Clarence, New South Wales

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Clarence
New South Wales
Australia New South Wales location map blank.svg
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Clarence
Coordinates 33°28′25″S150°13′34″E / 33.47361°S 150.22611°E / -33.47361; 150.22611 Coordinates: 33°28′25″S150°13′34″E / 33.47361°S 150.22611°E / -33.47361; 150.22611
Population200 (2016 census) [1]
Elevation1,112.8 m (3,651 ft)
Location
LGA(s) City of Lithgow
State electorate(s) Bathurst
Federal division(s) Calare
Localities around Clarence:
Lithgow Wolgan Valley Dargan
Lithgow Clarence Bell
Hartley Vale Hartley Vale Bell

Clarence is a location in New South Wales, Australia. It was originally a railway outpost on the original railway line across the Blue Mountains, but by 1908 when Clarence was used as headquarters for the Ten Tunnels Deviation works, the town population had flourished to over 5,000 residents, the majority being the navvies employed on the deviation works. When the deviation was opened in 1910, the town population quickly fell, despite a new platform built on the new deviation.

Contents

Population

In the 2016 Census, there were 200 people in Clarence. 74.6% of people were born in Australia and 87.6% of people spoke only English at home. [1]

Zig Zag Railway

In 1975, the Lithgow Zig Zag, which had been abandoned for 65 years was taken over by the Zig Zag Railway enthusiast enterprise. Narrow gauge track was laid on the alignment and several withdrawn ex-Q.R steam locomotives were imported for use on the Zig Zag tourist line. Today, it is one of Australia's most well-known tourist lines and the original station at Clarence has since been restored for use as the terminus.

There is the nearby Clarence Colliery, opened in the 1970s, that was closed and then re-opened again. It is served by a loop line that branches off Newnes Junction.

See also

Related Research Articles

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Glenbrook, New South Wales Town in New South Wales, Australia

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Zig Zag Railway

The Zig Zag Railway is an Australian heritage railway, situated near Lithgow, New South Wales. It was opened by the not-for-profit Zig Zag Railway Co-op as an unpaid volunteer-staffed heritage railway in October 1975, using the alignment of the Lithgow Zig Zag line that formed part of the Main Western line between 1869 and 1910. The line climbs the western flank of the Blue Mountains, using railway zig zags to gain height.

Lapstone, New South Wales Town in New South Wales, Australia

Lapstone is a township on the eastern escarpment of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia. Elevation 160 m (525 ft). Lapstone is located 62 kilometres west of the Sydney CBD in the local government area of the City of Blue Mountains and is part of the federal electorate of Macquarie. Lapstone consists mostly of stand-alone housing and has a few public facilities. At the 2016 census, Lapstone had a population of 961 people. Lapstone was originally bought and developed by Mr Arthur J Hand, an Alderman of the Blue Mountains City Council.

Lapstone Zig Zag

The Lapstone Zig Zag was a zig zag railway built between Emu Plains and Blaxland stations on the Main Western line of New South Wales in Australia. Constructed between 1863 and 1865 to overcome an otherwise insurmountable climb up the eastern side of the Blue Mountains, the zig zag and associated Knapsack Viaduct, a sandstone arch viaduct, were designed by John Whitton, Engineer-in-Charge of New South Wales Government Railways, and were built by William Watkins. The zig zag was listed on the Blue Mountains local government heritage register on 27 December 1991; while the adjacent Knapsack Viaduct was listed on the New South Wales Heritage Database on 2 April 1999. The Lapstone ZigZag was the world-first ZigZag constructed on any main-line railway.

Blue Mountains Line

The Blue Mountains Line (BMT) is an inter urban commuter rail service operated by NSW TrainLink serving the Blue Mountains region of New South Wales, Australia. The line travels west from Sydney to the major town of Katoomba and on to Mount Victoria, Lithgow and Bathurst. Mount Victoria is the terminus for most electric services, but some services terminate at Lithgow instead. Two express services per day in each direction, known as the Bathurst Bullet, extend to the regional city of Bathurst, which is supplemented by road coaches connecting Bathurst to Lithgow. Due to electrification limits at Lithgow, the Bathurst Bullet is run using the Endeavour railcars, which operate on diesel. The Blue Mountains Line operates over a mostly duplicated section of the Main Western line. As such, the tracks are also traversed by the Central West XPT, Outback Xplorer and Indian Pacific passenger services and by freight trains.

The Main Western Railway is a major railway in New South Wales, Australia. It runs through the Blue Mountains, Central West, North West Slopes and the Far West regions. It is 825 kilometres (513 mi) with 484 kilometres (301 mi) operational & 341 kilometres (212 mi) under construction & repairs.

City of Lithgow Local government area in New South Wales, Australia

The City of Lithgow is a local government area in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is located adjacent to the Great Western Highway and the Main Western railway line.

