Although it is now operated as a branch from the main Werribee/Geelong line at Newport, the line was originally built from the city, with the Geelong line being the branch. The line officially opened in January 1859, but the section between the vicinity of the Newport workshops and Williamstown Pier was in use by Geelong-line trains from October 1857. The line was electrified in August 1920, but little further change to the infrastructure took place until the section from Williamstown to Williamstown Pier closed in March 1987.
Williamstown was originally Melbourne's first sea port, but is today a popular and fashionable suburban maritime village, playing host to both locals and visitors to Melbourne who embrace the change of scenery and slow down in pace it offers. Surrounded on three sides by the calm waters Port Phillip Bay, its northern and eastern coastline with piers, gardens and remnants of Williamstown's maritime history that includes numerous colonial-era shipyards and slipways.
North Melbourne railway station is the junction station for the Craigieburn, Flemington Racecourse, Sunbury, Upfield, Werribee and Williamstown lines. It serves the north-western Melbourne suburb of West Melbourne, and it opened on 6 October 1859. The first railway through the site of North Melbourne station was today's Williamstown line, and the first section of the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company line (to Sunbury), both opened on 13 January 1859. The first passenger station with two platforms was opened on 6 December 1859, and the present six platform station was opened on 9 June 1886.
Kensington is known for its village feel, cafes, and diversity of architecture - including Victorian terraces, cottages, warehouse apartments and new structures in the west of the suburb. The suburb is hilly in sections and contains established tree lined streets.
The suburb is bounded by Racecourse Road to the north, Smithfield Road and the Maribyrnong River to the west, Dynon Road to the south, and Moonee Ponds Creek to the east. Kensington was once home to one of Victoria's major abattoirs and livestock saleyards, an army ordnance depot and a number of factories. The stock yards ceased operation in 1984, prompting significant urban renewal in the area now known as Kensington Banks.
The Maribyrnong River, which begins on the slopes of Mount Macedon and flows to Port Phillip, has played a major role in the occupation and development of western Victoria. Aboriginal tribes have frequented its banks for at least 40,000 years. The river has been part of the rapid developments that have occurred in the last 50 years. The river was known as Saltwater River before its present name came into common usage.
There is a boat landing at Canning Reserve. An unspoilt section of the river takes a wide sweep around the Department of Defence land with its remains of the Explosive Factory. Parklands on either side of the river include Maribyrnong Park and Fairbairn Park where there are boat landings and picnic facilities.
The river flows past Footscray Park with its Scotchman's Hill from where the famous Melbourne Cup can be glimpsed at Flemington Racecourse on the opposite side of the river. Just downstream from Dynon Road Bridge it is possible to board a pleasure boat for a leisurely trip up the river. From here on the river passes through the industrial area of Footscray with its historic jetties and bridges before it joins the Yarra at Fishermans Bend.
Footscray is a bustling, multicultural suburb on the banks of the Maribyrnong River, on the western fringe of the city. While the sense of industry can still be felt in the nearby docks stacked with colourful shipping containers, the heart of Footscray is one filled with Vietnamese soup joints, Ethiopian cafes, bustling markets, expansive public gardens and riverside bike paths, all within view of the city.
Long a working class area due to its close proximity to the factories and warehouses of Melbourne's nearby industrial centre, it is now home to a large concentration of the city's Vietnamese population and increasingly a hub for the growing East African community, home to many immigrants from Ethiopia, Sudan and Eritrea. In fact forty per cent of Footscray's residents were born outside Australia, hailing from 135 countries and speaking more than 80 languages. This ethnic diversity has fostered a vital street culture like no other in Melbourne.
Seddon is an inner-suburb 7 km west of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, lying south of Footscray and north of Yarraville. Formerly a semi-industrial, working-class suburb, in recent years Seddon has experienced rapid gentrification due to its close proximity to the Melbourne City Centre.
Originally known as Belgravia, Seddon was officially declared a suburb in 1906, named after Richard Seddon, the New Zealand Prime Minister from 1893 to 1906, who resided there before he moved to Bendigo and later to New Zealand. The Main streets of Victoria, Charles & Gamon used to accommodate a tram line that ran through the middle of the Seddon Village. It has since been replaced with central garden beds and tree plantings in the middle of the streets.
