I'm not sure if others have said it but I appreciate you showing us the spots and taking short snippets of the streets the tram would have gone down. Once again knew none of this history so that you. Also once again very professionally done.
Thanks for noting. yes I like seeing the then and now in other people's videos myself, so I try where I can to get out and film the path of the former lines.. hence more Sydney centric videos as that is where I live.. but will do other cities more when I have the chance to visit.
Much appreciated - I've often heard of the old Castle Hill tramway but this is the first time I found out about the Parrmatta to Redbank Wharf - fascinating. I always wondered why there was a Tramway Avenue. I was aware of the old Parramatta Park Tram Museum & was sad when it burnt down. Pleased the steam motor was saved & still operates up Valley Height - reminds me must make a trip up there soon. Thank you for your in-depth research on our past & thank you for sharing.
@@nicolekearnes4206 Valley Heights Locomotive Depot Museum is located off the Great Western Highway & near Valley Heights Railway Station (on the Blue Mountains/Katoomba railway line). Generally opened on weekends & school holidays - you can check out their website.
I remember seeing the trams at Parra park as a young kid. They were fascinating. It’s tragic it was never reopened. It was a jewel in the middle of Oarramatta and would be massively popular now with kids and young families that live nearby
I grew up in Winston Hills during the 70s and 80s and live in Castle Hill now. You can still see the embankment of the train where it went behind Vinnies on Old Northern Rd and next to Hills Bowlo. I think the photo of the Baulkham Hills Railway photo at 6:26 is at the front of the current Hills Bowlo. The house in the background is still there.
My wife yelled out "They had trams to carso" after having spent her entire youth in the public transport desert of the hills/galston area. It just goes to show that rail was the perfect ways to move freight and passengers. Meanwhile in hobart we have had unused but maintained till the end of use rail line which goes through all of hobarts northern suburbs, which the government has ignored and refused to invest in. Apparently you cant run acrailway on 3 foot 6 gauge (Don't tell the japanese) thanks for your videos, we find them entertaining and interesting.
I know right.. I didn't realise there was a Tram and then a Railway to The Hills either until researching this. I will be in Hobart in Jan for a family holiday.. so Backtracks will do a video on Hobart after that!
I am pretty sure the railways to Castle Hill assisted in transporting citrus fruit back into Sydney. A giveaway that there was a train line through Baulkham Hills is Railway Street right near the intersection of Windsor and Old Northern Road.
Freight trams - a so long forgotten way of moving cargo around congested centres, and only recently being rediscovered in some places. What a great idea, not directly to every door, but dispersed centres around the area for localised delivery/collection.
Awesome video as always Marty, such a shame that STARPS burnt down. I know some members personally and they're still gutted by it, and honestly who can blame them? Speaking of preservation groups, I think you'd be a great fit for down at the Tram Museum in Loftus. Me and a couple mates have slowly been joining and it's been an absolute blast, we'd love for someone like you to come and help out! (unless you're already a member lol)
Ha, not sure where the Japanese subtitles come from.. But happy to have Japanese viewing the videos... for such a train loving nation. they don't actually have that many trams these days. Although I believe one new line just opened. The first in many years.
Hi Marty. What tickles your fancy to make videos on these tram lines? I'm interested in your content because I'm fascinated In lost Aussie history and I think their is much not taught, or not even given a mention in the curriculum education here. Learning history gives us a better chance towards our future and Aussie schools aren't teaching much on our old land full of awesome history.
Good question as my friends often ask 'why do you like trams / trains?' - and I say "I don't know, just did since I was a little kid'.. I grew up in Sydney after trams were long gone.. I think most people are interested in the history of things they are familar with today.. like what their suburb / city was like when their parents and grand parents were alive.. And public transport is something everyone in Australia (especially in the cities) has some connection with. At the same time , we are about to come to a time that people who rode on / worked on the trams in Sydney (and most cities in Australia) will have passed on. So do like the idea these videos are a bit of a bridge to the next generation sharing that history.
