Historical information

Trains with electric swing doors were often referred to as "dog boxes" or "doggies". They were manufactured at the Newport Workshops for the Victorian Railways. Swing Door cars had outward-opening doors. They were reasonably narrow, to ensure that two passing trains would not foul each other if doors were accidentally left open.

The donor George Lister Coop was about 21 years of age when he took this photo. He advised that in order to access this point he had to scramble through a bit of rough undergrowth and beginnings of a car park. All near an open drain of some kind. It is one of a small series of photos donated by him that relate to Mont Albert and Surrey Hills stations. George has always had an interest in railways and there are other examples of his documentation of railway history in other collections contributing to this database.

Physical description

A black & white photo of a swing door train destined for Flinders Street that is within the platforms at Surrey Hills. The photo is taken from the western end of Surrey Hills Station. There is a man near the end of the platform on the north side. He is probably a railway worker heading towards his work shed just seen on extreme left.