Croydon railway station, Queensland
| Croydon railway station | |
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Croydon railway station, 2011
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| Location | Helen Street, Croydon, Shire of Croydon, Queensland, Australia |
| Coordinates | 18°12′09″S 142°14′21″E / 18.2026°S 142.2393°ECoordinates: 18°12′09″S 142°14′21″E / 18.2026°S 142.2393°E |
| Design period | 1870s - 1890s (late 19th century) |
| Built | c. 1888 - c. 1891 |
| Official name: Croydon Station, Normanton to Croydon Railway | |
| Type | state heritage (built, landscape) |
| Designated | 21 October 1992 |
| Reference no. | 600440 |
| Significant period | 1888-1960s (historical) 1880s-1890s (fabric) |
| Significant components | railway station, crane / gantry, machinery/plant/equipment - transport - rail, ramp, tank - water, shed - storage |
 Location of Croydon railway station in Queensland
Location of Croydon railway station in Queensland
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Croydon railway station is a heritage-listed railway station at Helen Street, Croydon, Shire of Croydon, Queensland, Australia. It was built from c. 1888 to c. 1891. It is on the Normanton to Croydon railway line. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Croydon is the eastern terminus of a railway line linking it with the port of Normanton. The line was built between 1888 and 1891 when Croydon was an important goldfield and is the last isolated line of Queensland Rail still in use. It utilised an innovative system of submersible track with patent steel sleepers and retains buildings and equipment of considerable interest, both in their own right and as part of this system.
In 1867 William Landsborough investigated the Norman River area to select a port site to serve the pastoral stations south of the Gulf of Carpentaria. With him was George Phillips who shortly thereafter surveyed the chosen site of Normanton. Phillips later supervised the construction of the Normanton to Croydon Railway, and retained an interest in the area, serving in the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Carpentaria in the 1890s.
A railway line between Normanton and Cloncurry had been discussed as early as 1883 and was approved by Queensland Parliament in 1886. This was a difficult stretch for carriers and a rail link would have been valuable to pastoral stations in the area and was planned to serve the Cloncurry Copper Mine. It was at the time intended to eventually link the new line with the Great Northern Railway connecting Charters Towers and the important port of Townsville. However, in November 1885 a major gold strike was reported at Belmore Station, 145 km east of Normanton and by the end of 1886 the population of the Croydon field was 2000 and rising rapidly in a booming town. Transportation was a major problem and access to this field became more important than the link to Cloncurry. It was decided to divert the line to Croydon.
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