Hi Marty, thanks for sharing yet another excellent video. My dad actually rode on these steam trams to parramatta Wharf just prior to the system closing in 1941. I managed to travel on the Parramatta Park Steam Trams when the museum was operating during the 1970's and 1980's. The steam trams operated there on the third Sunday of every month back then. Anyway, take care. Rob in Melbourne Australia.
At the time, the local council wanted them out of the park, then the fire happened. possibly just a coincidence, though that remains a mystery along with the fire that destroyed the Brisbane tram depot years ago. Fortunately, the steam tram engine survived, but the tram passenger trailer was lost and that was eventually replaced by an old Broken Hill steam tram trailer.
Thanks. Good info. Just looked it up. yes looks like it was freight line running between the quarry, wharf and the railway line goods yard - just to the south of the Kiama railway station. Must look to see what remains next time down that way.
There is another Steam Tram left, Ex Sydney 1905, it was used to construct the Gonville -Castlecliffe line, Whanganui, NZ. It seems to have done limited service until 1912, maybe just finishing the new Castlecliffe Line.... Did come out of mothballs during a power failure that lasted months in 1920. There are stories of trailers (2) still being around Whangnui and MOTAT has a working one. Steam Trams were cool, but tended to fill the streets with black smoke and very slow moving road blocks.
Thanks GT, great to hear your knowledge of these engines. I recently had the chance to see the one in MOTAT (its in my New Zealand video.. although I didn't reference it in the voice over). I think that may be the one from Whanganui? I can't imaging them running down city streets today.. but you may have seen it, there is a fantastic video of one of the last team trams running on the Kogarah line.. its good as by then the film quality was very good..
Thank you for this series of videos. I grew up in North Parramatta and often walked to Parramatta station crossing George Street at Smith Street. For some years the tops of the rails of the Redbank tramway were visible through the bitumen and polished by vehicle tyres so they looked shiny. Then another layer of bitumen was added and they disappeared. I left Sydney in 1966 and don't know if the tracks were later removed or if they are still there.
Great to see the old steam tram. I volunteered on the tramway in Parramatta Park during the early 70s we my friends and I laid track along the river towards the gates. The tram driver was Jack Midgely unfortunately can’t the Conductors name. Love to know where you got the centenary photos as we were all there and don’t have any pictures
Yes aren't those old shots of the Parramatta museum great. Thanks for sharing your memories. I find a lot of old images on council archives. Here is the link for some of the old centenary photos. archives.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/nodes/search?keywords=Parramatta+Steam+Trams&whole=1&in=2&searchbutton1=
I just subscribed mate. Would love a shout out in your next video. Very informative and interesting information. I’ll be showing my autistic son this, as trains are his passion!
Thanks, appreciate you watching the video. I’m no expert, but I understand the railway did go from Richmond up to Kurrajong. It closed back in 1952. There is a goof Wikipedia page on it as well.
The Castle Hill Line had a direct connection to the main railway line just east of Parramatta Station, and amazingly the tracks and the connection survived up to the 1990s as a local flour mill there found them still useful. Since then the flour mill and the old tram tracks have gone, replaced by residential and commercial tower blocks. Re the George Street to Redbank Wharf Line: I recall the tram tracks still being in George Street under the bitumen and showing up in a few places where the bitumen was worn thin or pot holed. I wonder if they are still there?
Thanks for the memories. I have walked around the former site of the flour mill and depot (which is a open car park from what I can see) near Parramatta Park and I couldn't see any tracks these days. Shame. Would have been great to have film of these tracks. Not sure about the lines on George Street, but one would guess that at least in some parts the tracks may exist.. Thanks again.
And for some useless info, I used to work for the company that made all the orange/white destination signs found at all train stations, along with all the L,B and T round lights. I notice they are now fading badly, so they will be replaced again via state taxes.
thanks. I had noticed the same because funnily enough one time in my life a job I had did involve outdoor signage.. and the Aussie sun is ruthless.. especially with signs with yellow / red in them.. strips that colour right out first.. we had to go around and replace the Westerly facing signs more often than the ones facing East. (we used to rotate them and then replace). But there we ways to insulate against fade - but it cost more up front!
