Burra railway station opened on 29 August 1870 as part of the extension of what was then the Northern Extension Railway to Burra.[1] The railway line was extended further north to Hallett and Terowie in 1880.[2]
Station upgrade
By 1883 the original wooden and corrugated iron station building was proving inadequate for the large numbers of passengers stopping for refreshments. A new stone Victorian-style building, complete with refreshment rooms, was opened in October of that year. An arched roof over the tracks and platforms was retained at that time, not being demolished until 1935. The refreshment rooms remained in service until 1936.[3]
Closure
In 1978, the station and all associated infrastructure was included in the transfer of the assets of the South Australian Railways to the Australian National Railways Commission. Regular passenger services ceased in December 1986. By 1993 the line north of Burra was closed and removed.[4][irrelevant citation] In 1997, Australian Southern Railroad (ASR) acquired a 50-year lease on the rail corridor and total ownership of the rail infrastructure as part of the sale of Australian National's South Australian freight assets to ASR. Grain services to Burra last operated in January 1999, with the final rail traffic to the town being a light engine movement by Australian Railroad Group (formerly ASR) locomotive 843 on 12 March 2004.[5]
Revitalisation
In 2010, restoration works began on the station building, which by then was badly deteriorated.[6] A community group, the Friends of the Burra Railway Station, was formed in 2014 to raise funds and do the work, including the restoration of a dining car that served the Trans-Australian Railway from 1917. The fully restored building includes, as of 2024[update], Victorian-themed bed-and-breakfast accommodation and a function centre, a museum and a Diprotodon display.[7][8][9][10] Outside the building is the dining car at the platform, a large cast-iron water tank and water columns, and grain silos, now served by road.
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