This is close to the location of the original terminals, the first opened in 1855 and the second in 1874. The third station was opened in 1906 and is the one you see today. At BO187 you are standing on top of the Devonshire St tunnel, which used to be the street at the front of the earlier stations.

Artist’s impression of "Sydney Terminal" in 1855. This is the original Central station. If you look into the distance of this drawing and look south yourself, you will see the same Cleveland St cutting and the Church spire to its left.

Mortuary Station, the sandstone, architect-designed building whose spire and dome you can see to your right served the funeral train service between Sydney Central and Rookwood between 1867 and 1948.

On the first day of rail - 26 September 1855 - 750 first class tickets at 4 shillings each were sold for the run between Parramatta and Sydney. There were no ticket barriers and there were no platform indicators.

The second "Sydney Terminal". “It had a mean and ugly appearance which was on account of the numerous additions of different periods and various cheap materials”.

This third station was built in stages. The design was completed at the end of 1901. Eleven stone masons commenced work on 7 August 1902 and work gangs demolished the platforms of the old Sydney station as the new ones were built. Platforms 1 – 15 and the first two floors of the new station were opened by the Premier and Minister for Transport, in August 1906. The clock tower and top two floors were completed in 1921 and the electric platforms (16 - 23) and electric suburban rail network opened in 1926.