@@stephenarbon2227 it’s the best paint possible, and the individual station lettering is vinyl wrap which is holding up well enough. The signs are on a replacement cycle over a 10 year program, so not all is lost.
Thanks Neil. Great to hear from you. Thanks for watching you are a great supporter of the channel. The channel actually has quite a number of overseas viewers so I do feel I need to give US dollar equivalent so they can compare that to transport in their own countries but I get your point thanks.
Just imagine how much better off Sydney would be if there was a railway from Castle Hill to Parramatta today
Well Julia Gillard offered one but they ignored her
@@radicallyrethinkingrailwaysinaGillard had no policy for local govt. ? Made up ?
I thought Gillard offered the line from Parra to Epping
I'm not sure if others have said it but I appreciate you showing us the spots and taking short snippets of the streets the tram would have gone down. Once again knew none of this history so that you. Also once again very professionally done.
Thanks for noting. yes I like seeing the then and now in other people's videos myself, so I try where I can to get out and film the path of the former lines.. hence more Sydney centric videos as that is where I live.. but will do other cities more when I have the chance to visit.
Much appreciated - I've often heard of the old Castle Hill tramway but this is the first time I found out about the Parrmatta to Redbank Wharf - fascinating. I always wondered why there was a Tramway Avenue. I was aware of the old Parramatta Park Tram Museum & was sad when it burnt down. Pleased the steam motor was saved & still operates up Valley Height - reminds me
must make a trip up there soon. Thank you for your in-depth research on our past & thank you for sharing.
How do I get to this steam motor? I’d love to see it!
@@nicolekearnes4206 Valley Heights Locomotive Depot Museum is located off the Great Western Highway & near Valley Heights Railway Station (on the Blue Mountains/Katoomba railway line). Generally opened on weekends & school holidays - you can check out their website.
Very well presented
I remember seeing the trams at Parra park as a young kid. They were fascinating. It’s tragic it was never reopened. It was a jewel in the middle of Oarramatta and would be massively popular now with kids and young families that live nearby
Thank you so much as always your keeping forgotten history at the surface thank you so much for the work you've done regards Doc
Amazing. I had no idea that there was tram that ran from Parramatta to Rogans hill.
I grew up in Winston Hills during the 70s and 80s and live in Castle Hill now.
You can still see the embankment of the train where it went behind Vinnies on Old Northern Rd and next to Hills Bowlo.
I think the photo of the Baulkham Hills Railway photo at 6:26 is at the front of the current Hills Bowlo. The house in the background is still there.
Yeah. So long ago.
My wife yelled out "They had trams to carso" after having spent her entire youth in the public transport desert of the hills/galston area. It just goes to show that rail was the perfect ways to move freight and passengers. Meanwhile in hobart we have had unused but maintained till the end of use rail line which goes through all of hobarts northern suburbs, which the government has ignored and refused to invest in.
Apparently you cant run acrailway on 3 foot 6 gauge (Don't tell the japanese) thanks for your videos, we find them entertaining and interesting.
I know right.. I didn't realise there was a Tram and then a Railway to The Hills either until researching this. I will be in Hobart in Jan for a family holiday.. so Backtracks will do a video on Hobart after that!
I am pretty sure the railways to Castle Hill assisted in transporting citrus fruit back into Sydney. A giveaway that there was a train line through Baulkham Hills is Railway Street right near the intersection of Windsor and Old Northern Road.
Thank you. I grew up in Melbourne and used all sorts of public transport. I found this very interesting and informative.
G'day Marty,
Thank you for an enjoyable, informative and interesting look back, at the history of trams in the Parramatta area.
Had relatives who travelled on the trams at Parramatta.
Ive ridden the tram many times in valley heights its a gem
Thanks. yes what a special place up there. The team there we so informative.
Freight trams - a so long forgotten way of moving cargo around congested centres, and only recently being rediscovered in some places. What a great idea, not directly to every door, but dispersed centres around the area for localised delivery/collection.
Wow, everything old is new again. Thanks for a very well researched and presented video!
Awesome video as always Marty, such a shame that STARPS burnt down. I know some members personally and they're still gutted by it, and honestly who can blame them?
