Kernot railway station

Kernot was a railway station built on the Wonthaggi line, with trial surveys of the route conducted in 1901,[1] setting out from Loch, Victoria[2] for the prosperous farms[3] in the district growing apples, pears, and all kinds of root crops also onions and potatoes along with Dairy, Beef, and Maize, but with the expense of cartage being absolutely prohibitive of cultivation for the outside market. This was simply not enough for the Victorian Railways, who further demanded "land loading" be applied should the proposed line prove to be unprofitable.[4] Included in the early proposal was the extension of the proposed line to Woolamai where it could connect with the San Remo and Kilcunda Tramway, which at that time was ferrying coal at great cost to Melbourne via ship. The owner of the tramway even proposed, that at his own cost he would extend his tramway from his current workings at Kilcunda all the way to Cape Patterson,[5] if the proposed Railway were built. Prompting further exploration of the extent of the coalfields along the coast, and ending in a proposal to extend the line onto the Powlett River Coalfields, with construction beginning in earnest. It would not be until a coal strike in NSW that all opposition was removed and the line so expeditiously completed.[6]

Kernot Railway Station (2020)

Kernot
Line(s)Wonthaggi
Platforms1
Tracks2 (Main Line and Passing Siding)
Other information
StatusClosed
History
Opened1910
Closed1978
Previous namesAlmurta, McKenzie
Services
Preceding station   Disused railways   Following station
Woodleigh   Wonthaggi line   Almurta
  List of closed railway stations in Victoria  

The "Kernot" station was very important having been equipped with a 10,000 Gallon Tank and a Crane not long after the line opened.[7] and by 1915 was doing more business than any station between Daylston and Nyora, so busy that an applcation for a 15-room hotel. opposite the store, was lodged.[8] The station was constructed by the Nyora and Woolamai Construction Trust (1909)[9] located in the Bass Coast Shire, Victoria. It recorded its first serious accident shortly after opening when a goods train from Nyora, dashed into a coal train waiting in the siding, derailing and severely damaging both engines, with both trains crews escaping injury. and workmen working throughout the night and into the next day to unblock the road and clear the line.[10]

The land on which, having previously been surveyed and acquired, without objection,[11] under the "Railways Lands Acquisition Act 1893" by authority of the Nyora and Woolamai Railway Construction Act (1907).[12] on the proviso that this railway line be run inland from Nyora, and not along the coast from Lang Lang.[13] Later many of the proponents of this inland railway, felt somewhat deceived when the actual 'surveyed route' acquired so much of their fertile land, (up to 50 yards on either side of the line), and did not pass within a mile of the Almurta township.[14] due to the gradients of the land.[15] With petitions to Parlament, and requests to the shire engineer to independently survey the route, and take it through the cheaper hills where the land was only worth £5 per acre, rather than the flat lands worth up to £40 per acre.[16] The use of these flat lands greatly contributed to the retention of the line, 5 years after its opening, see Woodleigh railway station

The station was originally called "Almurta" (Victorian Railways Schedule 1639/10 in Feb 1910) servicing the coal line, but was temporarily renamed "McKenzie" (Victorian Railways Schedule 2204/10 May 1910)[17] when it opened for passenger and goods services on the Wonthaggi railway line on the 9th May 1910. As expected on the inland route, Passengers Services only lasted a few years, losing £900 per year, due to poor patronage.[18]

"McKenzie" being the surname of an officer of the mines department, had been prominently identified with the opening of the Powlett Coalfield.[19]

The station was finally renamed "Kernot" by the Railway commissioners,[20] as the original Kernot station[21] had been named after the Chief Engineer of the Victorian Railways[22] and by preserving of this surname in 1911, (after much discussion in parliament[23]), and also in honour of his recently deceased brother Professor William Charles Kernot (1845 -1909)[24]

The original "Kernot" station was controversially renamed "Glen Forbes" by Victorian Government which Gazetted this, and made it public in local newspapers like "The Argus" Mon 27 Feb 1911 Page 10 [25]

The explanation supplied by the Railway Commissioners published in newspaper like "The Herald" Sat 14 May 1910 Page 5, stated that the original "Rees" and "Kernot" stations, were renamed to avoid confusion, as "Almurta" was already a little postal settlement two miles east of the railway line, and "Glen Forbes" was another postal settlement three miles east of the line.[26]

