Halpins Banana Platform

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Type : Platform
Line : Murwillumbah Branch
Distance from Sydney : 876.730km
Opened : 21st November 1938
Closed : September 1947
Status : Closed
Name meaning : Named after the property it served (also referred to as "Helpin's"). Situated on the Up side of the Main line. Under the administrative control of Bangalow station. Platform was 16' in length and the opening notice explicitly stated : "The platform is provided for the purpose of **loading bananas only**, and is not to be used for passenger traffic." (WN52/1938).

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Location of the platform (Six Maps)

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Geoff Bensley
Photo taken by David M just east of Halpin siding

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# Halpins Banana Platform (Casino–Murwillumbah Branch)
## Entries from NSW Government Railways Weekly Notices, 1889–1989

---

**Type:** Platform (Banana Loading Only) 
**Line:** Murwillumbah Branch (Casino–Murwillumbah) 
**Distance from Sydney:** 876.730 km 
**Mileage (Working TT):** 544m 62c 
**Between:** St Helena and Byron Bay 
**Opened:** 21 November 1938 (W.N. 52–1938) 
**Closed:** September 1947 (W.N. 36/37–1947) 
**Status:** Closed 
**Name meaning:** Named after the Halpin property it served (also referred to as "Helpin's") 
**Under control of:** Bangalow 
**Station Code (Power's Freight Accounting):** 2835 

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> **Notes:** A banana loading platform only — explicitly not to be used for passenger traffic. Situated on the Up side of the Main line. Under the administrative control of Bangalow station. Operational life of approximately nine years (1938–1947). The "Halpin" name also appears in unclaimed goods notices in the Weekly Notices from 1943 onwards, but these relate to a "Halpin" at Raleigh (North Coast), not this platform.

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## 1938 — Opening

### Halpins Banana Platform Opened — 21 November 1938
> **Halpins (Casino–Murwillumbah Branch) — Provision of Platform for Banana Loading**
>
> Since **21st November, 1938**, a new platform, **16 feet in length**, situated on the **Up side of the Main line, at Mileage 544m. 62c.**, between St. Helena and Byron Bay, is in use, and known as **"Halpins."**
>
> The platform is provided for the purpose of **loading bananas only**, and is not to be used for passenger traffic.
>
> **Mileage for Goods Rate Purposes:** 
> From Darling Harbour — **546 miles** 
> From Newcastle — **446 miles**
>
> **Station Code Number for Power's Freight Accounting:** Ordinary traffic — **2835**
>
> **Halpins is under control of Bangalow.**
>
> General — Pages 195 and 235 of the Merchandise and Livestock Rates Book, page 32 of the Alphabetical List of Stations, Platforms, Sidings and Collieries, and Working Time-table, Northern Division, to also be posted accordingly. (34/3,3v.)

*(W.N. 52–1938)*

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## 1943

### Unclaimed Goods — "Halpino"
> *(Unclaimed goods notice listing — OCR renders as "Halpino")* — 1 truss drapery (No. 224).

*(W.N. — 1943 — unclaimed goods listing)*

> **Note:** This entry almost certainly relates to Halpins Banana Platform, rendered by OCR as "Halpino." The goods item (drapery) is unusual for a banana loading platform, but unclaimed goods notices sometimes reflect misdirected or undelivered consignments.

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## 1947 — Closure

### Halpins Banana Platform Abolished — September 1947
> **Delete Halpin's banana platform and relative particulars.**
>
> *(V. 47–38,261.)* *(W.N. 36–1947)*

> **Halpin's Banana Platform (Casino–Murwillumbah) — Halpin's banana platform has been abolished, and reference thereto is to be deleted.**
>
> *(V. 47–38,261.)* *(W.N. 37–1947)*

> *(W.N. 37–1947 — second entry:)* Delete from Page 83 of the Local Appendix — Halpin's Banana Platform (Casino–Murwillumbah) — and all relative particulars. Delete also from column "Goods Shed Dimensions."

*(W.N. 36–1947 and W.N. 37–1947)*

> **Note:** The abolition notice appears in two consecutive Weekly Notices (36 and 37 of 1947), suggesting the deletion needed to be made across multiple publications — the Rates Book, Alphabetical List, Local Appendix, and Working Timetable — and the notices were issued in sequence to cover each. The reference number V. 47–38,261 is consistent across both notices, confirming they relate to the same administrative action.

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## Summary of Key Events

| Date | Event |
|------|-------|
| 21 November 1938 | Platform opened — banana loading only, Up side, 544m 62c, 16 feet long (W.N. 52–1938) |
| 1938 | Under control of Bangalow; Station Code 2835; mileages 546 miles ex Darling Harbour, 446 miles ex Newcastle |
| September 1947 | **Platform abolished** (W.N. 36 and 37–1947) |

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*Extracted from NSW Government Railways Weekly Notices, 1889–1989.*