Speaking of preservation groups, I think you'd be a great fit for down at the Tram Museum in Loftus. Me and a couple mates have slowly been joining and it's been an absolute blast, we'd love for someone like you to come and help out! (unless you're already a member lol)
Thanks 👍 Good pointer on the Tram museum. Was down there a few weeks ago - but good suggestion to consider membership! Thanks.
Wow I'd never know if not watching this, thanks for the work!
(Surprisingly there's a Japanese subtitle there...)
Ha, not sure where the Japanese subtitles come from.. But happy to have Japanese viewing the videos... for such a train loving nation. they don't actually have that many trams these days. Although I believe one new line just opened. The first in many years.
Hi Marty.
What tickles your fancy to make videos on these tram lines? I'm interested in your content because I'm fascinated In lost Aussie history and I think their is much not taught, or not even given a mention in the curriculum education here. Learning history gives us a better chance towards our future and Aussie schools aren't teaching much on our old land full of awesome history.
Good question as my friends often ask 'why do you like trams / trains?' - and I say "I don't know, just did since I was a little kid'.. I grew up in Sydney after trams were long gone.. I think most people are interested in the history of things they are familar with today.. like what their suburb / city was like when their parents and grand parents were alive.. And public transport is something everyone in Australia (especially in the cities) has some connection with.
At the same time , we are about to come to a time that people who rode on / worked on the trams in Sydney (and most cities in Australia) will have passed on. So do like the idea these videos are a bit of a bridge to the next generation sharing that history.
Thank you so much - WHY? did Sydney ditch the old tram lines - such a stupid decision / Kudos to Melbourne who kept their trams
Hi Marty, thanks for sharing yet another excellent video. My dad actually rode on these steam trams to parramatta Wharf just prior to the system closing in 1941. I managed to travel on the Parramatta Park Steam Trams when the museum was operating during the 1970's and 1980's. The steam trams operated there on the third Sunday of every month back then. Anyway, take care. Rob in Melbourne Australia.
Thanks the the share. Such a shame the place burnt down. Would be such a tourist attraction now.
At the time, the local council wanted them out of the park, then the fire happened. possibly just a coincidence, though that remains a mystery along with the fire that destroyed the Brisbane tram depot years ago. Fortunately, the steam tram engine survived, but the tram passenger trailer was lost and that was eventually replaced by an old Broken Hill steam tram trailer.
Just a thought, Kiama NSW also had steam trams that apparently ran from 1917 to 1941.
Thanks. Good info. Just looked it up. yes looks like it was freight line running between the quarry, wharf and the railway line goods yard - just to the south of the Kiama railway station. Must look to see what remains next time down that way.
History gone forever like everthing else in sydney.
Well researched and presented! Thank you.
There is another Steam Tram left, Ex Sydney 1905, it was used to construct the Gonville -Castlecliffe line, Whanganui, NZ. It seems to have done limited service until 1912, maybe just finishing the new Castlecliffe Line.... Did come out of mothballs during a power failure that lasted months in 1920. There are stories of trailers (2) still being around Whangnui and MOTAT has a working one. Steam Trams were cool, but tended to fill the streets with black smoke and very slow moving road blocks.
Thanks GT, great to hear your knowledge of these engines. I recently had the chance to see the one in MOTAT (its in my New Zealand video.. although I didn't reference it in the voice over). I think that may be the one from Whanganui?
I can't imaging them running down city streets today.. but you may have seen it, there is a fantastic video of one of the last team trams running on the Kogarah line.. its good as by then the film quality was very good..
Thank you for this series of videos. I grew up in North Parramatta and often walked to Parramatta station crossing George Street at Smith Street. For some years the tops of the rails of the Redbank tramway were visible through the bitumen and polished by vehicle tyres so they looked shiny. Then another layer of bitumen was added and they disappeared. I left Sydney in 1966 and don't know if the tracks were later removed or if they are still there.
Really good and informative video, good job bro!
Glad you liked it!
Well done thanks Marty.👍👍👍👍🍺🍺
Thanks 👍 Glad you liked them. They take a long time to make - but I enjoy learning about the lines as much as I hope the viewers do.
