Episode 3 - Joining the Network: Linking communities and the scattered railways

The Queensland Rail History Podcast

What are some of the great Queensland Railway lines that never were? What we might today think of as a big, connected network across the state, actually began as a number of scattered railway lines that stretched inland from the coast. They were very much their own identity.
In this episode, we chat with Ken Fairbairn, Driver of the Gulflander and Officer in Charge of the Normanton Railway, an isolated section of track in North Queensland that very much reflects that 'patchwork' approach started in the 1860's.

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1. Introduction (00:00:00)

2. The first railway contract (00:02:11)

3. The Rockhampton Railway (00:04:33)

4. The Normanton Railway (00:06:13)

5. Mining was the next big thing (00:09:48)

6. The Cooktown Railway (00:13:02)

7. The big three divisions (00:17:46)

8. The railway to Stanthorpe (00:21:03)

9. The border fence (00:29:11)

10. Ken Fairbairn's many different hats (00:33:13)

11. Queensland's rail tentacles (00:34:34)

12. The patchwork story (00:42:37)

13. Questions from the community (00:46:43)

14. Conclusion (00:53:56)