Preserved Steam Locomotives Down Under

Kiama Fowler / Public Works Department No.35 / Wollondilly

Timbertown, Wauchope

PWD 35 / The Kiama Fowler is seen in storage at the Illawarra Light Railway & Museum on 19 March 2006.

Builder	John Fowler & Co, Leeds
Builder’s Number & Year	16089 of 1923
Wheel Arrangement	0-4-0T

This locomotive was originally Public Works Department (PWD) No.35 (the second PWD locomotive to carry this number), having been purchased for use on the State Metal Quarries at Kiama. It is also known as ‘The Kiama Fowler’.

PWD 35 entered preservation as early as 1958 when it moved to the Marsden Museum of Historic Engines at Goulburn. Here it was initially used as a stationary boiler for the magnificent Appleby Beam Engine which pumped fresh water to the City of Goulburn and is the centrepiece of the Marsden Museum. PWD 35 later joined the growing collection of 2’ gauge steam locomotives operating on the 2’ gauge tourist line which was once a feature of the Marsden Museum, although it didn’t see much use because it was apparently a bit too heavy for the rails there. Here it gained the name ‘Wollondilly’ in reference to the river and weir alongside the pumping station, from which the pumping station drew water.

In 1974 the locomotive was purchased for private preservation and dispatched to a Sydney location.

Around 1985 there was a proposal to rebuild a portion of the Kiama quarry railway as a tourist attraction, with the Kiama Fowler central to the proposal. The locomotive was displayed at Kiama for a period during 1986 & 1987 prior to being placed in storage at the Illawarra Light Railway & Museum Society (ILRMS), Albion Park. Alas the proposal for a tourist railway at Kiama did not achieve Council approval and the Kiama Fowler remained stored for many years in the loco shed at Albion Park. It was donated to the ILRMS in 1998.

My visit to the ILRMS Albion Park on 3 May 2015 found restoration and repair work on the Kiama Fowler underway, with a return to service anticipated in a few years. Among the work to be undertaken was replacement of the heavily pitted smokebox door (as can be seen in the photos below).

A large and diverse range of steam locomotives once served the various industrial operations situated in the Illawarra; each being documented in Ken McCarthy’s book 'Gazetteer of Industrial Steam Locomotives, Illawarra District NSW', which makes for interesting reading for ferroequinologists.

Update January 2026:

A post of 3 July 2022 by Leon Oberg in the Light Railways social media pages provided news that the Kiama Fowler had recently been sold to Timbertown, Wauchope. Indeed, my visit there on 11 January 2026 found the loco just visible in the workshops shed, with a builder’s plate displayed in the Timbertown entrance.

Leon’s Light Railways post makes interesting reading and includes a photo of ‘Wollondilly’ in operation at Goulburn on 6 February 1972: https://www.facebook.com/groups/LightRailwaysAustralia/permalink/5368704106519962/

I had imagined this historic loco was an appropriate exhibit for the ILRMS and so I’m surprised it was sold. Alas, Timbertown ceased operations on 28 January 2026 and an auction of assets is expected in May 2026. I understand there is interest in the railway equipment from overseas bidders; it would be a pity if this interesting loco was exported. (I’ve included more information and photographs for Timbertown on the page for ‘Green Hornet’.)