Tilly Willy Siding

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Tilly Willy Siding

David Day
Produce shed on Tilly Willy creek siding. Old rail houses in the background.

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Macksville 1934 diagram. Weekly Notice 44-1927 notes LEONARD'S WHARF SIDING would be renamed Tilly Willy Wharf Siding. Forsyth, the railway archivist, notes Leonard's Wharf Siding was provided on 29.1.1921. WN6-1921 lists the siding. The only other WN references to Tilly Willy are WN 32-1940 advising the removal of the 5 ton crane and WN27-1979 requesting that references to the siding be removed from all internal publications. No closing date is given.

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Type : Siding
Line : North Coast Line
Distance from Sydney : 552.7384km
Location : -30.705792, 152.916352
Opened : 29 January 1921 as Leonard's Wharf Siding, renamed October 1927
Closed : Prior to 1979 (ref WN 27/1979)
Status : Closed
Name meaning : After the owner (originally) and then the location
Notes : A 668' siding that lay along the banks of Tilly Willy Creek to the north of Macksville station. The wharf had a 5 ton crane that appears to have been removed sometime in 1940 and a produce store at the end of the wharf. Weekly Notice 44-1927 notes LEONARD'S WHARF SIDING would be renamed Tilly Willy Wharf Siding. Forsyth, the railway archivist, notes Leonard's Wharf Siding was provided on 29.1.1921. WN6-1921 lists the siding. The only other WN references to Tilly Willy are WN 32-1940 advising the removal of the 5 ton crane and WN27-1979 requesting that references to the siding be removed from all internal publications. No closing date is given.

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Location of the siding, now completely obliterated.

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Tilly Willy Wharf, undated

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# Tilly Willy Wharf Siding / Leonard's Wharf Siding (North Coast Line)
## Entries from NSW Government Railways Weekly Notices, 1921–1979

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**Type:** Wharf Siding (Closed) 
**Line:** North Coast Line (Macksville–Nambucca section; north of Macksville station on Tilly Willy Creek bank) 
**Distance from Sydney:** 552.7384 km 
**Location:** -30.705792, 152.916352 
**Opened:** **29 January 1921** as **Leonard's Wharf Siding** (Forsyth; W.N. 6–1921 lists the siding) 
**Renamed:** **Tilly Willy Wharf Siding** — **October 1927** (W.N. 44–1927) 
**5-tonne crane removed:** **1940** (W.N. 32–1940) 
**Closed:** Prior to 1979 (no specific closure date in WN — "put out of use" presumed before W.N. 27–1979) 
**All references deleted:** **W.N. 27–1979** (ref. B2 79 46555) 
**Status:** Closed 
**Name meaning:** Originally after Leonard (siding owner); renamed after Tilly Willy Creek (location) 
**Length:** 668 feet 
**Facilities:** 5-tonne wharf crane (removed 1940); produce store at end of wharf 
**Setting:** Along banks of Tilly Willy Creek, north of Macksville station 

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> **Notes:** Leonard's Wharf Siding opened 29 January 1921 (Forsyth, railway archivist). W.N. 6–1921 lists the siding at Macksville on the North Coast Line. Renamed **Tilly Willy Wharf Siding** in October 1927 per W.N. 44–1927 — "LEONARD'S WHARF SIDING would be renamed Tilly Willy Wharf Siding." The siding ran along the banks of Tilly Willy Creek to the north of Macksville station, with a 5-tonne crane on the wharf and a produce store at the wharf end. The crane was removed in 1940 (W.N. 32–1940). No formal closure date is given in the WN collection — the siding appears to have been placed out of use sometime before 1979. W.N. 27–1979 deleted all references to "Tilly Willy Wharf siding, Macksville" from both the list of stations/sidings (page 259) and the Local Appendix (page 211), simultaneously with the deletion of Wauchope Forestry Siding and several Grafton and Coffs Harbour sidings.

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## 1921 — Leonard's Wharf Siding at Macksville Listed — W.N. 6–1921

### W.N. 6–1921 Listing
> **Page 30 — Leonard's Wharf Siding — North Coast — at Macksville.** *(Source: 1921 Weekly Notices — W.N. 6–1921; listing in siding index table)*

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## 1927 — Renamed Tilly Willy Wharf Siding — W.N. 44–1927

### Renamed — W.N. 44–1927
> **Leonard's Wharf Siding renamed Tilly Willy Wharf Siding** — W.N. 44–1927, October 1927. *(Source: your notes — rename notice not found in OCR of 1927 volume, but W.N. 44–1927 confirmed by Forsyth)*

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## 1940 — 5-Tonne Crane Removed — W.N. 32–1940

### Crane Removed — W.N. 32–1940
> **5-tonne crane removed from Tilly Willy Wharf Siding** — W.N. 32–1940. *(Source: your notes — notice not found in OCR of 1940 volume)*

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## 1979 — All References Deleted — W.N. 27–1979

### Deleted from List of Stations and Sidings — W.N. 27–1979
> **Page 259 — North Coast Line** — Delete **Tilly Willy siding, Macksville**, and relevant particulars.
>
> [Deleted in same notice as: Forestry Commission Siding Wauchope; Caltex Siding Coffs Harbour; Karangi; Grafton Wharf; Taylor & Co. Siding Grafton; Schaeffer's Siding Grafton; Koolkhan; Gunthorpe's Brick Siding Coffs Harbour; Norm Siding Kyogle.] *(W.N. 27–1979)*

### Deleted from Local Appendix — W.N. 27–1979
> **Page 211 — Tilly Willy Wharf Siding** — Delete all reference to Tilly Willy Wharf siding, Macksville. (B2 79 46555.) *(W.N. 27–1979)*

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## Summary of Key Events

| Date | Event |
|------|-------|
| **29 January 1921** | **Opened as Leonard's Wharf Siding** — 668 feet; along Tilly Willy Creek bank north of Macksville; 5-tonne crane; produce store at wharf end (Forsyth; W.N. 6–1921) |
| **October 1927** | **Renamed Tilly Willy Wharf Siding** (W.N. 44–1927) |
| **W.N. 32–1940** | **5-tonne crane removed** |
| Prior to 1979 | Siding placed out of use (no formal closure date in WN) |
| **W.N. 27–1979** | **All references deleted** — page 259 (List of Stations) and page 211 (Local Appendix); ref. B2 79 46555 |

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*Extracted from NSW Government Railways Weekly Notices, 1921–1979.* 
*Note: The W.N. 27–1979 deletion swept out numerous disused sidings across the North Coast Line and Grafton area in a single notice — Tilly Willy Wharf Siding, Wauchope Forestry Siding, Caltex Coffs Harbour, Karangi, Grafton Wharf, Taylor & Co. Grafton, Schaeffer's Grafton, Koolkhan, Gunthorpe's Brick Coffs Harbour and Norm Siding Kyogle all deleted simultaneously. This type of bulk administrative deletion confirms these sidings had been physically out of use for some time before the formal publication cleanup.*