"Cape Gauge - Ox-wagon to Iron Horse", an SA railway history

[Steve Appleton]

The intriguing and always-interesting website "The Heritage Portal" is publishing a series of stories on the history of railways in South Africa. Entitled "The Cape Gauge - From Ox Wagon to Iron Horse", the first installment is available here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... iron-horse.

Over the coming months we [The Heritage Portal] will be publishing a series of articles, compiled by Peter Ball, on the history of South African railways. The first installment looks at some of the earliest railways in the country and the extension of various lines into the interior (driven by the great mineral discoveries of the second half of the nineteenth century). Enjoy...

[Steve Appleton]

Part 2 of the series, "The Race to the Rand", has been posted here:
http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article/race-rand

In the first installment of the series on the history of Southern African railways, Peter Ball described some of the earliest railways in the country and the extension of a number of lines into the interior. In this article he looks at fascinating politics and economics of the 'Race for the Rand'. Enjoy..

[Steve Appleton]

Part 3 of this interesting series entitled "Railways at War!" is posted at:
http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article/railways-war

Following hot on the heels of the 'Race to the Rand' here is the third installment of the 'History of Southern African Railway Series'. It looks at the role of the railways during the South African War (the Second Anglo-Boer War).

[Steve Appleton]

Part 4 of this interesting series entitled "Railways from War's End to Union (1902-1910)" is posted at:
http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... -1902-1910.

In the previous installment of the History of Southern African Railways series Peter Ball looked at the role of the railways during the South African War. In this piece he looks at post war reconstruction, the completion of various lines and the contribution of the railways to political union in South Africa. Enjoy...

[Steve Appleton]

Part 5: "A New Era Dawns - The first fifteen years of the South African Railways (SAR)" is posted here:
http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... ilways-sar

Over the past few weeks Peter Ball has traced the 'History of Southern African Railways' up until 1910. In this installment of the series he looks at various aspects of building and running one of the largest state-run railways in the world. Enjoy...

[Steve Appleton]

Part 6: "Streaks of Rust Across the Veld - The Demise of the Branch Lines" is available here:
http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... anch-lines

This installment of the History of Southern African Railways series looks at the demise of the branch line network and will be relevant to many in the heritage community. Over the last few decades many lines have been closed and the heritage assets associated with them have fallen into disrepair.

[Steve Appleton]

Part 7: "Benguela - More than just a current" is posted here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... st-current

In this article Peter Ball jumps across a few borders and looks at some of the history and politics of the Benguela Railway which runs for over 1300km across Angola.

[Steve Appleton]

Part 8: "The Tanzania - Zambia Railway" is posted here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... ia-railway

In the previous installment of the History of Southern African Railways series Peter Ball explored the politics and economics of the Benguela Railway. In this edition he heads east and unpacks the complexities of the Tanzania-Zambia Railway.

[Steve Appleton]

Part 9: "The Big Fiery Giant - The Story of the Beyer-Garratt Locomotive" is available here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... locomotive

The series on the History of Southern African Railways continues with this piece on the mighty Garratt engines that conquered the geography of the sub-continent.

[Steve Appleton]

Part 10: "Interlude on the Narrow Gauge" is available here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... rrow-gauge

Peter Ball returns with this fantastic article on narrow gauge railways in South Africa. He believes that the line from Port Elizabeth towards the Langkloof, which can be reopened in stages, is the most viable preservation project in the country and argues that we should look to the Welsh experience over the last sixty years for inspiration.

[Steve Appleton]

Part 11: "The Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe - Something to chew on".

An article on the history of the George to Knysna line and the Outeniqua Choo-Tjoe train here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... thing-chew.

Thousands of people in South Africa and abroad dream of the day when the famous Outeniqua Choo Tjoe will run again. In the article below Peter Ball sketches the history and potential future of this ‘world in one branch line'.

Incidently, a fairly expensive 3-volume coffee-table book entitled "A World in One Branch Line" by renowned railway photographer and author, Dennis Moore, about this line can be obtained from this website: http://www.blurb.com/b/2897317-a-world- ... ough-three

VOLUME 1. VERY LARGE FORMAT 33cm x 28cm. 'A WORLD IN ONE BRANCH LINE' ...
An apt description of the 67 km long railway running from George to Knysna in the Southern Cape area of South Africa. It was one of the best known steam worked railways in the World and constantly attracted photographers, both local and from overseas.

A personal note: I do wish that, if and when this train resumes service, a better name than OCT could be found. Besides being unpronouncable by visitors, which comes first: Choo or Tjoe? Can you instantly spell Outeniqua and Tjoe? Very important when searching for this train service on the web. Lastly, the train ran along the coast, not up or into the Outeniqua mountains.

[Steve Appleton]

Part 12: "Montagu Pass - The Final Link" is available on the Heritrage Portal website, here: http://www.heritageportal.co.za/article ... final-link.

Peter Ball continues his epic History of Southern African Railways series with this superb piece on the line from Mossel Bay to Oudsthoorn. He sets the historical context, highlights the incredibly difficult terrain for railway building and concludes that it is remarkable that the line was built at all.