Southern Mahratta Railway
The Southern Mahratta Railway (1882-1908) was one of the pioneer railway companies of India.
1858 Captain C. C. Johnson, officiating as constructing engineer of railways forwarded the proposal for a railway to be constructed and called it the Southern Mahratta Railway.
1882 June 1st. The Southern Mahratta Railway company was formed with its headquarters at Dharwar.
1884 March 24th. The first line to open was a metre gauge line of 40.5 mile long from Bellary to Hospet.
1885 From the terminus from the West of India Portuguese Guaranteed Railway on the British Frontier, via Gadak to Bellary - 202 miles; From Gadak ro Sholapur - 180 miles; Branch to Bankapur - 36 miles; Branch to Belgaum - 32 miles. Total 450 miles. 316 miles in operation. Lt-Col E. Z. Thornton, Secretary; A. M. Rendel, Consulting Engineer; G. M. Stewart, India Agent; Colonel J. Lindsey, Engineer-in-Chief.[1]
1886 the Mysore State Railway's management was also taken by the Southern Mahratta Railway company.
1888 a line was extended from Londa towards the Portuguese Goa where it connected with the Marmagao line at Castle Rock.
1889-90 the Southern Mahratta Railway company constructed the first coast to coast line from Marmagoa to Beswada.
The Londa-Castle Rock line was later taken over by West of India Portuguese Railway
1899 Mileage: Southern Mahratta is 1,045 miles; Mysore is 296 miles; other railways worked by the company 254 miles; Total 1,595 miles. E. Z. Thornton, Secretary; A. M. Rendel, Consulting Engineers; Major J. Burn-Murdoch, Agent in India.[2]
1908 Merged with Madras Railway to form the Madras and Southern Mahratta Railway.