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The Lines We Live On
ESSENDON
BY MONTHLY TICKET
The railway viaduct connecting the
Flinders street and Spencer street sta-
tions was completed and opened for
goods traffic in 1891, but It was not until
December, 1894, that the necessary im-
provements and alterations at Spencer
street and Flinders street were suffi-
ciently advanced to enable the trains
on the Essendon line, which previous-
ly terminated at Spencer street, to be
run through to Flinders street, and
thence to Sandringham, as they do now.
Until the viaduct connecting the
Flinders street and Spencer street
stations was completed in 1891, all
trains upon the Essendon line finished
their journey at the latter terminus,
instead of running through to Brigh-
ton as they now do.
The Essendon line, unlike the others
so far described, is actually a portion
of an interstate line, upon which
one can travel continuously through
Sydney to Brisbane, Rockhampton
to Longreach, a total distance of 2120
miles. This is one of the longest lines
in the British Empire, or, if we in
clude the line to the West, through
Adelaide on to Perth and up to
Geraldton, the length is 4594 miles.
Those who live on the Essendon line
have the distinction of living upon a
part at one of the longest lines in the
world. It may be mentioned in this
connection that the length of the
Trans-Siberian railway is about 4000
mlles.
The line from Melbourne to Sun-
bury was opened In February, 1859,
and In October, 1860, the line was
opened from Essendon Junction to
Essendon.
"Essendon Junction" was some little
distance on the further side of North
Melbourne station. This line was built
by the Melbourne and Essendon Rail
way Company. Their city terminus
was the platform at Spencer street,
situated between Bourke and Little
Bourke streets. Mr. Hugh Glass was
the principal shareholder. This com-
pany got Into financial difficulties,
and, in order to economise, they ro-
duced the wages of the locomotive
drivers, who left their employment.
Incompetent men were then engaged,
but they could not run the service to
fit in with the Wllllamstown trains
at Essendon Junction. Later on the
Government lent drivers to the com-
pany, which, however, was eventually
compelled to close down. The line
lay idle for three years, after which
it was taken over by the State Rail-
way Department.
The districts served by this line, of
course, were not as thickly populated
as at present, and until traffic was
resumed — and, indeed, afterwards —
there was a service of cabs to Essen-
don. They started from the cab rank
at the Bush Inn, Elizabeth street.
This hotel was pulled down many
years ago, and its site is now occupied
by Hardware Chambers. There was
also an omnibus service to Flemington
Bridge, where there was a toll bar.
Later this bar was abolished, and the
'buses continued their journey to
Dean's Hotel, Moonee Ponds.
Having traced the chequered early
history of the Essendon line, we now
make our journey outward and recall
how the stations first acquired their
names.
Spencer street was the terminus of
the Melbourne-Sunbury line already
mentioned as having been opened in
1859. The thoroughfare was named by
Sir Richard Bourke after Earl Spencer,
who had been Chancellor of the Ex-
chequer in the reign of William IV.,
and with Lord John Russell he carried
the Reform Bill of 1832. It is recorded
of him that on one evening in Parlia-
ment he made twenty speeches. Surely,
a politician capable of such a perform-
ance deserved something more than
having a thoroughfare named after
him. He would have been in his ele-
ment in the building that looks down
Bourke street from the end opposite
Spencer street station.
In 1843 the present site of Spencer
street station was a boiling down es-
tablishment. In the commercial de-
prossion of that time the early squat-
ters, such as John Gardiner, had no
market for their sheep, and took this
method of minimising their losses. We
may hope that before long our chief
terminus of the country and interstate
lines will be a building more worthy
of our city, which is the ninth city
in the Empire, being surpassed In po-
pulation only by London, Calcutta,
Glasgow, Bombay, Birmingham, Liver-
pool, Manchester and Sydney.
North Melbourne is the next sta-
tion, and was so named from the first,
though the district now called North
Melbourne was formerly known as
Hotham, being so christened in honor
of Sir Charles Hotham, who was Gov-
ernor of Victoria 1854-6.
Kensington is named after Ken-
sington, now a part of London. In
Kensington Palace Queen Victoria
was born, and Peter the Great of Rus-
sia lived when studying shipbuilding.
Kensington is rich in historic and lit-
erary interests. Here are the houses of
Macaulay and Thackeray, while at Hol-
land House lived Joseph Addison. Ken-
sington Gardens in spring time are one
of the most beautiful sights in London.
Our Kensington certainly has a famous
namesake.
The stock sale yards of early, Mel-
bourne were at Hotham, but were
later removed further out, and the
station was aptly called New Market.
It is now written as one word, like the
town in Cambridgeshire whose racing
fame goes back for three centuries. It
is often thought that this Melbourne
suburb through its proximity to Flem-
ington was called after the English
town, but this is not so, our Newmarket
gets its name from the sheep rather
than the horses.
Ascot Vale certainly has a racing
connection. The Flemlngton course
suggested the famous English Ascot,
and so the district and station obtained
their name.
Moonee Ponds. — What to do with
the natives was a question that troubled
our fathers. Some of the early settlers
employed them as shepherds in a de-
sultory manner. Captain Pultney, how-
ever, formed a number of them into a
native camp, training them into an
excellent corps of native police. For
many years they did good service in
the suppression of bushranging, and
later were used as gold escorts. They
were well mounted, and made fine
horsemen. One member of that force
was called Moonee Moonee. He died
at tho Wimmera in 1845, but "Moonee
Ponds" records the memory 'of an
aboriginal, dispossessed by the white
invaders, who afterwards trained and
employed him' and others of his kin to
maintain order among the superior
race. At this distance of time it
seems a rather topsy-turvy arrange-
ment Moonee Moonee has "gone west,"
and the silent bush his race possessed
for ages has gone too, its place now
occupied by a thriving suburb. "Puckle
street" keeps fresh the name of an
Anglican clergyman for many years
vicar of Moonee Ponds.
Essendon. - In 1852 this district
was surveyed by Mr E. Bellairs, the
Government surveyor, and on his plan
he put the name Essendon, whlch is
a village in Hertfordshire. The Essen-
don line links us strongly with the land
from which we spring. Spencer, Ken-
sington, Newmarket, Ascot, and Essen-
doh are all English names, only Moonee
being native.
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