It had a dramatic impact on the way the town interacted with the alluvial flats on Spring Creek, below Camp St and Albert St.
After the opening of the line, the functional and largely overlooked section of the goldfield became a local gathering place. Instead of barren mining ground, residents went across en route to their work at the asylum, or continued on their travels to Everton or Stanley.
People began to gather here to either wait for their train, or to greet persons of interest arriving on the platform. One such occasion of note occurred on the Sunday afternoon of 1 August 1880, when the special train brought Ned Kelly into town for his committal hearing on the charge of the murder of Constable Lonigan.
While the train's arrival was intended to be a secret, word got out and by the time the locomotive pulled into the station, there was a crowd of over 100 gathered to get a glimpse of Kelly.