Puffing Billy - Menzies Creek Museum - Australia - Pt 2

ZecMurphy

Community Assistant
In March, I bought you a report from the Menzies Creek Museum at Puffing Billy in Australia. Since this report, a lot of work has progressed, which I will cover here. First off, the new shed is now built, although the internal systems (electircals, etc) are yet to go in. Secondly, Puffing Billy has recently acquired a second NGG 16 locomotive from South Africa, which is currently being stored at the museum pending possible future restoration.

The new shed, which has been built to house and display the heritage locomotive and rolling stock collection in the museum, both 2ft gauge and 2ft6in gauge, covers a considerable area, including the ‘boiler house’, which houses a George & George industrial boiler, which operates a collection of stationary engines. As the shed has been completed to a ‘lock up’ stage, we have been able to work on the maintenance of these engines, and the boiler, so as to allow us to run these once the shed has been completed.


View of the boiler house within the new shed.


Horizontal Tangye engine undergoing overhaul in the new shed.


Both the horizontal and vertical Tangye engines undergoing overhauls.
 
I thought the orginal intention was to move the museum to lakeside, I was a member Early 70's and did lots of work to that wouderful collection, I rember the arrival of the shay and other items. I understand the Clog items went home, sad in some one but good in lots of others.

Tom
 
Thanks Zec, nice to see some good progress. :)

BTW, do you know when building first started on the Museum property (1970s?)
I'm wondering whether to include it (as an interesting and well known landmark) on the Ferntree Gully to Gembrook Puffing Billy route, even if it's post-1957.
(Does the DLS have any 'time warp ahead' signs? :hehe:)

Cheers,
- A.
 
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