Seddon street names were named for monarchs. Reading from west to east, Charles intersects with Alfred, Edward, Henry, James, William, Victoria (which runs parallel to Windsor) and terminates at Albert.
Located near Yarraville railway station on Anderson and Ballarat Streets, Yarraville is renowned in Melbourne for its unique character, architecture and quality of village life. Anderson and Ballarat Streets, in the heart of the Yarraville Village, are lined with refurbished 19th century buildings with neighbourhood cafés, restaurants and boutique shops.
This village atmosphere is anchored by the restored Sun Theatre and the adjacent Sun Bookshop, a prominent landmark in the Yarraville community with its unique art deco architecture and its 6 cinemas. Notable examples of Edwardian and Victorian architecture can be found in Yarraville.
The Yarraville Village is home to many award winning restaurants and cafes. A reflection of Melbourne's multicultural nature, Yarraville offers an array of world cuisine styles including Greek, Italian, Modern Asian, Indian, Cambodian, Thai, Chinese and Modern Australian. Retail shops in the village provide an eclectic shopping experience, from books to the work of a local artist, to quality clothes, shoes, gifts, jewellery, wines, gourmet foods, and a record shop.
Spotswood, an inner-western suburb of Melbourne, is 7 km south-west of Melbourne's central business district. The suburb is bounded generally by the Geelong railway line in the west, the West Gate Freeway in the north, the Yarra River in the east Burleigh Street in the south,. Most of the suburb's residences are located in the area to the north and west of the railway station. Spotswood was named after J.S. Spottiswoode (shortened Spotswood), one of the first farmers who owned much of the area in the 1840s.
Spotswood was the setting of the eponymous Australian film, Spotswood, made in 1990-1991, released in 1992, starring Anthony Hopkins, Toni Collette, Bruno Lawrence and Russell Crowe, as a minor character. Most of the scenes in Spotswood were shot in the suburb, but the Moccasin factory is fictional and doesn't exist in Spotswood; the factory scenes in the movie were shot in the old sewage pumping station.
Spotswood is home to Scienceworks, the Victorian Science Museum. Scienceworks is near the old sewage pumping station of Spotswood, constructed in 1897. Movie lovers with a keen eye for detail will recognise this location as the police headquarters in Mad Max, and for the Academy award-winning short film Harvie Krumpet. Location: 2 Booker Street, Spotswood.
The inner suburb of Newport is 7 km south-west of the Melbourne central business district, approximately 10 minutes by car from Melbourne via the West Gate Freeway or 20 minutes by train from Flinders Street. Like many of Melbourne's inner suburbs, Newport is home to people of a diverse mix of ethnic, social and economic backgrounds.
The Yalukit-willam people of the Boon-wurrung Country are the traditional owners of land known as Newport, with a well researched connection to the area beyond 30,000 years. First contact came with European sealers (1803–1834) and followed a pattern of violence typical across Australia at the time. In 1835 the arrival of John Batman saw a treaty established and a period of relative peace until develop began and the indigenous peoples were increasingly denied ownership and access to their lands.
Greenwich Reserve and The Strand are Newport's connection to the Bay. Mansions and modest apartments compete for uninterrupted views of the Melbourne CBD along The Strand, while Greenwich Reserve offers access to the Yarra River and Port Phillip Bay via The Warmies Boat Ramp and includes a large picnic area, playground, baseball field and the Sandy Point Conservation Area. A sealed cycle track runs along the river front, which is also a popular fishing spot.
Newport Lakes Park is a bushland oasis created from a former blustone quarry. The park is 33 hectares in size and has been extensively revegetated using native plants, with over 200 species of plants and 85 species of birds recorded here. The park has a picnic area, toilets, drinking taps and free electric barbecues. Dogs may be exercised in the Pavey's Park and Picnic Area, the north west area of the park and in the Arboretum.
On the eastern side of Champion Road is the home of the Newport Railway Museum operated by the Australian Railway Historical Society, on the south-east corner of the Newport Workshops. It is a short walk from the North Williamstown railway station. The Museum features the largest collection of Victorian Railways steam locomotives. Other exhibits include electric and diesel locomotives, suburban and country passenger carriages, guards vans, a selection of freight wagons and numerous railway artefacts.
During the second half of 2021, the Victorian Government removed the Ferguson Street level crossing beside the North Williamstown railway station. The project was part of a plan to remove 75 dangerous and congested level crossings across Melbourne. The removal was made by sinking the railway line on either side of the crossing, so that the line passed under the railway line via a short tunnel. The North Williamstown station was rebuilt below ground level in the process.
