The pier was constructed between 1912 and 1915 by the
Melbourne Harbor Trust to supplement the adjacent
Station Pier (originally the 'Railway Pier'). From completion in 1915 until 1969 it was also a major arrival point for new migrants, particularly during the post-war period. In addition to a pier, there was a gatehouse and barriers, terminal building, amenities rooms, goods lockers, ablution blocks, railway sidings and passenger gangways. From opening the pier was linked by rail to the
Port Melbourne railway line, via
double lines branching from the Melbourne side of
Graham station. Eight railway tracks ran onto the bridge, four along either face. A passenger rail service was provided to the pier after 30 May 1921 operated by
suburban electric trains. Running when ships were docked at the pier, it was usually operated by a single
double ended 'swing door' motor car until the service ended in November 1930, because it was not financially rewarding for the
Victorian Railways. The
overhead wiring was removed on 17 August 1953, and the line
singled and worked as a siding from 21 March 1961. A contract for the work was awarded in June 2007, and work began in October of the same year. The refurbished section of the pier reopened to the public in December 2011. ==References==