Station Names on Melbourne's Werribee Line

Part 3 of our Melbourne Metro train names series takes on a trip down the Werribee line, and finding out where every station on that line got its name from.

The Werribee Line is one with a pretty complicated history. Prior to 1985 the section between Laverton and Altona did not exist, meaning that the line to Werribee and Geelong and the line to Altona were basically two different railway lines. Because of this, I am separating this article into 3 sections, so that it is easier to follow along.

Stations that will covered in this blog. Closed stations are in black. Some of these locations may not be exact due to conflicting information.

Before I get into the main part of this blog post, I will give you a quick rundown of what every station between North Melbourne and Newport comes from. If you want some more info about these stations, then you can check my blog post here.

So here is the rundown:

North Melbourne is north of the Melbourne CBD.

South Kensington is in the southern part of Kensington.

Footscray is named after a town in England.

Seddon is named after Richard Seddon.

Yarraville is the name of an old housing estate.

Spotswood is named after John Spottiswoode.

Newport is an old word for 'Market Town'.

With that out of the way, let us dive right into the Werribee line!

Altona Express Line Stations

Have you ever been on a train heading for Werribee and you notice that the train goes from Newport to Laverton without ever stopping? Well that is because there are two ways to get from Newport to Laverton! One of the ways to get to Laverton is to operate along the Main Line to Geelong, although for this blog, I will just be referring to it as the 'Altona Express line'. This blog will consider the express line to start at Newport and end at Laverton.

There are three stations that have existed on this line, all closed.

Hatherley (closed)

You may have never heard of this station even if you were a huge fan of trains. Located roughly half a kilometre east of Paisley Station, Hatherley station (or Hatherly, as some old newspapers seem to call it) appears to have been named after an area that is now a part of Altona. The origins of the name Hatherley is unknown, newspapers during the 1890s never refer to where the name came from, so one can only speculate the names origins. The most likely options is that the name comes from a town in England called Up Hatherley, or that the area is named after someone.

The station was only open for seven years, closing in June 1897.

Paisley (closed)

While the area surrounding the station is part of a locality known as Paisley, the reason why the station and the locality have this name is another question mark. Old articles from when Paisley station was open make no mention about where the station's name came from.

Advertisment from the Herald advertising a housing estate north of Paisley station, 1954.

Galvin (closed)

Galvin, located near Maidstone Street in Altona, is named after Micheal Galvin, who was President of the Werribee Shire Council. Galvin was also a police officer and the largest land owner of the Werribee area.

1966 Melways map showing Galvin Station. Note how the Altona Loop ends at Altona instead of continuing west.

Galvin closed in April 1985 for the same reasons as Paisley, which was low patronage.

Altona Loop Stations

The second way to get to Laverton is via the Altona Loop line, which consists of three stations that are currently open, and another three stations that are closed. For this blog, the Altona Loop line will start at Altona Junction, and ends where the Altona Loop meets the Altona Express line near Laverton.

Mobiltown (closed)

Mobiltown acquired its name from the Mobil Oil Refinery, located just west of where the station was located.

1966 Melways map showing Mobiltown station. The Mobiltown refinery is located next to the Mobiltown Station. Paisley can also be found on this map.

 

Mobiltown originally opened in 1953 as 'Standard Oil Platform'. This was because the Mobil Oil Refinery was originally known as the Vacuum Oil Company prior to June 1954. The station closed in January 1985 due to low patronage

Something else to note is that in 1981, Broderick Smith's Big Combo released a song called 'Last Train From Mobiltown'. You can view the lyrics here. 

Williamstown Racecourse (closed)

Located to the south of Kororoit Creek Road, Williamstown Racecourse was named after a racecourse that has since been transformed into the Altona Coastal Park. Williamstown is named after King William IV.

The Altona Coastal Park is on the site of the old Williamstown Racecourse.

Williamstown Racecourse closed in May 1950. This was because the Racecourse the station served was closed the year before, being used to house World War II veterans.

Seaholme

Seaholme was the name that was chosen as part of a naming competition held by the company that owned the land. The name is derived from the nearby housing estate, with referencing its proximity to the sea. Holme is also a Middle English word meaning 'Small Island', which is strange since Seaholme is not an island.

