The Lake Mac Heritage Series was placed to pay homage to the people, places and events that contributed to building and pioneering the Lake Macquarie region. The pick and shovel were chosen in this geoart series to symbolise the hard work the people of Lake Macquarie put forth into the region.

Toronto-Fassifern Rail Line

March has been an important month in the history of the Toronto branch railway line. The line opened in March 1891, closed almost 100 years later in March 1990, and control of the space was handed to Lake Macquarie City Council in March 1993.

A branch line for Toronto

A branch line connecting Toronto township to the main North Coast railway line was first considered in 1889, when the Excelsior Investments and Building Company acquired around 1000 acres of land bordering the Lake at Toronto, thus opening up the area for development and tourism. Government permission for construction of a private railway line was given in October 1889. While the intention was initially to build a narrow three foot gauge tramway line, after realising the potential for use by the government railways this specification was changed to the standard gauge. The line was formally opened on 7th March, 1891 with the first train leaving Newcastle station bound for Toronto at 8.15am.

The puzzle

All historical and heritage information courtesy of Lake Mac Libraries

Any questions regarding this puzzle cache or the LMHS geoart series will be answered by clicking HERE

*** The LMHS geoart was placed in conjunction with the OzGeoMuster 2018 mega event. The OzGeoMuster 2018 committee would like to thank the following people for their contribution to this series. ahomburg, day1976, sedgwickDave, The Morris, bobbiesgirl, and the_garbageman.***

Enjoy!

Marcus Vitruvius