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Tully Mill No.6 Illawarra Light Railway Museum Society |
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No.6 'Tully' at the ILRMS on 19 March 2006.
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Builder |
Mile
End, Adelaide |
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Builder’s Number & Year |
7967.49.1 |
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Wheel Arrangement |
0-6-2T |
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Tully Mill No.6 & No.7 were supplied by Perry Engineering
Co. Ltd. to Tully Mill, entering service by 1950 for cane haulage over the network
of tram lines radiating from the mill. Tully is situated in Queensland’s
tropical north and is known as the wettest town in Australia – fittingly
celebrated by ‘big thing’ attraction The Golden Gumboot! Adelaide company Perry Engineering Co. Ltd built a total
of 19 steam locomotives for various Australian sugar mills, most of which survive
in preservation. Tully Mill No.6 was replaced by diesel locos at Tully Mill
by 1965 after a relatively short working career. Fortunately it was retained
for display, being plinthed at the nearby El Arish Country Club. Inevitably the tropical climate took its toll on Tully
Mill No.6, and the deteriorating loco was made available for sale in 1972. It
was purchased by the Illawarra Light Railway Museum Society (ILRMS), arriving
by ship at Port Kembla in March 1973. After a few years of storage at Kembla
Grange, the loco was transferred to Albion Park where a thorough overhaul and
restoration program began in 1976. The chassis, pistons, valves and running
gear were complete by 1980, but expensive boiler work remained outstanding. A
cost-effective solution was found with the assistance of management at the
Port Kembla Steelworks whereby apprentices re-tubed the boiler and repaired the
firebox from 1981, with the completed boiler returning to Albion Park in
1986. Fabrication of replacement side tanks finished the project, with Tully
Mill No.6 entering regular ILRMS service on 13 September 1987. The webmaster
has often found Tully Mill No.6 in steam during running days at the ILRMS, Albion Park, as
evidenced by the photos on this page; the loco has always been immaculately
presented and performed faultlessly. It now sports the name ‘Tully’ via brass
nameplates attached to the side tanks. |
No. 6 ‘Tully’ hauling the visitor
train at ILRMS Albion Park on 13 October 2002.
Visible on the
front buffer is the number plate ‘3’ – but I do not know what this number relates
to!
The carriages
are an interesting mix comprising (in order) and antique bus body, an ex-QGR railmotor
body and a Melbourne cable tram trailer.
The station building just visible
in the background was formerly located at nearby Yallah, hence the station
nameboard.
My favourite item among the ILRMS
rollingstock is C95, originally a Sydney C-class single-truck tram.
It was
constructed in 1899 by Clyde Engineering Co as one of 97 members of the C-class
and sold off in 1922 for use as a suburban garden shed.
The body of C95
was originally saved for preservation in 1962 by the Steam Tram Preservation
Society at Parramatta Park.
It came to the
ILRM&S Albion Park in 1989 and restored, now being carried on a steel
underframe with 2’ gauge bogies.
This photo was taken
at the ILRMS on 19 March 2006.
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 Perry Engineering Co Ltd, |
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c |
K. McCarthy
‘Guide to the Main Exhibits – Illawarra
Light Railway Museum Society’, Published 1992. |
Page updated: 22 April 2021
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