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Mount
Lyell No.1 (Abt
No.1) West Coast Wilderness Railway |
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Abt No.1 is seen approaching the turntable at Dubbil Barril
on 6 May 2003, while being prepared to tackle the 1:20 gradient rack section to
Rinadeena.
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Builder |
Dubs
& Co, Glasgow |
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Builder’s Number & Year |
3369 of 1896 |
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Wheel Arrangement |
0-4-2RT |
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Mount
Lyell No.1 (Abt No.1) was built by Dubs and Co, Glasgow in 1896 as the first
of the Abt-rack locomotives of the Mt Lyell Mining & Railway Co. The
railways of Tasmania's west coast are one of the most interesting chapters in
Australia's railway history as competing companies raced to win dominance
over the mining riches of the area. The railway built by the Mt Lyell Mining
& Railway Company was one such daring venture as investor funds and the
company's fortunes were committed to a rack railway connecting Queenstown to
the docks at Strahan. The route crossed difficult mountain country using the
Abt-rack system, and indeed the route was largely complete before locomotive
Abt No.1 arrived from Glasgow. It was assembled in the bush at the ‘Camp
Spur’ work site alongside the newly-laid rack railway, and fortunately proved
successful during testing! Abt No1
and its sister locomotives settled into a life of hauling copper
concentrates, mine supplies and general traffic over the My Lyell railway,
supported by conventional locomotives on the non-rack sections of the route.
The five Abt locos were originally coal burners but converted to oil firing
late in their working lives. The Mt
Lyell Railway was closed in 1963 and subsequently dismantled, but fortunately
several of the locomotives and carriages passed into preservation. Abt No.1
was donated to the West Coast Pioneers Museum, Zeehan and was displayed for
many years alongside their other railway exhibits. The old Mt Lyell railway
fell into disrepair, with many of the timber trestle bridges rotting in the
wet west coast climate, and the major bridge across the Queen River swept
away in floods. The route was overgrown and impassable in places when the
webmaster attempted to bushwalk the abandoned railway back in 1993! Following
the allocation of Federal Government funding, the Mt Lyell railway from
Strahan to Queenstown was totally rebuilt as a major tourist initiative for
the Tasmanian West Coast region. The bridges were rebuilt, rails re-laid and
new Abt-rack sections fabricated and installed. The railway was officially
reopened over the entire route as a tourist railway on 3 April 2003, becoming
the West Coast Wilderness
Railway. Several of the original locomotives were also acquired for
refurbishment and operation on the rebuilt railway. Abt No.1 was placed on
loan from the West Coast Pioneers Museum, Zeehan in about 1998 and thoroughly
rebuilt under contract by Saunders & Ward, Hobart, including a new welded
boiler which has been adapted to burn diesel fuel. Abt No.1
treated the webmaster to a great day on the West Coast Wilderness Railway on
6 May 2003; the photos on this page were taken on that day. I thoroughly
recommend a visit to the West Coast Wilderness Railway for anyone interested
in ferroequinology - or wanting to sample the history and beauty of
Tasmania's West Coast region! Lou Rae
has written several excellent books on the railways of Tasmania's West Coast,
including ‘The Abt Railway & Railways of the Lyell region’ which
provides a full account of the building and operations of the Mt Lyell Mining
& Railway Company, together with competing interests. The
Queensland Government Railways also operated an Abt rack route and one interesting relic survives. |
Abt No.1 approaches the turntable at Dubbil Barril on 6 May 2003.
It carries ornate "Mount Lyell No1" name plates on the side tanks.
Abt No.1 rides the turntable at Dubbil Barril on 6 May 2003.
The rack railway can be seen climbing in the background.
The original Mt Lyell Railway passenger cars were obtained
by the Puffing Billy Railway in the1960's and converted to 2' 6" gauge.
They have since given many years of service on the Puffing Billy Railway.
Two of these carriages are seen at Menzies Creek on 13 October 2013.
References
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a |
L. Rae, 'The Abt Railway & Railways of the Lyell
region', published by Lou
Rae, PO Box 508, Sandy Bay, Tasmania, 7006. |
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b |
Dix, A.,
Beck, D., and Dix M. 'Locomotives
of the Tasmanian Transport Museum Glenorchy
Tasmania', published by the Tasmanian
Transport Museum Society, October 1991. |
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c |
L. Oberg,
'Locomotives of Australia', published
by J. W. Books Pty Ltd, Brookvale NSW. 1982 reprint. |
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d |
West Coast
Wilderness Railway website, Accessed 12/8/2024. |
Page updated: 27 April 2025
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