Moreton Bay Tramway Company Explained

The Moreton Bay Tramroad Company was a private enterprise attempt to establish railways in the new colony of Queensland. It was stillborn.

People

• Coote,
• Stephens,
• Buckley.
• Abraham Fitzgibbon engineer, who was assistant to William Doyne on the Dun Mountain Tramway in Nelson, New Zealand.

Land Grant Railway

It had been proposed to fund it as a Land Grant Railway.^[1]

Horse power

The tramway was intended to be operated by horses.^[2]

Characteristics

• ^[3]

Gradients

The later railway along the route of the tramway has ruling gradients of 1 in 50. This might be rather steep for horse operation, unless unloaded in uphill direction.

Rails

The line was originally to use 35lb/yd rail.

Nomenclature

The Tramway company is sometimes called a Tramroad.

Timeline

1859

• Queensland separated from New South Wales on 6 June 1859. Some very preliminary railway plans had been prepared by the New South Wales Government which were handed over to the new Queensland Government.

1860

• April – An early mention in a political platform of the need for railways or tramways in Queensland.^[4]
• April – An early mention of the constructing firm of Moreton, Peto and Brassey.^[5]
• November – An advertisement for the company's prospectus in a Sydney newspaper.^[6]
• November – An advertisement for the company's prospectus in a Brisbane paper.^[7]

1862

• April – coal deposits reported next to the proposed route.^[8]
• 29 May – Tramway assets taken over by Government.^{[9] [10]}

1863

• Insolvent Court^[11]
• 9 May – the Government Railways Bill repeals the Tramway Act, except for court actions already in action.^[12]
• 20 August – Railway Bill in parliament^[13]

1865

• 29 March 1865 – three large shareholder taken to Supreme Court for not paying calls on contributing shares.^[14]

The three are:

• Coote,
• Stephens,
• Buckley.

Notes and References

1. News: Advertising. . . Melbourne . 11 April 1862 . 4 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
2. News: Advertising. . . Melbourne . 11 April 1862 . 4 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
3. News: The Courier. . . XVIII . 1826 . Queensland, Australia . 31 December 1863 . 30 March 2021 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
4. News: Classified Advertising. . . Brisbane . 17 April 1860 . 5 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
5. News: Colonial Parliament. . . 25 April 1860 . 5 September 2012 . 5 . National Library of Australia.
6. News: Sydney News. . . NSW . 8 November 1860 . 6 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
7. News: Classified Advertising. . . Brisbane . 10 November 1860 . 6 September 2012 . 1 . National Library of Australia.
8. News: Advertising. . . Melbourne . 5 April 1862 . 5 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
9. News: Latest Intelligence. . . Ipswich, Qld. . 29 May 1862 . 4 September 2012 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
10. News: Latest Intelligence. . . Ipswich, Qld. . 29 May 1862 . 7 September 2012 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
11. News: Queensland. . . Hobart, Tas. . 2 January 1863 . 4 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
12. News: The Government Railway Bill. . . Brisbane . 9 May 1863 . 7 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.
13. News: The Railway Bill. . . Toowoomba, Qld. . 20 August 1863 . 10 September 2012 . 2 . National Library of Australia.
14. News: Queensland. . . Hobart, Tas. . 29 March 1865 . 8 September 2012 . 3 . National Library of Australia.