Preserved Steam Locomotives Down Under

3016T

Canberra Railway Museum

3016T in Prussian Blue livery rides the turntable at Queanbeyan, NSW in 1994.

My thanks to Shaun Barker for contributing this photo.

Builder	Beyer Peacock & Co, Manchester
Builder’s Number & Year	4459 of 1903
Wheel Arrangement	4-6-0
No. in class	(C)30T class – 77 (C)30 class – 68

This locomotive was built by Beyer Peacock & Co, Manchester as one of the initial 35 locomotives of the S 636 class with 4-6-4T ‘Baltic’ wheel configuration for Sydney suburban passenger duties, originally carrying the number S 651. This very successful design was repeated with further deliveries from Beyer Peacock & Co and the NSW Government Railways (NSWGR) Eveleigh Workshops, with the class growing to 145 members. These engines became the (C)30 class in the 1924 renumbering scheme.

Following the electrification of the Sydney suburban system, 3016 became one of 77 class members converted from 4-6-4T to 4-6-0 tender configuration for mixed traffic use on country branch lines. The converted locomotives were known as the (C)30T class to differentiate them from the remaining 68 (C)30 class tank engines, with the ‘T’ denoting ‘tender’. The (C)30T class replaced various older 4-4-0 and 2-6-0 locomotives at country depots; indeed many (C)30T's were allocated second-hand bogie Baldwin or 6-wheeled tenders from the obsolete locomotives they were displacing. The first conversion was 3088 outshopped in July 1928 and the final conversion was completed in 1933.

3016 is one of 29 (C)30T class locomotives that were further modified with a superheated boiler which significantly improved both power and fuel efficiency. In addition, piston vales replaced the original slide valves and the wooden front buffer beam was upgraded to steel. Superheated (C)30T locos such as 3016 were generally paired with Beyer-Peacock 3650 gallon bogie tenders originally supplied with the majority of (C)32 and (D)50 class locomotives.

3016 was retired from NSWGR service in 1972 and initially saved for preservation by a group associated with the Parramatta Rotary Club. In 1978 it was obtained by the Australian Railway Historical Society (ACT Division), joining saturated 3102 at the Canberra Railway Museum. 3102 was their original running locomotive but was withdrawn by the mid 1980’s, at which stage 3016 was restored to operation from 1986 to 1989 and took its place on regular tourist trains along the Cooma line to Michelago together with other destinations. 3016 wore an attractive Prussian Blue livery with red wheels from the late 1980’s through the 1990’s, giving the locomotive a distinctly German look.

3016 was dismantled for overhaul during 2003 and transferred to the NSW Rail Transport Museum (NSWRTM), Thirlmere for contract overhaul in late 2004. At completion of its overhaul, 3016 began running-in duties at the NSWRTM Steam Extravaganza in September 2006 prior to a number of mainline tours and later transfer back to Canberra. In more recent times it has received an authentic unlined black livery.

For further information and historical photographs of the (C)30 class locomotives, readers are directed to Ron Preston's excellent book ‘Standards In Steam - The 30 Class’ published by the New South Wales Rail Transport Museum.

Wikipedia provides some further details and photographs for the NSWGR C30T class locomotives.

Update:

3016 was withdrawn for overhaul in 2019. The Canberra Railway Museum is currently fundraising towards returning the loco to steam, with the boiler removed for assessment and repair during 2024.

3016 and 2705 paired on a demonstration freight at the NSWRTM, Thirlmere on 17 September 2006.
The ‘+’ painted on the buffer beam was NSWGR notation for a loco modified with a superheated.