NRS-17420 | State Rail Authority Archives Photographic Reference Print Collection

Full description

This series consists of reference prints and negatives drawn from a variety of sources, primarily sources within State Rail and it’s predecessor organisations. This was the primary source for answering enquires regarding images in the Archives Section at State Rail.

The reference prints comprise black and white photographs, colour photographs and prints of maps and plans. The reference prints are mounted on a large card and detail the following: photograph number, description, location, print number, date of photograph, restrictions, and remarks (such as date of copying). Each card varies considerably in the amount of sections, and the amount of detail that is filled out. In most cases, the existence of a negative is noted on the cards. Negatives held are signified by the letters “NID” appearing with the photograph number on the mounting card. Not all reference photographs have a negative. Those negatives that are held have the same number as the photograph.

This series covers a variety of subjects including but not limited to the following: accidents, aircraft production, anniversaries/celebrations, apprentice training, brakevans, bridges, bullock teams, buses, carriages, carriage sheds, collieries, dams, depots, electrification, ferries, gas works, gate houses, inns, junctions, level crossings, locomotives (including accident cranes, bogies, boilers, cabs, diesel, electric, steam, and workshop shunters), luggage vans, maps, paddle steamers, post offices, proposed railways, railway refreshment rooms, ships, shunting, signals, silos, stations, stockyards, street scenes, strikes, tickets, track maintenance vehicles, trains, trams, tram depots, trolley buses, tunnels, uniforms, valves, vans, wagons, workshops, and yards. The number of photographic reference prints per category varies considerably.

This collection was started in the early 1980s and finished with the closure of the State Rail Archives in early 2000. The contents dates for this series are considerably earlier, going back to at least 1850.

Custody History
From 1955 until 2000 the State Rail Authority of New South Wales maintained an ‘in house archives’ consisting of the archival records of the Authority, its predecessor agencies and the private railway companies taken over by the government. The date ranges of the records were from 1849 until 2000. When the decision was made to close the ‘State Rail Archives’ the parts of the collection that were required as State archives were transferred to the State Records Authority of NSW. Those record series were incorporated into the State Records series system of archives control and were re-numbered.