Newnes Junction railway station

The Newnes Junction railway station is a closed railway station on the Blue Mountains Line, New South Wales, Australia. It served the former private branch line to Newnes. The station closed to passenger services in 1975, although it still physically exists and is occasionally used for coal trains visiting the nearby Clarence Colliery. The station consists of an island 'Up' platform, and a single side 'Down' platform.

Clarence is a railway station on the Blue Mountains section of the Main Western railway line in New South Wales, Australia. It opened in 1874 on the original alignment from Bell to the Clarence Tunnel. With the opening of Dargan's Deviation, it was rebuilt to its second location.

Lithgow Zig Zag

The Lithgow Zig Zag is a heritage-listed former zig zag railway line built near Lithgow on the Great Western Line of New South Wales in Australia. The zig zag line operated between 1869 and 1910, to overcome an otherwise insurmountable climb and descent on the western side of the Blue Mountains. It was designed by John Whitton and built from 1863 to 1869 by Patrick Higgins as contractor. It is also known as the Great Zig Zag Railway and Reserves and Zig Zag Railway. The property is owned by Department of Planning and Infrastructure. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

The Dargans Deviation was a section of the original Main Western railway line over the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia. It was constructed from 1896 to 1897 in an effort to ease the grades of the original alignment from before Newnes Junction to Clarence, with a ruling grade of 1 in 60. Along with a few crossing loops, it enabled much longer trains to use the line. After the construction of the Ten Tunnels Deviation, it was abandoned.

The Clarence Tunnel is a railway tunnel that was originally part of the Main Western railway line across the Blue Mountains, New South Wales, Australia. It is 493 metres (539 yd) long.

Ten Tunnels Deviation Australian railroad tunnels

The Ten Tunnels Deviation is a heritage-listed 9.2-kilometre (5.7 mi) section of the Main Western Line between Newnes Junction and Zig Zag stations in Lithgow, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed and built by the New South Wales Government Railways and built from 1 June 1908 and 16 October 1910. It is also known as Great Zig Zag Railway deviation tunnels and Bell to Zig Zag Ten Tunnel Railway Deviation. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

The Glenbrook deviation was a section of track on the Main Western line from the first Knapsack Viaduct to old Glenbrook station in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. The approximately five-mile-long (eight-kilometre) deviation was constructed from 1891 to 1892 and replaced the Lapstone Zig Zag. The deviation was closed in 1913 when it was replaced by the second Glenbrook deviation and the second Glenbrook Tunnel, that continues to carry the Main Western line today.

Glenbrook Tunnel (1892)

The Glenbrook Tunnel is a heritage-listed single-track former railway tunnel and mustard gas storage facility and previously a mushroom farm located on the former Main Western Line at the Great Western Highway, Glenbrook, in the City of Blue Mountains local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The Department of Railways designed the tunnel and built it from 1891 to 1892. It is also known as Lapstone Hill tunnel and Former Glenbrook Railway and World War II Mustard Gas Storage Tunnel. The property is owned by Blue Mountains City Council and Land and Property Management Authority, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 5 August 2011. The railway tunnel was originally part of the Glenbrook 1892 single-track deviation, which bypassed the Lapstone Zig Zag across the Blue Mountains. It is 634 metres; 693 yards long and is constructed in an 'S' shape with a gradient of 1:33.

Marrangaroo railway viaduct

The Marrangaroo railway viaduct is a heritage-listed railway viaduct that carries the Main Western line across Marrangaroo Creek at Marrangaroo in the City of Lithgow local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The property added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

Rydal rail underbridges

The Rydal rail underbridges are a series of heritage-listed railway underbridges and viaducts that carry the Main Western line over Solitary Creek at Rydal, in the City of Lithgow local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The property is owned by RailCorp, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

The Glenbrook Tunnel is a double-track railway tunnel located on the Main Western Line, near Glenbrook, in the City of Blue Mountains local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The property is owned by RailCorp, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. The railway tunnel is part of the Glenbrook 1913 double-track deviation, which replaced the Glenbrook 1892 single-track deviation across the Blue Mountains. The tunnel is 283 metres (928 ft) long and was officially opened on 11 May 1913.

The Glenbrook deviation is a section of track on the Main Western line from Emu Plains to Blaxland stations in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. The approximately seven-mile-long (eleven-kilometre) double-track deviation was constructed from 1911 to 1913 and replaced the single-track first Glenbrook deviation and the first Glenbrook Tunnel.

References

  1. 1 2 Australian Bureau of Statistics (27 June 2017). "Clarence (State Suburb)". 2016 Census QuickStats. Retrieved 27 October 2018. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg CC-BY icon.svg Material was copied from this source, which is available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.