FORMER BIRREGURRA RAILWAY STATION

460 BIRREGURRA ROAD BIRREGURRA, COLAC OTWAY SHIRE

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Victorian Heritage Inventory

Statement of Significance

• Additional Place Information

  • History

    FORMER BIRREGURRA RAILWAY STATION - History

    The Birregurra portion of the Geelong railway line was built between 1876 and 1877, with Birregurra railway station (Colac Otway HO72/RNE 15267/NT B4458) opening on 13 March 1877, stimulating steady population growth in the area into the 1900s. The Forrest branch line was opened in 1891, which looped southwards, skirting the Otway Ranges, to Forrest. The railway allowed livestock and milk to be transported to and from Birregurra, and a saleyard was opened in 1912, followed by a dairy factory in 1913 (which closed in 1955). The Forrest line was closed on 2 March 1957, with the turnout to the Forrest line being removed in 1961, along with the dock, turntable sidings and a number of signals at Birregurra station (Victorian Places 2015; Wong 2018).

    Birregurra railway station originally comprised the railway platform, a polychrome brickwork station and residence building (similar in design to that of Winchelsea's station building), a van goods shed, a ladies' closet (which was changed into a lamp room), and toilets. The station and residence building were also built in the mid-Victorian boom style. The station had a goods shed of corrugated iron with a curved roof, a four tonne gantry crane, and a stockyard, with a 20,000 gallon overhead water tank (Colac Otway HO73/RNE 15267/NT B4458) adjacent to the station building. A 53 foot turntable was added to the station complex in 1916, connected to the carriage dock by a new turntable road, and a new wooden signal box added to the up end of the platform. The delta crossing was simplified in 1941, and replaced with single crossover, and in 1947, the compound between the main line and the down end of the number two road was closed. The gantry crane was removed in 1977, and timber extensions that had been added to the station building residence were removed after 1979. By the 1980s, the yard consisted of the main line along with number two and four roads, with all other sidings having been removed (Ward and Donnelly 1982, pp. 87-89; Wong 2018). The original Birregurra railway station, passenger platform, and water tank are extant.

    Archaeological Significance

    FORMER BIRREGURRA RAILWAY STATION - Archaeological Significance

    The railway station opened on 13 March 1877, to the east of the Birregurra Road railway crossing. The site comprises an operational passenger platform and railway station building to the south of the railway track. The goods area and associated structures have been dismantled slowly since 1977, and the goods area is now no longer in use. The railway station and passenger platform are still in use today. Within the former goods area, the remains comprise a concrete feature and line of bricks within the area of a former 6-ton gantry, and a disused ramp in the area of the former siding. The grassed areas on top of the platform do not appear to be highly disturbed and are likely to contain archaeological features relating to the former structures noted in documentary evidence. The site is likely to provide information about the layout and use of the goods area, and its importance within the railway station complex. As such, this site demonstrates potential for historical archaeological features, deposits or artefacts.

    Historical Significance

    FORMER BIRREGURRA RAILWAY STATION - Historical Significance

    The Birregurra railway station site is assessed as having archaeological value in a local context under the 'linking Victorians by rail' and 'building Victoria's industries and workforce' framework in Victoria's Framework of Historical Themes (Heritage Council of Victoria 2010). The Birregurra Railway Station is historically important at a local level through association with the development of transport links in the Shire, which significantly contributed to the area's social and economic expansion.

    Heritage Inventory Description

    FORMER BIRREGURRA RAILWAY STATION - Heritage Inventory Description

    The proposed Heritage Inventory listing is related to archaeological evidence related to the HO listed Birregurra railway station, which is located both within and outside the current HO heritage boundary. Railway Station (Colac Otway HO72) and Birregurra Railway Station and Water Tower (RNE 15267/NT B4458) are both located within the railway reserve to the west of Birregurra Road, Birregurra. The heritage boundary of Railway Station (Colac Otway HO72) covers approximately 1.85 hectares of land on both sides of the railway track, and encompasses the railway station building, the passenger platform, and the former goods platform. The heritage boundary of Birregurra Railway Station and Water Tower (RNE 15267/NT B4458) is approximately 0.03 hectares in size, and is mapped as a small circle situated within the heritage curtilage of Colac Otway HO72. However, the water tower is actually located to the south of the railway station, within the heritage boundary of the neighbouring Water Tower (Colac Otway HO73). It is therefore likely that there has been a mapping or data error when the location of Birregurra Railway Station and Water Tower (RNE 15267/NT B4458) was recorded and the corresponding heritage boundary created.

    The Birregurra railway station building and passenger platform, which are currently in use, are in good condition.

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