The article 'First Rail Last Post' in LR 195 on the discovery of an original fish-bellied rail from the 1831 Australian Agricultural Company colliery tramway has generated considerable interest from readers. One respondent queried whether the rail shown on the photograph on page 13 was a fish-bellied rail, so colleagues from the Newcastle Industrial Heritage Association have provided additional information about this important discovery. Rod Caldwell advises that the relic was found within a few metres of where the rails would have been laid for the AA Company 'C Pit mine and it is believed that the rails from the 1831 tramway were used for the incline there. As depicted in the photo in LR, one end of the rail has been broken off - a common weakness of cast iron rails - and, with this piece, the rail would have originally been 4-feet in length. On initially viewing the photograph, John Shoebridge, the author of 'First Rail', questioned whether the item could be a firebox grate bar, but on personal inspection of the item he ruled this option out. Bob Cook advised us that he visited the Science Museum and the National Railway Museum in England during June 2007 where he observed various types of early cast iron rails and from this he concluded that the rail found at Newcastle (NSW) is similar to the types used in England prior to 1830.
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