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Shay No.2 Alexandra Timber Tramway & Museum |
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Photo required
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Builder |
Ohio |
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Builder’s Number & Year |
2576
of 1912 |
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Wheel Arrangement |
B-type (2 trucks, 3 cylinders) |
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This
two-truck B-type Shay locomotive was built by Lima
Locomotive Works, Ohio in 1912 as one of two (B/Nos. 2575 & 2576) supplied
to the Lloyd Copper Co. for use at their Burraga works near Oberon, NSW.
These two locomotives were numbered 1 & 2 respectively at the Lloyd
Copper Co. By 1920,
No.2 was at the Hoskins Steelworks in Lithgow, NSW. By 1928 both B/Nos. 2575
& 2576 had been sold to the Victorian Hardwood & Sawmilling Co. for
use on their timber tramways in the Powelltown area of Victoria. Shay B/No.
2576 ended its days at Omeo where it had been used in a static capacity to power
a sawmill. By this stage it was in a dismantled state and apparently lacking
trucks. The remaining components (frame, boiler, cylinders and other parts)
have been privately owned by a Melbourne-based enthusiast since the
mid-1960's and are stored at a Melbourne suburban location. A news article
and photograph in Light Railways magazine No.194 of April 2007 confirmed the
continuing existence of these locomotive components and their ongoing storage
in Melbourne's eastern suburbs. The boiler
of sister Shay B/No. 2575 was also adopted for sawmill use. Until recent
years the boiler shell survived in the former station yard at Carpolac,
albeit having been gutted of tubes and non-ferrous items. Alas this relic has
now disappeared. Further
historical and technical information for Lima B/No. 2576 can be found at the
excellent Shaylocomotive.com website. Contributions
of further information or photographs for this locomotive are welcome. Update –
August 2026: Light Railways
magazine of August 2026 delivered news that this locomotive had finally
broken cover, moving to the Alexandra Timber Tramway in late April 2026. Here it will
remain a long-term restoration project, given it is missing its 3’ gauge bogies;
presumably it would need to be regauged to 2’ gauge for use at Alexandra in
any case. A similar
B-Type Shay on 2’ gauge bogies is under restoration at the Illawarra Light
Railway & Museum, based on Munro Shay No.2 (Lima B/N 2097), but I understand this project lacks a
restorable Shay boiler. Perhaps a combination of the remaining components of
these 2 locomotives might provide a viable single restoration project? |
References
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a |
www.shaylocomotives.com
website, viewed 26
May 2014. |
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b |
'Light
Railways - Australia's Magazine of Industrial & Narrow Gauge Railways', Number
194, April 2007. Published
by Light Railway Research Society of Australia Inc. Research
item & photo on page 26. |
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c |
'Light
Railways - Australia's Magazine of Industrial & Narrow Gauge Railways', Number
310, August 2026. Published
by Light Railway Research Society of Australia Inc. News
item on page 44. |
Page updated: 10 August 2026
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