How Melbourne Remade the Yarra
How Melbourne Remade the Yarra
Melbourne changed the Yarra to make room for shipping and trade. This 1933 aerial shows the river beside another major transport system: the railways.
The story behind the scene
Engineering work altered the lower river during the nineteenth century. The Coode Canal cut a more direct route through a large bend in the 1880s.
Construction of Victoria Dock followed between 1887 and 1892. The canal and dock helped reshape the port around the needs of larger ships and increasing trade.
Those projects lay downstream from the central city. Near Flinders Street, the river also ran beside extensive railway land, linking different transport uses along its banks.
What you’re seeing
Sears’ Studios photographed the Yarra and the railway approaches near Flinders Street in 1933. Tracks occupy much of the foreground. The image shows the central waterfront, rather than a close view of the Coode Canal or Victoria Dock.
Why this photo matters
The river and railway share a large part of the view. Together they show how much central land was devoted to moving people and goods.
Sources: Public Record Office Victoria: Reshaping the Yarra; History of the Lower Yarra River.