[1][2] The Great Southern Railway project was directly tied in with developments of lands related to agriculture.

[3][4][5] The Beverley-Albany Railway Act 1884, an act by the Western Australian Legislative Council and the Governor of Western Australia, assented to on 13 September 1884, authorised the construction of the railway line from Beverley to Albany.

[1][7] The construction of the railway was significant for the development of economic activity in the region and led to the establishment of grain and sheep grazing, along with the development of towns such as Katanning, Broomehill, Tambellup, Cranbrook, Mount Barker and Woodanilling.

Other small settlements and establishments that had grown up around the mail coach route that the railway replaced, such as Chockerup Inn, were abandoned due to a lack of travellers.

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