This postcard is dated 8-6-1906. Trafalgar looking west, towards Melbourne.

Darren French and friends came up with the following: a link to the State Library postcard is here.

Working on the assumption that it’s a view looking easterly (smoke from chimney is blowing to the left and there is snow on the ground – snow only falls when the wind is from the south-westerly aspect) and the advice that it was thought to be in the Eastern parts of the state [the clearing in the forest supported that view], I checked all stations that had a level crossing at the Dn end folowed by at least half-a-mile of flattish ground and narrowed it down to Trafalgar.   Here’s the SLV’s version of a slightly colourised post card.   I gather 1906 was a cold year – indeed Ballarat seems to have had snow on New Year’s Day.
 
Now, all the bit about it looking east due to the smoke is a load of rubbish because the goods shed at Trafalgar was on the northern side and the pass station on the south!  So it’s actually looking due west, towards Melbourne!  One-hundred-and-one years ago, behind the photographer and to his left, on the other side of the line, would have been Collins’ timber tramway, heading away to the east beside the line before turning to the south. (ref: Settlers and Sawmillers.  Thanks Mike!)  Quite likely the timber at the far end of the goods shed platform has come in via Collins’ tram.  I gather the timber had to be unloaded from the tram, loaded onto road wagons and take the short distance over the railway to the north side for loading into railway trucks.   ps  Trafalgar is flat and straight both ways and has a level crossing at each end !   pps. Don’t ask me why the smoke is blowing from the north – it ruins a perfectly good theory.



S 300 and X 36 head an up briquette goods at Trafalgar, not long after the power was turned off. Oct 31 1988



Not long after the cessation of electric service N 464 arrives Trafalgar on the down "Gippslander" Oct. 31 1988

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page created Sat, 26 Nov 2011