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The Glenreagh Railway precinct showing the historic water tower, taken in 2017.

Glenreagh community loses historic water tower

Lynne Mowbray |

The community of Glenreagh have been left gutted after the recent dismantling of the 103 year-old railway water tower, located at the historic Glenreagh Railway Station precinct.

The tower was dismantled on the weekend of July 12-13 by a contractor employed by Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC). The structure was dismantled using an excavator with chains tied to the supports.

In a statement received from ARTC General Manager Corporate Affairs, Bas Bolyn, he said that the contractor ‘did investigate other options to dismantle the structure in ways to try preserve it as much as possible including by crane’.

“Unfortunately given the state of decay and deterioration to the tower this was deemed unsafe and not possible to take place,” Mr Bolyn said.

Spokesperson for the Glenreagh action group ‘Glenreagh Railway and Station Preservation Society’ (GRaSPS) Megan Casey expressed her disappointment at the historical loss to the community.

“The focus of our group, GRaSPS has been the restoration of the whole precinct, particularly the station,” Ms Casey said.

“We were surprised to hear from ARTC that the demolition of the water tower was eminent. We asked for it to be sympathetically dismantled to be restored at a later stage away from the active line and out of the rail corridor, which was agreed.

“To then witness the video footage and pictures sent to us by a concerned local resident of its demise, was heart breaking.

“It is not just the loss of the 103 year-old historic water tower it is the loss of the historical value of the whole precinct.

“The community is gutted,” she said.

Video of the dismantling of the water tower can be seen on the following site:

NSW Heritage Railway Stations and Infrastructure facebook site –

https://www.facebook.com/NSWHRSI/posts/ and search for Glenreagh Water Tower

The demolition site of where the water tower once stood.