In 1825, the Stockton & Darlington Railway opened the world’s first passenger railway station on Tuesday 27th September — a milestone that transformed travel forever. Steam locomotives carried passengers and goods at unprecedented speed, sparking a transport revolution that connected towns, boosted industry, and shaped modern Britain... and subsequently the rest of the world.
A mere 29 years later, in the era of sailing ships and bullock drays, the Melbourne and Hobsons Bay Railway Company opened Australia's first steam railway on Tuesday 12th September 1854, operating between Melbourne (the site of Flinders Street station today) and Sandridge (known as Port Melbourne today).
The team in the UK behind the SideTracked series of caches have joined the wider Railway 200 celebrations by promoting SideTracked Railway 200 events. In the true larrikin spirit of the "Colonials", a SideTracked Railway171 event has been organised to celebrate the remarkable achievement of the fledgling colony of Victoria.
At 12:20 pm the first train set out with Lieutenant-Governor Sir Charles Hotham and Lady Hotham and many guests for a banquet in the engine shed at Sandridge. The train was hauled by a steam locomotive that had been constructed in Melbourne as the locomotives ordered from England had not arrived.
An artist's rendition of the first locomotive
Join me for a celebration of the significant achievement of our forebears... the location is an off shoot of a modern pedestrian bridge over the Yarra... BYO lunch if you want and there is very little cover if the weather isn't kind. Despite what Google Maps might suggest, the event location is wheelchair accessible.