A photograph of a train being loaded at Drouin Railway Station in 1912.
Originally called Drouin Junction Station, the Drouin Railway Station, has played a pivotal role in the town's development. The missing railway section from Bunyip to Morwell, in the line from Oakleigh to Sale was not constructed until the 1870s.
The first Drouin passenger train arrived in October 1877 to a location rather than a building. The station completed in 1878 had a single platform. The building had four chimneys with a verandah which ran the entire length of the platform. The building encompassed the Station Master's office, and goods were stored in a separate shed with an unusual round s-shaped curved roof.
The photo of 1912 shows goods being loaded or unloaded on to a wagon pulled by a team of bullocks. The Drouin Railway Station is behind the wagon and the Goods Shed to the right of the tree.
Staff at the station would have included a station master, three assisting station masters, a shunter and two Goods Shed workers. Produce, cattle, timber and other goods would have all been shipped to and from Melbourne. At the time there was level access to the livestock yards where Oak Street Kinder is today and livestock were loaded on to train trucks via a loading race at the east siding.
Photo and information courtesy of the Drouin History Group.
Hear more of the Drouin Railways story as told by Keith Cook at storiesofdrouin.com.au