Great to see the old steam tram. I volunteered on the tramway in Parramatta Park during the early 70s we my friends and I laid track along the river towards the gates. The tram driver was Jack Midgely unfortunately can’t the Conductors name. Love to know where you got the centenary photos as we were all there and don’t have any pictures
Yes aren't those old shots of the Parramatta museum great. Thanks for sharing your memories. I find a lot of old images on council archives. Here is the link for some of the old centenary photos.
archives.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au/nodes/search?keywords=Parramatta+Steam+Trams&whole=1&in=2&searchbutton1=
I just subscribed mate. Would love a shout out in your next video. Very informative and interesting information. I’ll be showing my autistic son this, as trains are his passion!
11:00 Two new *TRAMWAY LINES* in Parramatta!
Thanks, great video.
Any information on the line that ended in Kurrajong NSW
I believe at one point that you could go from central to Kurrajong ?
...
Thanks, appreciate you watching the video. I’m no expert, but I understand the railway did go from Richmond up to Kurrajong. It closed back in 1952. There is a goof Wikipedia page on it as well.
Some good stuff
The Castle Hill Line had a direct connection to the main railway line just east of Parramatta Station, and amazingly the tracks and the connection survived up to the 1990s as a local flour mill there found them still useful. Since then the flour mill and the old tram tracks have gone, replaced by residential and commercial tower blocks.
Re the George Street to Redbank Wharf Line: I recall the tram tracks still being in George Street under the bitumen and showing up in a few places where the bitumen was worn thin or pot holed. I wonder if they are still there?
Thanks for the memories. I have walked around the former site of the flour mill and depot (which is a open car park from what I can see) near Parramatta Park and I couldn't see any tracks these days. Shame. Would have been great to have film of these tracks. Not sure about the lines on George Street, but one would guess that at least in some parts the tracks may exist.. Thanks again.
It was eventually relocated to Westmead. The Queens wharf line served Meggits, cnr George and O'Connell streets
Omg my area got mentioned! I live near Sutherland!
Go The Sharks!
Mmm, Parra to Redbank & Parra to Castle Hill are 2 tramways. Still watching for the 3rd ...
Cheers. The third was the parramatta park steam tram museum line. The museum unfortunately burnt down and the line was closed.
The old tram Castle Hill tram station was found within Castle Hill years later.
Oh, I didn't know that. Thanks for sharing.
And for some useless info, I used to work for the company that made all the orange/white destination signs found at all train stations, along with all the L,B and T round lights.
I notice they are now fading badly, so they will be replaced again via state taxes.
thanks. I had noticed the same because funnily enough one time in my life a job I had did involve outdoor signage.. and the Aussie sun is ruthless.. especially with signs with yellow / red in them.. strips that colour right out first.. we had to go around and replace the Westerly facing signs more often than the ones facing East. (we used to rotate them and then replace). But there we ways to insulate against fade - but it cost more up front!
Someone must not have done their homework and used the wrong paint for outside.
@@stephenarbon2227 it’s the best paint possible, and the individual station lettering is vinyl wrap which is holding up well enough.
The signs are on a replacement cycle over a 10 year program, so not all is lost.
Excellent video
Thank you very much!
@@backtracks.channel quick question Marty when will the parramatta light open to. The public my think is in May 2024
ok but where can i get the map at 0:40
Thanks for the question, actually created that map using different maps I found on line. Cheers
2:17 they don’t say history never repeats.
Ha, but one of my favourite bands SPLIT ENZ did say that :)
Yeah and where would it be given land is long gone? And just how many people?
Don't give value equivalents in Yankie *monopoly* money. (0:10) Just give the value of the new Parramatta *Tramway* in good *AUSSIE DOLLARS!*
Thanks Neil. Great to hear from you. Thanks for watching you are a great supporter of the channel. The channel actually has quite a number of overseas viewers so I do feel I need to give US dollar equivalent so they can compare that to transport in their own countries but I get your point thanks.
Four Billion? With a B? On two tramlines? That is insane. You should revolt.