Goolwa to Port Elliot - Australia's First Public Railway: In the Fleurieu Peninsula region of South Australia

Goolwa lies at the end of the mighty Murray, on the elbow bend (that’s what it means in the Ngarrindjeri language). Goolwa also means a heritage jewel of a town with a paddlesteamer load of tales to tell of the romantic riverboat days.

Most times, nowadays, all you’ll hear on the wharf are seagulls and the hiss of Hector’s CafÈ cappuccino machine, but on the May long weekend 2004 the paddle wheelers will be splashing again, there'll be food and wine stalls over the freight yards by Goolwa station and the Cockle Train will be all steamed up... because we're about to celebrate an Australian first.

150 years ago, it was declared officially operational. Australia's first public railway started on the river wharf.

The railway was conceived before the first steam whistle ever cut the air. And that was down to a gamble taken by a visionary, the Governor of the time, Sir Henry Edward Fox Young.The Victorian goldrush diggers needed supplies, and he saw the opening for his colony. South Australia needed a river link but the Murray mouth was dicey to navigate. So the idea was to create a river port, a seaport, and a railway in between.

With its trusty volunteer crew, the Goolwa based heritage cargo steamer Oscar W will be all steamed up again next weekend emulating the dozens of boats on the Murray in the nineteenth century. The PS Industry is on its way down river from Renmark, loaded with wheat and wool and oranges.

Back in 1854, the new horsedrawn railway was ready to go, but when Governor Young pushed the idea through, there was no such produce within cooey!

“No, when the railway started there was zero. The railway was almost a line that went from nowhere to nowhere”.

Anthony Presgrave is a self-confessed Goolwa and Oscar W groupie – he’s a driver of the 150th celebrations of Australia’s first public railway – which had to fight off several other schemes!

“They considered canals, there was to be a canal cut through the sandhills from Goolwa to the sea, there was also a proposal for a canal from Goolwa to near Victor Harbor”.

As Anthony points out, not only did the Goolwa to Pt. Elliot railway win out, but there’s plenty of evidence of it still around. The old cutting up from the wharf leads to a pretty park where the line crossed on its way past the pub. Nearby, the Railway Superintendent's house with its rounded roof hasn’t changed much in a century and a half.

Leave it to Anthony to wheel out the piece de resistance! From the weathered corrugated iron goods shed creaked an amazing old horse drawn carriage – and with luck we’ll all be seeing more of this in the future. But is it original?

“Well it was put back together again for the 1936 State Centenary so a lot of it probably is original”.

You’ll certainly see it here during the festival weekend. As you follow the train re-enactment (maybe on the Cockle Train), there are more signs of the historic railway to watch out for. The old Middleton station was just beyond the level crossing well known to surfers. It’s long gone, but there are still signs of the railway village. For instance, the Station Master's house is now called Rose Cottage. The great Middleton Mill remains as well. It sent flour up the Murray and via the new railway to Pt. Elliot and on to London, where it won medals!

At the other end of this Australian first, Horseshoe Bay was to be the international outlet to rival Pt. Adelaide. Even before the railway was finished, the tall white obelisk on Freeman Nob was built to guide the tall ships in. They could spot it from a good 16 kilometres out. Down below, the breakwater was quarried from the granite in the bay, while the old jetty still comes in handy for a spot of fishing.

This was a place with a short claim to fame on the maritime map, however, because the waves are not always gentle.In 1886 alone, 4 ships broke moorings and were slammed onto the beach or the point beyond. By the early 1860’s, Pt. Victor – Victor harbor – was taking over.

That was the end of the "port" in Port Elliot but in Horseshoe Bay next weekend, a sailing ship will come in just one more time. The "One and All" will take a cargo that's come down the river along the railway line, down to the wharf and out to sea. A new book's been launched, and there'll be celebrations all the way along the line. And why not? After all, 150 years ago this officially became one end of Australia's first public railway.

Australia’s First Public Railway
Celebrating 150 years

Goolwa Sat 15th May
Pt. Elliot Sun 16th May
Middleton Mon 17th May

Signal Point Visitor Information Centre
Goolwa
South Australia

Ph: (08)8555 3488

www.australiasfirstrailway.com