The Old Oak Flats Station

[Headless2]

For many years I’ve been residing 3km away from the original Oak Flats Railway Station and often wonder, not if, but how many residents over the years have witnessed or experienced something mystifying around the old station and kept it secretly hidden to this day, still doubting themselves over the surreal affair, perhaps thinking it was just their wild imagination.

Well….think again my neighboring friends, the unfolding developments of the following story may potentially transpire those embedded doubts into a genuine living nightmare next time you’re required to cross the lonely tracks in the haunting hours of the night.



To be continued…..

[bronwyn]

Been a very long time since i have crossed the tracks at the old Oak Flats train station , not much at night time but occasionally.  Never liked the station much , just always felt odd , weird & uncomfortable , crossing the tracks i was more concerned not to trip & fall over the tracks . Cant say i ever saw anything but definitely look forward to reading more Headless

[KANACKI]

There was two council Alderman killed there at night in 1947. They was utility and was struck by north bound train at night pushing the mangled utility as far as the waiting room on the platform.

Here is a picture below.

Kanacki

[KANACKI]

One of the stories I heard that drove locals nuts the crossing alarms bells would go off for no reason at night. No train would be coming and lights and loud warning bells would flash. Anyone living nearby it was nightmare.


Kanacki

[Headless2]

Hi Bronwyn

It’s intriguing to hear yourself and many others over the years have experienced the strange and unpleasant atmosphere I’ve often felt around the old station, surely can’t be the local tap water or our wild imagination.

So what’s the truth behind these negative emotions sensed by many wary individuals?

Let’s find out.



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

By rail the old Oak Flats Station is located 8km north of Minnamurra Station.

Sir George Warburton Fuller, the son of George Lawrence Fuller, former owner of the alleged haunted Dunmore House in the vicinity of the Bloody Mile.

Those who haven’t read the Ghosts of the Bloody Mile, I suggest you do. Here’s a link to one of the most mysterious and sinister places to visit.

https://www.paranormal.com.au/public/index.php/topic,11216.0.html

Sir George Warburton Fuller was a local politician who served as the 22nd Premier of New South Wales from 13 April 1922 to 17 June 1925, he was a prominent landholder in the district – which his father had named Dunmore – and in 1921 he subdivided some of his land and later be named Oak Flats on the shores of Lake Illawarra.

The development of a residential area over the next few years spurred the NSW Government Railways to build a station for the new subdivision; this opened in 1925. The Oak Flats Station featured a single wooden platform and small, skillion-roofed weatherboard waiting shed.


Here’s the station in 1951.

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Here’s what the station looked like during the 1990s. The brick building beside it was added on for  toilets.

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And here’s what’s left of the old station today. The new station is located 370 metres to the south and opened on the 21st of February, 2003.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/1013/qQMnmG.jpg



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

Eerie tales of a shadowy figure lurking around the old station have sparked both fascination and fear amongst the locals for many years. I lived in Oak Flats during the 80s and 90s and used this station countless times. The area seems peaceful throughout the daylight hours, however, it’s a haunting reminder when the
enchanting sunset suddenly deteriorates into sheer darkness.

More often than not, the strange lingering atmosphere at/near the pedestrian crossing was displeasing and had no choice but to cross it, chillingly sensing attentive eyes hidden nearby observing every step taken. Whilst the mind is overwhelmed and expecting the worst, you impulsively survey the dimly lit area but no one is there.

Or is there?


Here’s a photo of the pedestrian crossing used today.

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At the pedestrian crossing facing north towards the old station. Below the yellow sign is the remains of the original path of the pedestrian crossing which crossed the tracks at an angle.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img924/7010/9pG9Xb.jpg



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

Below are other distraught remarks whose names have been withdrawn.

“I reckon Oak Flats old station was eerie. Still till this day at night if you gotta cross the tracks near there you can feel it. Well I can and gives me shivers thinking of it.”

“Its weird isn’t it. I never really catch trains but on the odd occasion I was at this place I feel very much the same way.”

“The spirit thingy that used to be at the old Oak Flats traino. Alot of people seen it used to go down the little old platform and quickly take off around the side of it at the end. Wonder if theres any deaths at that old place. You still get the feeling someone’s watching you it's eerie as I won't go near there if I need to get across the tracks at night.”



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

The inquisitive mind begins to ponder whether the old station possesses any hidden secrets connected to these unsettling yet intriguing experiences.

What’s the truth behind the enigmatic entity?

One must go on a quest to disinter the forgotten past to seek the hidden truth.



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

The relentless reconnaissance eventually divulged a potential candidate linked to the mysterious presence that’s terrorising the locals.


MAN'S BODY FOUND ON RAILWAY LINE

Wed 8 Sep 1943 — The body of a man was found on the railway line near the Oak Flats Station on Saturday night, and it is thought he was run down by a train. The man was identified as Cornelius Patrick Maloney, aged 53, employed at the Civil Construction camp at Albion Park. He had the sum of £62 in his pockets, also a bank book with a substantial balance. His home was at Berrima. The body was removed by Ambulance to Wollongong.


Further research into this case, Mr Maloney was run down by a train not once, but twice.


Fri 10 Sep 1943 — On Saturday night about 10.22 p.m, Edward Joseph Miles, the driver of a motor- train proceeding from Kiama to Wollongong noticed an object on the line near Oak Flats Station which he thought was a cow. He promptly applied the brakes, but the train passed over the object before he could stop it.