Williamstown railway station is the terminus of the Williamstown line. The station opened on 1 February 1859. Work on the line started under the Melbourne, Mount Alexander and Murray River Railway Company, but were taken over by the government in 1856, after work faltered. Builders Kerr, Hodgson & Billings commenced work on the timber Williamstown station building in 1858, with the station opened to traffic on 17 January 1859.
Williamstown railway sidings and workshops, 1870
Railway sidings, a signal box and weighbridge were once located opposite the station, but have been since removed, with a portion of the goods yard out of use by 1965. All rails, sleepers, overhead wires and signals between Williamstown and Williamstown Pier were removed by October 1988, along with a further two electrified sidings, next to the platform track.
The central section of the station building remains today, but was originally flanked by two pavilions: one for the stationmasters residence, and on the other refreshment rooms. The Ann Street footbridge was installed c1883. The track now currently ends just under the Ann Street footbridge, at the Down end of the station.
In the past decade Williamstown has received a face lift and become a major tourism drawcard. It retains the coherence and charm of a maritime village, due, in no small part, to the many historic buildings. The former maritime industry buildings on Nelson Place, which runs parallel to the foreshore and form its main street, house an interesting array of cafes, restaurants, galleries and shops, and overlook a ribbon of bayside beach sand where children are often seen playing in the shallows.
Williamstown Maritime Museum is located on the HMAS Castlemaine which is moored at Gem Pier on the foreshore. The former World War II minesweeper, HMAS Castlemaine, was built in Williamstown in 1942 so it appropriate that she has returned there after being de-commissioned. Painstakingly refurbished, she is open for public inspection. On display is a 4 inch gun, the bridge complete with wheel, compasses, radar screen and more.
A short walk from the Williamstown foreshore along Nelson Place, Point Gellibrand is one of the most important sites in the history of the state of Victoria, as it was here that Victoria s first permanent non indigenous settlement and seaport was established in 1835. It was John Batman, Melbourne's founder, who stepped ashore and named the area Point Gellibrand in honour of his close friend, London barrister, Joseph Tice Gellibrand. While battling wild weather, illnesses and the occasional murder, the colony thrived; creating Australia's first telegraph station and government owned railway alongside the evolution of the state's navy and military.
Accessed on foot from Williamstown Station, Williamstown's wide, sandy beach is 880m long and faces almost due south, receiving waves during strong southerlies that are sometimes large enough to surf. The most popular break to surf is called "hunchback". It is a large but inconsistent right hand point/beach break just off the rock pier that works best with low tides and strong southerly winds. The beach is fronted by an attached bar that widens to the west. At low tide, it can be a 100 metres wade before you can swim off the bar.
A foreshore reserve is located at the eastern end and contains the Anglers Club, the pier, a car park, a park and a picnic area. Williamstown Swimming and Life Saving Club is located at the western end where the bar is relatively shallow and it is safest to swim. Close to both Williamstown and Williamstown Beach railway stations, this is a very accessible and popular beach.
Constructed on The Esplanade at Williamstown Beach in 1936, the Williamstown Dressing Pavilion is an architecturally significant early example of European Modernism applied to the design of a pavilion structure by two then relatively unknown architects Arnold Bridge and Alan Bogle.
As an alternative to returning to Melbourne by rtain, we suggest making the return trip with a cruise up the lower reaches of the Yarra through the port area. The ferry passes Coode Island, formed in 1886 when a canal was cut through the Sandridge swamp to provide a straightened stream for the Yarra River. It was named after Sir John Coode, an English harbour engineer who was engaged by the Melbourne Harbor Trust to select the optimum route for the canal as part of the Port of Melbourne. Swanson Dock was excavated out of the island near its south-west corner when containerized cargo services began in the 1960s.
The name Fishermens Bend came to be applied to the land opposite Coode Island (above), on the other side of the canal. It has a significant place in Australian aviation history, being the home of several prominent historical Australian aircraft design and manufacturing companies, including the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation, General Motors Holden, Smorgon Steel, Government Aircraft Factories, the Aeronautical Research Laboratory and regional facilities for Boeing. Fishermen's Bend Aerodrome remained in use until 1957.
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