Advertisement in The Age about Seaholme estate in Altona.

Altona

Altona is named after a homestead owned by Alfred Langhorne, which came from a a suburb that is a part of Hamburg, Germany. The name Altona is thought to have come from the word Allzu-nah, which means 'all too near'. The name is believed to have come about because the people of Hamburg thought that an Inn located in the Altona area was too close to their territory.

The German Altona borough and its borders.

Between December 1917 and October 1938, the station was known as 'Altona Beach', referencing its location near the bay. There was a proposal that was floated around by the Hobson Bay Council in 2011 that suggested changing the name back to Altona Beach, although that has never been implemented.

Altona Beach (closed)

A station that was located near Grieve Parade, Altona Beach Station was named for the same reasons as Altona, because it is near the beach and would likely attract patronage through its name alone. 

Map showing Altona, Altona Beach, and Westona Stations. Altona Beach is the one marked in Black.

This station was officially closed in November 1917, although no passenger service had been provided since the 1890s. 

Westona

Westona is the name that was the result of a naming competition when the station first opened in 1985. The name that won was chosen by Alan and Betty Angus, who mashed the words 'West' and 'Altona' together.

Stations beyond Laverton

The final section of this blog covers what is beyond Laverton (including Laverton Station itself). There are 5 open stations in this section, as well as a closed station just past Werribee that I want to touch on in this article.

Laverton

If you read the entry on Altona you will note a man name Alfred Langhorne. Langhorne also inspired the name of this suburb as well, being named after the Laverton pastoral run, which he owned (a pastoral run is a large area of farmland).

This article from the Argus talks about an upgrade to Laverton Station.

Aircraft

Aircraft get's its name from the nearby Royal Australian Air Force Base (RAAF). This is located to the north of the station. This base is currently only used for training purposes although it has had a bigger role in the past.

All of Aircraft's original names reflect its role as a station serving the nearby Air Force Base. The original names provided to this station are 'Aviation Siding' (March 1925 - May 1927) and 'Aircraft Siding' (May 1927 - March 1963), referencing a siding that no longer exists (although the gates for it can still be seen from the base). For the uninformed, a siding is a short part track that is separate from the main line, mostly used to let trains pass while being loaded with freight.

Williams Landing

A very new suburb, Williams Landing's name reflects the areas role in aviation. The suburb is named after Richard Williams, who played a very significant role in the development of the Australian Air Force. The landing part of the name reflects the suburb formerly being part of an airfield owned by the Royal Australian Air Force. The RAAF Williams Base is now only used for training.

Williams Landing in 2003 (left) compared to Williams Landing in 2020 (right). Source: Google Earth.

Hoppers Crossing

Hoppers Crossing is named after the Old Geelong Road level crossing (originally Hoppers Lane). The name Hoppers comes from Stephen Hopper and his family, who were significant residents in the area. Notably, Stephen and his wife Betsy operated the gates at the Old Geelong Road crossing.

Werribee

Werribee is an aboriginal word for 'spine'. The name was given because the Werribee River Valley is sort of shaped like a spine,

Does this river look like a spine to you?

The original name given to the suburb and station was 'Wyndham' named after Soldier Sir Henry Wyndham, a General who notably fought in the battle of Waterloo. 

Werribee Racecourse (closed)

A little bit beyond the extent of electrification is a station known as Werribee Racecourse. This station is named after the nearby station, located just north of the station on Bulban Road.

Werribee Racecourse being viewed from Google Streetview. Note the fence and overhead stanchions.

The station was closed in 1995 after the standard gauge track that runs from Melbourne to Adelaide was constructed and made it impossible to access this station. Werribee Racecourse was intended to be electrified, but that never occured.

That is it!

Thank you for reading this article! Leave a comment suggesting how I should improve or if you have any information about stations that I cannot find information for! Also make sure to share this to people who might care about this sort of stuff!

Sources

Altona Homestead

Archive.is

Beautiful Altona

Hobsons Bay Libraries

Melways

Rail Geelong

Trove

Victorian Places

More lines can be found here.