s the line north of
Hay Street was utilised for the light railway
through Pyrmont, accessed from Hay Street, and thus
continuing the traditional use of this corridor. |
| National
Themes: |
3. Economy
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| State
Themes: |
Industry
Technology
Transport
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| Study
Themes: |
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| Designer: |
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| Maker/Builder: |
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| Year
Started: |
1853 |
Year Completed: 1911 |
Circa:
No |
| Physical
Description: |
Rail Link
as part of Railway Square to Powerhouse line. This
line is one of the oldest active extant railway
tracks. It is being restored to take the 3801 train.
Part of this system is the Railway Bridge over
Ultimo Road. |
| Physical
Condition: |
The rail
link is free from development, it is used for the
light rail through Pyrmont from north of Hay Street.
Archaeologically the site holds potential for
evidence of the remains of 1897 buildings and the
remains of a brick lined water tank. |
| Modification
Dates: |
The
reserve was purchased from the Harris family in
1853, and the railway line first laid in 1855. By
1888 there were a number of buildings associated
with the railway on either side of the tracks,
mostly concentrated at the Broadway end of the
corridor. After 1901 the railway expanded to
accommodate the industrial boom in the Darling
Harbour area. By the 1920s the buildings had been
demolished and the area was simply the location of
goods lines. The functions of the railway in the
area decreased significantly in the 1960s, and in
the 1980s the goods yards were demolished and
redeveloped. Part of the line is used by the light
rail network, and occasionally the Powerhouse Museum
uses the track to bring steam trains to its siding. |
| Recommended
Management: |
With any
archaeological remains it is preferable to leave
them undisturbed. In the case of the Ultimo
corridor, the site is covered in a layer of
approximately 350-450mm of ballast which potentially
protects any potential archaeological remains. |
| Further
Comments: |
No
substantial excavations are proposed for the site
with excavation limited to some service trenches and
tree plantings. Since the rail lines have always run
through the centre of the site, no buildings were
sited here after 1853. It is therefore expected that
any service trenching located in the centre of the
site will have no impact on potential archaeological
deposits. Alternatively, existing service trenches
could also be utilised for new services. In any
case, if the existing covering of 350-450mm of
ballast is maintained, services or tree plantings
could be confined within this layer without
impacting on potential archaeological remains. Any
disturbance of potential archaeological remains will
require the application for and granting of an
excavation permit from the Heritage Council of NSW
under the Heritage Act, 1977. Structural changes to
items on the State Heritage Register require
submission under Sec. 60 of the Heritage Act, 1977.
The Heritage Office may require the preparation of a
Conservation Management Plan for the site, prepared
by a conservation architect which details what can
and can’t be done to an item. This may take up to
a month to prepare, and then must be endorsed by the
NSW Heritage Council before any work commences. It
is recommended therefore that any stairs or ramps to
Ultimo Road be sited so as not to impact on the
Bridge and its immediate southern abutment. If there
is no alternative to siting the access to Ultimo
Road so that it does not impact on the southern
abutment, the post-1850s fabric might be considered
to be removed in part after consultation with the
Heritage Office. |
| Historical
Significance: |
The
Darling Harbour goods line was part of the first
railway opened in New South Wales in 1855, the
current corridor corresponding with that purchased
from the Harris family in 1853 for this purpose. It
therefore has a high degree of significance as a
place. The Ultimo Road Bridge is believed to be that
constructed in the 1850s, and is therefore one of
the only remaining features of the original railway
which joined Darling Harbour and Granville (Parramatta
Junction) in 1855. Future development should respect
the definition of the space, allowing for its
interpretation as a former railway corridor. |
| Historical
Association: |
|
| Aesthetic/Technical
Significance: |
Aesthetically
the space is free of development within an urban
context dominated by multi-storied buildings. In
itself, it is no different to any other disused
railway line littered with ballast, old sleepers and
railway lines. The site is not considered to be
aesthetically significant in its current state. |
| Social
Significance: |
The siting
of the railway along what was the edge of Darling
Harbour strongly influenced the development of
Pyrmont and Ultimo. Because of it, woolstores,
engineering works and other industries were built
here after the 1870s, giving this part of Ultimo its
industrial, rather than residential, flavour. |
| Research
Significance: |
Apart from
potential archaeological remains of buildings in
existence by 1897, and other sub-surface remains,
the site has little research or technical potential. |
| Representativeness: |
|
| Rare
Assessment: |
The two
railway bridges on the line are both classified as
rare. |
| Integrity/Intactness: |
|
| Consent
as Owner: |
Before
doing any building work to an item on this Register
or lodging a development application, the proponent
should obtain the consent of the relevant owner of
the site, usually the SHFA. Early consultation is
recommended. |
| Development
Approval: |
Development
work to any item on this Register, including
internal works, repainting and signage, requires
development approval under the EP&A Act. Contact
the relevant consent authority or if the work is in
The Rocks, the SHFA's town planner. |
| Archaelogy: |
Aboriginal
and European cultural archaeological sites are
protected under the National Parks and Wildlife Act
1974 and the Heritage Act 1977 respectively.
Excavation permits may be required. Contact the
National Parks and Wildlife Service, Heritage Office |
| SHFA
Policies: |
The SHFA
has developed a number of policies which guide work
to heritage places. These include Signage, Outdoor
Seating & Telecommunications. New policies are
to be prepared including Lighting; Building Services
& Disabled Access. Contact the SHFA. |
| Conservation
Plans: |
Before
considering major changes to, or adjacent to, a
heritage item on this Register a Conservation
Management Plan should be prepared. Many of the
items already have Plans (see References). Copies
can be obtained from the SHFA. |
| The
Rocks: |
N/A |
|
|
| References: |
Author: |
Title: |
Year: |
|
Wayne Johnson |
Archaeological Assessment, Ultimo Rail
Corridor, Ultimo |
1999 |
| Studies: |
Author: |
Title: |
Number: |
Year: |
| |
Sydney Cove Authority (SCA) |
SCA Register 1979-1998 |
|
1998 |
Special thanks to SHFA Heritage Register http://www.shfa.nsw.gov.au/dynheritage.cfm?MenuID=285
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www.sydneyarchitecture.com
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links
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