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Invicta John Fowler & Co. Ltd. b/n 11277 of 1907 |
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This photo is kindly provided by John Browning and shows
the superbly-restored Invicta at its relaunch and 100th birthday on 17 November
2007.
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Builder |
John
Fowler & Co, Leeds |
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Builder’s Number & Year |
11277
of 1907 |
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Wheel Arrangement |
0-6-2T |
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Invicta
was built by John Fowler & Co in Leeds and delivered new to the Invicta
Mill, which was originally located on the Kolan River in the Bundaberg area. In
1918 the Invicta Mill was dismantled and moved to Giru in the north of the
state, while Invicta and other railway assets stayed in the Bundaberg area after
being sold to Bingera Mill. Invicta
worked at Bingera for 40 plus years until the early 1960s, and which stage it
was sold to a third owner, the Millaquin Sugar Company for use at their
Qunaba Mill near Mon Repos. Invicta
remained in revenue service at Qunaba Mill until as late as 1978. In 1981 it entered
preservation when donated to the HMAS Nirimba Navy Training College at
Quakers Hill Sydney. (The Australian Navy operated some steam turbine warships
at this period and perhaps Invicta was considered useful for training
purposes; I’d be interested to hear .more on this aspect.) I understand some restoration
work was undertaken while at HMAS Nirimba and it appears to have been well
cared for; the photo below gives an indication of the loco’s condition during
in this period. A
return to the Bundaberg area came in 1993 when the Bundaberg Steam Tramway
Preservation Society (BSTPS) approached the Australian Navy seeking custody of
Invicta. The Australian Navy agreed to this approach with official handover occurring
on 20th November 1993. Upon
return to Bundaberg, Invicta was stored within the BSTPS running shed in the
Bundaberg Botanical Gardens for 10 years until restoration started in 2003. It
was stripped for complete overhaul, including manufacture of new side tanks
to the original design and repairs to the boiler, with the aim of having
Invicta returned to operation for its 100th birthday in 2007. The
BSTPS achieved their goal with Invicta was recommissioned on Saturday 17
November 2007 with a suitable 100th birthday celebration. On the
next day, Sunday 18 November 2007, Invicta entered service on their tourist
tramway located within the Bundaberg Botanical Gardens. For
further information about this interesting locomotive, refer to the Australian
Sugar Cane Railway website.
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Invicta's frames sitting on a
works flatcar within the BSTPS depot, 27 December 2004.
Also seen in the BSTPS depot on 27 December 2004 were Invicta's side tanks, in undercoat & awaiting fitting.
My thanks to Tony Meredith for this image of Invicta at
HMAS Nirimba during an ARHS tour on 17 November 1984.
References
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a |
Light
Railway Research Society of Australia Inc. Web site 'Preserved
Australian Sugar Cane Locomotives' list |
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b |
Wikipedia
page for John
Fowler & Co, Leeds, |
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c |
Information
sheet provided by the and comments from
discussions with members |
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d |
Australian
Sugar Cane Railway website, Invicta
page, |
Page updated: 10 March 2018
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