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Tassie A & B Originally G1 & G2 of the North East Dundas Tramway |
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Photo required
The
Tasmanian Government Railways G-class locomotives were built to 0-4-2T
configuration by Sharp
Stewart & Company, Glasgow for use on the North East Dundas Tramway. The
TGR employed a small Krauss-built ‘H-class’ 0-4-0WT locomotive during the line’s
construction, while two ‘G-class’ locomotives were ordered as main line power. The
original G1 destroyed itself and killed its crew in a boiler explosion at
Zeehan on 15 May 1899 and a replacement G1 was supplied by Sharp Stewart in
1900.
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Number |
Builder’s details |
Comments |
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G1 (original) |
Sharp
Stewart 4198 of 1896 |
Destroyed by
boiler explosion, Zeehan 1899. |
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G1
(replacement) |
Sharp
Stewart 4619 of 1900 |
Became No.9 ‘Tassie
A’ at Central Isis Sugar Mill, Cordalba |
|
G2 |
Sharp
Stewart 4432 of 1898 |
Became No.10
‘Tassie B’ at Central Isis Sugar Mill, Cordalba |
The
North East Dundas Tramway was an interesting and demanding railway linking
Zeehan with mining operations near Williamsford on Tasmanian’s West Coast. Built
to 2’ gauge to minimise the cost of earthworks in mountainous country, this
demanding route featured steep 1:27 gradients and very tight 99-foot radius
curves. The need for both high tractive effort and short wheelbase to negotiate
tight curves provided an environment suitable for innovation and the Tasmanian
Government Railways trialled a number of unusual locomotive designs on this
route. The G-class locomotives, supplied as 0-4-2T configuration, had the short
wheelbase required for the route and the weight of the side tanks over the
driving wheels would have assisted with tractive effort, however I suspect the
lack of a tender unduly restricted fuel supplies over the 18 mile railway. The
Tasmanian Government Railways next deployed a Hagan’s Patent 2-4-6-0T
articulated locomotive which arrived in 1900. In 1910 the Hagan’s Patent
locomotive was superseded as main power on the North East Dundas Tramway by the
world’s first Beyer-Garratt locomotives, K1 & K2 built with 0-4-0 + 0-4-0
configuration and high & low pressure cylinders.
Upon becoming surplus to Tasmanian Government Railways’ requirements, G1 and G2 were sold into the Queensland sugar industry at the Central Isis Sugar Mill, Cordalba. Here they were converted to 0-4-2 tender locomotives numbered 9 and 10 and were apparently also known as 'Tassie A' and 'Tassie B'. The modified 0-4-2 tender locomotives were also fitted with new, larger boilers which significantly altered their original appearance. They were withdrawn from service at Central Isis Sugar Mill in 1962.
Tassie A & B both passed into private ownership / preservation following retirement, however their preservation careers did not prove kind. Leon Oberg provides some information about these locomotives and their fate in ‘Locomotives of Australia, Fifth Edition’; in which he states that Tassie A was last seen in a Childers service station yard. The Light Railway Research Society of Australia website (as referenced below) adds that this was around 1984; in the absence of more recent information it seems likely this locomotive has been scrapped. Tassie B moved to Sydney and may have spent some time in North Richmond in the late 1980’s but was apparently illegally scrapped at St Mary’s in 1991; Fowler 0-4-2T b/n 20284 of 1935 ‘Moreland’ was also scrapped during this unfortunate incident. (I recall seeing the frames and boilers of one or two dismantled 2’ gauge locos at North Richmond around 1987, stored just off the Bell’s Line of Road near Redbank creek; I suspect these remains were Tassie B &/or Moreland.) I would greatly appreciate the contribution of photos and further information about the fate of these locomotives.
The
Light Railway Research Society of Australia provides an interesting 1909
description of the North East Dundas Tramway on this page, together
with an account
of the line’s engineering & construction. While G1 and G2 may be gone, the
route of the North East Dundas Tramway is today an excellent bushwalking trail
through Tasmanian rainforest parkland. The 5km section from the terminus
station of Williamsford provides an easy walking trail upgrade to Montezuma
Falls, the tallest waterfall in Tasmania with a drop of at 340 feet. In railway
days a wooden trestle bridge crossed in front of the waterfall on a 99-foot
radius curve but today a modern suspension bridge carries the walking trail
across the gorge. The railway route on the other side is now a popular 4-wheel
drive track through the mountain pass and downgrade to Zeehan. Here is a link
to a site describing the walking track: http://www.discovertasmania.com/attraction/montezumafalls
References
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a |
Locomotives of Australia, 1854 to 2010
(fifth edition, 2010) |
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b |
Information provided by Melanie Dennis
via email dated 14 July 2004. |
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c |
Cooper, G & Goss,
G 'Tasmanian Railways 1871 - 1996, 125 Years - A Pictorial History' |
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d |
Light Railway Research Society of
Australia Inc. Web site (viewed 17/11/2017): |
Page updated: 17 November 2017
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Government Railways: |
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Private & Industrial Railways: |
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