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The
Innisfail Tramway was an interesting 2’ gauge common-carrier railway with
30 miles of track linking cane fields to the South Johnstone and Mourilyan
Mills, and the mills to Mourilyan Harbour. The line was built as the
Geraldton Tramway by the Johnstone Shire Council, Geraldton being the
original name of Innisfail (80km south of Cairns) until renamed in 1910.
The Innisfail Tramway, together with Mourilyan Mill’s harbour line, was
purchased by the Queensland Railways in 1914.
Preserved
loco No. 11 is one of three 0-6-2 tender locomotives supplied new by John
Fowler & Co to the Queensland Railways for use on the Innisfail
Tramway. They were classified as ‘B9˝’ class following the QR nomenclature
of ‘B’ for 6 coupled driving wheels and 9˝ representing the cylinder
diameter (in inches). The Innisfail Tramway’s fleet comprised an
interesting mix of 13 steam locomotives which toiled to bring cut cane to
the mills for processing, and raw sugar to Mourilyan Harbour:
|
Class
|
Wheel
Arrangement
|
No.
in Class
|
Notes
|
|
6D8˝
|
0-6-0T
|
6
|
John Fowler & Co
Innisfail
Tramway No’s 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 8
|
|
6D9˝
|
4-6-0T
|
3
|
War Office Hunslet locos, sisters to WD303 ‘Invicta’
Innisfail
Tramway No’s 6, 1 (second) & 2 (second)
|
|
6D9
|
0-6-0T
|
1
|
Krauss B/No.5261
of 1905
Ex- Irvinebank Mining Company ‘Betty’
(Atherton Tableland, west of Cairns)
Innisfail
Tramway No.7
|
|
B9˝
|
0-6-2
|
3
|
John Fowler & Co,
Innisfail
Tramway No’s 9, 10 & 11
|
The
Innisfail Tramway was dieselised in 1962, with No.11 withdrawn in 1963.
While the balance of the Innisfail Tramway fleet was quickly scrapped,
fortunately No.11 was saved following the advocacy of a local railway
worker and the old loco was plinthed in Fitzgerald Park, Innisfail. Photos
show it originally wore a handsome deep green livery, possibly authentic,
but later a succumbed to a garish livery of sky blue with silver chimney
and red details (presumably inspired by Thomas the Tank Engine).
The
tropical environment of northern Queensland does not suit the placement of
old steam locomotives in open parkland, and no doubt No.11 required
considerable ongoing maintenance to keep the elements at bay. Innisfail is
noted as one of the rainiest towns in Australia, presumably accelerating
the deterioration of No. 11. Fortunately the locomotive was donated by the
Johnstone Shire Council to the Australian Narrow Gauge Railway Museum
Society (ANGRMS) and in 1979 it arrived at their Durundur Railway,
Woodford, to the north of Brisbane. Here it has remained in open
storage with other steam locomotives similarly rescued from static plinths,
awaiting the day when time, labour and resources might be found for their
restoration. (In the webmaster’s humble opinion, a suitable future home for
this locomotive would be the Workshops Museum at the former QR Ipswich
Railway Workshops, where – once properly restored - it could represent QR
involvement in local light railways and the sugar industry.)
The
Innisfail Tramway was sold by Queensland Railways to local sugar mills in
1977. The webmaster had a memorable visit to the Innisfail area during
1996, including following a bulk sugar haul on a fine rake of old Innisfail
Tramway bogie flatcars from Mourilyan Mill to Mourilyan Harbour. Alas this
scene is now relegated to history as Mourilyan Mill was damaged by Cyclone
Yasi in 2006 and subsequently demolished, while the harbour line has now
been abandoned in favour of road transport.
Further
history and technical details for Innisfail Tramway No.11 can be found on
the ANGRMS
web page for No.11.
The Innisfail Tramway as the webmaster
experienced it: No.5 brings a rake of bulk sugar containers on Innisfail
Tramway flatcars into Mourilyan Harbour
on 15 July 1996; I followed this train from mill to port. Alas the
Mourilyan Harbour branch has since been closed and lifted in favour of road
transport.
Mourilyan Mill was closed and demolished following damage from Cyclone Yasi
in 2006 but Mourilyan Harbour continues to export sugar from other mills.
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