Walhalla Goldfields Railway
After years of lobbying by the community of Walhalla a survey was conducted and a 2’6’ (762mm) narrow gauge was recommended, starting at Moe. A bill was passed by Parliament. Building the Moe – Walhalla Railway commenced in 1904, the last 2 miles (approx.) was constructed alongside and across the Stringers Gorge leading into Walhalla.
The Walhalla line was the last of four experimental narrow gauge lines of the Victorian Railways, the Moe-Walhalla railway commenced in 1904, but was not completed until 1910. After almost 40 years of lobbying for railway connection by major mining interests, the railway was expected to be a boon for Walhalla, which was by that time was in a state of decline with gold mining operations becoming uneconomical. The Long Tunnel Extended mine closed in 1911 and its other record-breaking gold mine, the Long Tunnel, in 1914.
After the closure of the Walhalla mines, substantial timber traffic was carried from sawmills around Erica until the late 1940s. Goods and passenger traffic declined, with the railway closed in sections and in 1944 the service to Walhalla ceased operating beyond Platina. In June 1954, with only one mixed train operating to Erica each week, the line from Moe was finally closed. The tracks and buildings were removed by 1960, leaving only the roadbed and a number of partially dismantled bridges.
In 1938, the former station building at Walhalla was relocated to the Melbourne suburban station of Hartwell. The centre span of the National Estate listed Thomson River Railway Bridge was formerly part of a road bridge over the Murray River at Tocumwal (NSW). A number of the reconstructed railway bridges between Thomson & Walhalla incorporate steel beams released from Victoria’s north east railway to Wodonga, and subsequently purchased and re-gauged for the 1990s reconstruction to Walhalla.
Engineering Heritage Recognition Program
| Marker Type | Engineering Heritage Marker (EHM) |
| Award Date | 9 October 2016 |
| Heritage Significance | The Rail Bridge over Thomson River is the largest structure built on the narrow gauge lines and is representative of railway engineering practice of the early twentieth century. The bridge is important as a significant section of the Moe to Walhalla line which, clinging to sheer slopes and spanning thirteen bridges beyond Erica, attracted international attention as a minor masterpiece of innovative engineering. The bridge is of architectural importance for its unusual construction type, using a combination of structural materials including recycled mild steel girders and a lattice girder as well as concrete piers, timber trestle piers and timber abutment piers. |
| Nomination Document | Available here. |
| Ceremony Booklet Ceremony Report |
Not Available. |
| Plaque/Interpretation Panel | Available here. |
