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A HISTORY OF SOUTH AUSTRALIAN RAILWAYS

This third volume of A History of the South Australian Railways advances the railway history to an interesting period when some of the more momentous growth in railway mileage occurred – but also when there was a settling down in locomotive policy.

Covering the years roughly from about 1876 to 1890, the period was marked by two strong administrators in the way of Henry Coathupe Mais and William Thow as Engineer-in-Chief from 1866 to 1888 and Locomotive Engineer from 1876 to 1889 respectively. Thow was followed by Thomas Roberts, who was equally capable.

As so many of the developments in South Australia were in their hands, Chapter 1 introduces these Engineers up-front. Some of the major routes were developed by Mais, including Adelaide to the Victorian border and Port Pirie to the New South Wales border, both of which are strategic routes in South Australia to this day.

Thow set the locomotive policy for the State before public servants hounded him out of South Australia, unaware of his talents. Consequently, South Australia’s loss was New South Wales’ gain. Roberts not only followed on the good work of Thow but introduced some of the longest lasting locomotives of the SAR.