Talk:Homestead, Queensland

Queensland Globe
Hi Kerry, I have no idea how a Queensland Globe ref is supposed to work, but just want to let you know that the one here in Homestead, Queensland is a dead link. Hope this is an isolated instance and not part of a wider problem. Cheers, John. Downsize43 (talk) 02:17, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
 * . Thanks for letting me know. It seems they have changed the URL. There will be a lot to fix, so I think I will make it a template instead so it only has to fixed in one place if they change the URL again. Kerry (talk) 02:25, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
 * I think I have fixed them all now, replacing them with a new Template:Queensland Globe so if there are any future URL changes, I just have to change the URL in the template and it will automatically fix itself into all the affected articles. Kerry (talk) 05:39, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
 * Good job. Glad to be of service. BTW, based on the QR Travel network map I have assumed that Southern Cross and Balfes Creek railway stations are closed. This would also apply to Homestead. Cheers, John. Downsize43 (talk) 06:31, 18 March 2019 (UTC)
 * . The ways of QR are somewhat mysterious to me, but I have learned that these things are never straightforward. Some stations are definitely not railway stations any more as they are no longer listed in the Queensland Place Names database. But Homestead & the other two you mention are still listed there, so officially they still exist. When you look at a network map, you have to consider its purpose. If it's for passenger use, then they probably aren't going show places they don't intend to stop at. I think your map probably establishes that there is no regular passenger service to Homestead, but doesn't rule out freight service (scheduled or irregular, e.g. harvest times). Even the Southern railway line down to Wallangarra railway station is still maintained, even though QR itself don't appear to run any services on it, but the line and some of its stations are still used for non-QR tourist trains and none of those show on your map. So it's difficult to know what the real status of a railway station or a railway line actually is. I think you have to limit what you say to what your sources tell you. I think you can certainly say that there are no longer scheduled passenger services to Homestead, but would they stop there in other cirumstances? I dunno. According to the great Qld railway bible "Truimph of the Narrow Gauge" by John Kerr page 44, the line to Homestead opend on 11 Feb 1884 but says nothing about closure. The book was published in 1990 so whether it didn't bother to mention it or it happened after 1990 or it isn't officially closed, I just don't know. There are no buildings there now and there must once have been as they had refreshment rooms there . And here's a couple photo of it  you have click through a few times until you get to the largest version of it - in particular it is not obvious that when you see "View options: JPG" that clicking the JPG makes it larger). So even if we can't be precise about its status, we can tell a bit of a story about it and add some photos (which are  so ok to upload to Commons).  Kerry (talk) 07:21, 18 March 2019 (UTC)