He went to investigate with the guard and discovered the mutilated body of a man, who had evidently been run over by a previous train, as a suit case containing two bottles of wine was found about 30 yards further on from where the body was found.

The police were communicated with and Sergt Roy Smith, Detective Devenport and Constable Wallwork carried out the investigations and had the body removed to Wollongong Hospital Morgue.



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

Could the likes of Cornelius Patrick Maloney still be aimlessly wandering around the vicinity of the old station?

Indeed he could be, witnesses reported Mr Maloney was intoxicated on the station before his unfortunate death, however, the mind continues to contemplate whether the old station still possesses other secrets hidden in the misty depths of the forgotten past to descry.

One needs to go deeper, sometimes the first cut ain’t the deepest.



To be continued….

[Headless2]

Probing deeper to get to the truth, I unearthed the reality and disturbing nature leading up to these unpleasant occurrences that I and others have endured.



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

TWO KILLED IN OAK FLATS TRUCK-TRAIN SMASH

Thu 18 Dec 1947 — Two Shellharbour alderman were killed instantly about 11.30 p.m on Tuesday night when a north bound goods train crashed into a utility truck they were travelling in at Oak Flats level crossing. A third aldermen, who had left the car a few seconds previously to open the railway gates, saw the utility and its two occupants run down by the train and pushed several hundred yards along the track.

The dead men were: Alfred John Crew (57), engineer, and Henry Williams (48), both of Reddall Parade, Lake Illawarra South. The third man, Charles Henry Moore (54), of Oak Flats escaped with severe shock.

Crew, who was the owner and driver of the truck, was thrown out by the force of the impact and his body landed about 20 feet away, Williams body was found under the platform of the Oak Flats station, about 50 yards down the line. The utility was a complete wreck; parts of it were strewn 500 yards.

Two ambulances from the Illawarra District Service were rushed to the scene. Moore was taken to Wollongong District Hospital in a terribly shocked condition and was able to give police only a vague outline of what had happened. He said that he and his two friends were returning from a Council meeting at Albion Park to Lake Illawarra South and when they reached the Oak Flats level crossing the gates were closed. He got out of the truck and opened the first gate and the utility drove through. As it was crossing the line he saw the train suddenly appear and crash into the truck.

Robert Travers, of Thirroul depot, the driver of the goods train which was travelling from Kiama to Thirroul, told police he saw the lights of a car at the crossing as he was approaching and thought that the car had pulled up to give him passage. Next he knew, he said, was that the train was on top of the truck.

A locomotive and break-down gang were quickly dispatched to the scene of the tragedy where the goods train was delayed for half an hour while the tangled wreckage of the utility was extricated from beneath the engine. Passengers on the 11.55 p.m train from Wollongong to Kiama were off-loaded at Albion Park on to a bus in which they completed the journey.

The three men were representatives of the North Ward (Oak Flats-Shellharbour) of Shellharbour Municipal Council. Williams was elected to the Council only a fortnight ago. Detectives Davenport and Anderton, of Wollongong, and Const Farthing, of Albion Park are inquiring.



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

GATEKEEPER ASLEEP WHEN TRAIN KILLED MEN.

Wed 7 Jan 1948 — At an inquest into the deaths of two men at Oak Flats level crossing on December 16, a junior railway porter, aged 18, said he was asleep in the gatekeeper's cabin when a train struck a utility truck at a level crossing.

The Deputy-Coroner (Mr. W. S. Musgrave) was inquiring into the deaths of Alfred John Crew and Henry Williams, both of Lake Illawarra South. He returned a finding of accidental death.

Charles Henry Moore, 54, of Oak Flats, said that at 11.20 p.m. on December 16 he had left Albion Park Council Chambers in a truck with Williams and Crew, who was driving. At the Oak Flats turnoff from Prince's Highway, about 100 yards from the crossing, Crew tooted the horn of the truck, and blew it continuously until the truck reached the gates.

"No one was there to open the gate, so I got out and opened it," said Moore. "Crew drove through, and I closed the gate behind him. I was walking across the line to open the other gate when I saw a train approaching, about 15 yards away. I could see the train was going to collide with the utility, and I sang out: "Jump Alf!" The engine struck the utility, and carried it along the line. The train just missed running over me."

Thomas Frederick Brown,18, junior porter, of Dapto, said he had taken over control of the Oak Flats level crossing at 9.55 p.m., and went to the gatekeeper's cabin, where he read a book and later went to sleep.



To be continued…..

[Headless2]

Here’s a photo of the road and level crossing where the two men were killed, they were on the other side of the tracks heading towards you when disaster struck. This road don’t exist anymore, however, the pedestrian crossing used today is directly over the spot where the train collided with the truck.

https://imagizer.imageshack.com/img923/3756/2C9h5E.png



Here’s the original pathway route of the pedestrian crossing that was used for many, many years marked by the yellow line. The larger white square near the tracks is the roof of the old station.

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The original pathway and pedestrian crossing in 1982.

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Here’s the pedestrian crossing route used today marked by the yellow line.

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And here’s the remains of the original road marked by the yellow line.

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This was the original route of the road back in the day. The pedestrian crossing used today is the very spot where the train collided with the truck.

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This photo shows the once busy road where all the cars are backed up, you can notice where the level crossing is and just below is the station.

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To be continued…..