|
|
Bingera Mill ‘Ralf’ Privately owner at Echuca |
|
‘Ralf’ was privately owned at a location near Echuca, Vic at
the time of my visit on 23 March 2005.
I found her dismantled in the loco shed as part of a
protracted overhaul, as seen above.
|
Bundaberg Foundry Engineers Ltd |
|
|
Builder’s Number & Year |
4 of 1952 |
|
Wheel Arrangement |
0-6-2T |
|
The Bundy Fowler locos The well-known manufacturer John Fowler &
Co, Leeds, UK built many steam locomotives for the Australian sugar cane
industry, where their products were held in high regard. In 1935, John Fowler
& Co made a strategic decision to cease manufacture of steam locomotives
in favour of internal combustion designs, leaving a market gap in the
Australian sugar industry where demand for steam locomotives remained.
Stepping in to fill this gap were Australian companies Perry Engineering in
Adelaide, and Bundaberg Foundry Engineers Ltd (Bundaberg Foundry) who leveraged
their established heavy engineering business serving the cane mills of
Queensland’s Burnett Region and beyond. By 1948, Bundaberg Foundry had obtained firm
orders from various mills for 8 steam locomotives based on recent John Fowler
& Co designs operating at Queensland mills, in particular 0-6-2T ‘Airdmillan’ (Fowler b/n 20763 of 1935), and with modernisations
such as roller-bearing axles. It seems a licence was eventually negotiated
with John Fowler & Co, but steel supply proved problematic in the
post-war years and the first loco was not completed until 1952. A single
0-4-2T version was among the 8 constructed. These antipodean Fowler cousins
became known as ‘Bundy Fowlers’ and were not only among the last steam
locomotives built in Australia, but also among the last in revenue service –
with all 8 Bundaberg-Fowler steam locomotives ultimately passing into
preservation. John Browning and Brian Webber have written a
comprehensive and well-illustrated account of the various steam and diesel
locomotives built and reconstructed by Bundaberg Foundry Engineers Limited in
‘Built by Bundaberg Foundry’ as referenced below. Rather than repeat the
information provided in that authorative work, I have sought here to provide
a brief background to the Bundy-Fowler steam locomotives and their
preservation careers. Bingera Mill ‘Ralf’ Bingera Mill, situated to the west of
Bundaberg near the Burnett River, ordered two Bundy Fowler locomotives, the
first being b/n 4 which arrived in 1952 and was named ‘Ralf’ followed by b/n
7 which arrived in 1953 and was named ‘Kolan’. The two locos toiled in the cane
fields during crushing season, hauling heavy loads of cut sugar cane to the
mill for processing and returning to the fields with long strings of empties
for refilling. By 1972 its sugar industry career was over. ‘Ralf' entered
the preservation domain in 1973 when purchased privately for the Goulburn
Steam Museum at Marsden Weir, joining the extensive collection of 2- gauge
steam locomotives at that site. After a brief spell at Goulburn it was sold
in 1974 to the Lachlan Vintage Village at Forbes. I understand ‘Ralf’ was the
operating loco at the Lachlan Vintage Village on the opening day, 17 May 1975.
Photographic evidence suggests it was running in various configurations with
or without side tanks and steam domes until at least 1980, after which it was
placed on static display and painted a rather gaudy sky blue livery. The Lachlan
Vintage Village was an interesting local museum featuring relocated
historical buildings, a recreated Aboriginal camp and other displays relevant
to the region. From a railway perspective it included a 2’ gauge line using
ex-sugar industry locomotives and a standard gauge railway which ringed the
site. Unfortunately, the Lachlan Vintage Village did not succeed as an
ongoing concern and most of the railway assets were sold at auction in 1986. Among
these was ‘Ralf’ which was sold privately to an enthusiast based on a rural property
outside of Echuca, joining a collection of steam locomotives and other vintage
steam equipment at that site. The owner at
Echuca kindly permitted me to view his collection during on 23 March 2005 and
several of the photos on this page date from that visit. At that time I found
‘Ralf to be dismantled in the engine shed during a somewhat protracted overhaul.
The loco wore the faded remnants of sky blue livery. (I don’t recall seeing
the side tanks, but I imagine the drawings still exist, else authentic replacements
could be modelled from surviving sister locomotives.) ‘Light Railways’ magazine of August 2019
(No.268) included a news article with the sad news that the private owner in
Echuca had passed away. The sale and dispersal of his locomotive collection was
reported, but I am unsure of the current location or status for this locomotive,
so further information is welcome. |
Detail of the builder’s plate attached to the cabside.
Photo taken 23 March 2005.
Bingera Mill’s ‘Ralf’ in steam at the Lachlan Vintage
Village in early 1979.
The fireman seen on the footplate is Gary Gentle, who
kindly contributed this photo (original by the diver, the late Bernie Kelly).
Bingera Mill ‘Ralf’ and two 4-wheel
coaches run around the narrow-gauge circuit at the Lachlan Vintage Village,
Forbes in December 1975.
The green livery follows the original
Hawthorn Green as supplied by Bundaberg Foundry,
although the side tanks have been enhanced
with red lining and a ‘Britannia Steam Tramway’ logo.
This view is a zoom-in from a slide
image kindly contributed by Graeme Nitz.
A second view of ‘Ralf’ and tourist
train at the Lachlan Vintage Village, Forbes in December 1975; image courtesy
of Graeme Nitz.
The train is passing some of the
replica and relocated pioneer buildings that were a feature of the Lachlan
Vintage Village.
A second view of Bingera Mill’s ‘Ralf’ in steam at the
Lachlan Vintage Village.
While the side tanks are missing, the
mounting brackets and supports can clearly be seen.
This view dated mid-1980 and was contributed by fireman Gary
Gentle (original by ‘Ralf’s’ diver, the late Bernie Kelly).
References
|
a |
Light
Railway Research Society of Australia Inc. Web site (Retrieved
18 November 2022): 'Preserved
Australian Sugar Cane Locomotives' list by John Browning |
|
b |
Website for Bundaberg Walkers
Engineering Ltd, retrieved
12 September 2022 |
|
c |
Browning J.
& Webber B. ‘Built
by Bundaberg Foundry’, published 2012 by the Australian
Narrow Gauge Railway Museum Society, Woodford QLD ISBN
978-0-9596009-4-0 |
|
d |
'Light Railways - Australia's Magazine of
Industrial & Narrow Gauge Railways', Number
268, August 2019, (News article page 46), published by Light Railway Research Society
of Australia Inc. |
|
e |
Information provided by Stephen Moulton via
email dated 20 July 2022. |
|
f |
Information provided by Gary Gentle via
email dated 7 September 2022. |
Page updated: 11 December 2022
|
Government Railways: |
|
|||||||||
|
Private & Industrial Railways: |
|