With the naming of "Kernot" the 4 temporary station names had adopted their final names. With "Hunter" now known as "Woodleigh",[27] the original "Almurta" having been renamed "McKenzie" now known as "Kernot", "Rees" now known as "Almurta" and the original "Kernot" now known as "Glen Forbes"

"Rees" being the surname of another railway branch engineer, who at the time had also pushed the emergency line through so expeditiously.[28] "Hunter" being the surname of another officer of the mines department, who had been prominently identified with the opening of the Powlett Coalfield.[29] "Hunter" Station having been renamed "Woodleigh" by Victorian Government Gazette and advertised in local newspapers like "The Argus" Thu 30 Jun 1910 Page 3[30]

Kernot Station is located within walking distance of the Kernot General Store. The station closed with the line in 1978.

The retaining wall of the platform is still in fairly good condition and the level crossing on the nearby main road is still visible.

The Land on which the Kernot Railway Station once sat, is Crown Allotment 2058 in the Parish of Corinella, and is allocated for future use (as funding permits) as a Reserve, and as part of the Nyora Wonthagii Rail Trail[31]

References
  1. "Sketch plan of proposed Bass Valley, Powlett River and San Remo railway". State Library Of Victoria. 1907. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  2. "Bass Coast Settlers Need For A Railway". The Age. 19 April 1901.
  3. "Fruit Returns". Leader. 5 April 1890.
  4. "Powlett River Railway". The Age. 26 May 1909.
  5. "Kilcunda Coal Field". The Argus. 8 February 1895.
  6. "State Coal Mine". The Argus. 8 January 1910.
  7. "Wonthaggi Line". The Age. 4 November 1911.
  8. "The Kernot Application". Powlett Express and Victorian Coalfields Advertiser. 8 January 1915.
  9. "The Nyora And Woolamai Railway Construction Trust". Victorian Government Gazette. 12 May 1909. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  10. "Collision On The Powlett Line". The Age. 31 October 1910.
  11. "No Loading No Railway". The Age. 26 May 1909. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  12. "Nyora And Woolamai Railway Construction Act 1907". Victorian Acts Of Parliament. 23 December 1907. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  13. "Railway Building to Woolamai and Proposed Railway to Wonthaggi". The Argus. 8 January 1910.
  14. "Bass Coast Railway". Leader. 20 June 1908. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  15. "Victorian Railways Grades Book". Victorian Railways Grade Book.
  16. "The Nyora Bass Railway". The Age. 24 March 1908.
  17. "Powlett Coal Field Railway opens for general passenger and goods traffic" (PDF). Victorian Railways Schedule 2204/10. 3 May 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  18. "Curtailed Railway Service". Powlett Express and Victorian Coalfields Advertiser. 8 February 1918.
  19. "Powlett Hunter, McKenzie, Rees and Kernot Stations named by Railway Commissioners after mines department officers and railways engineers". The Argus. 2 April 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  20. "Non Digitised Record". Victorian Railways Commissioners Review Of The Station Names. 1911.
  21. "Bass Valley Railway". Great Southern Advocate. 13 July 1905.
  22. "Chief Engineer Victorian Railways". Encyclopedia Of Australian Science. 29 March 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  23. "Mr Tait's Station Names". The Age. 7 October 1910.
  24. "Kernot, William Charles (1845–1909)". Australian Dictionary of Biography Vol 5. 1974. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  25. "Victorian Railways: Change in Names of Stations "McKenzie" renamed to "Kernot" "Kernot renamed to "Glen Forbes"". The Argus. 27 February 1911. Retrieved 21 October 2015.
  26. "Railway Stations so named to avoid confusion". The Herald. 14 May 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  27. ""Hunter" station renamed "Woodleigh"". The Argus. 30 June 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  28. "Powlett Hunter, McKenzie, Rees and Kernot Stations named by Railway Commissioners after mines department officers and railways engineers". The Argus. 2 April 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  29. "Powlett Hunter, McKenzie, Rees and Kernot Stations named by Railway Commissioners after mines department officers and railways engineers". The Argus. 2 April 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  30. ""Hunter" station renamed "Woodleigh"". The Argus. 30 June 1910. Retrieved 13 May 2020.
  31. ""Kernot Railway Station" Ownership and Future Use". Land And Survey Spatial Information. 14 May 2020.

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