How to store wheat

It has been a while, however it is not lack of interest, just time.

As mentioned in earlier posts, I have been trawling Trove - the Australian National Library's excellent digitised newspaper (and other documents) service for stories about the Coonamble line. It was always a manageable task until Trove recently uploaded years of the Wellington Times, Narromine News and Trangie Advocate, and the Gilgandra and Castlereagh Weekly onto the site. Now I think I know more about the comings and goings at Eumungerie in the 1930s than the then-residents did. There have been many gems which I hope to write up in coming months but for now I heading back to that favourite topic of mine - wheat storage and transport.

This is the Eumungerie grain storage facility that I grew up with - SO41 bins and a bulkhead.

 Prior to the erection of the wheat bulkheads in 1968, bulk wheat was stored under a makeshift corrugated iron shed in those years when the harvest was greater than the capacity of the silo.  Here is a shot of the temporary shed from the south, taken in 1963.

Before there was bulk what, it was bagged wheat.  And lots of it. I don't know the year the following photo was taken, but I suspect it was early to mid-1930s. Taken from the silo itself, in the left foreground there is a slab of railway sleepers awaiting bagged wheat.

Every time I look at the previous photograph I find something new.  I have been mesmerised by the queue - with the collection of now vintage trucks and drays all waiting their turn to unload. Until now I hadn't notices the laconic pose of the gentleman sitting on the edge of the wheat stack.

It hasn't been all Trove treasures though. The humble Facebook has turned up the Eumungerie Community page. I never like to swipe other people's stuff off the internet, particularly without attribution but I cant find the owner of the following photo so describing how I cam upon it will have to do for fir dealing etc. Anyway, its a cracker!

It shows a half stacked wheat stack, taken from Eumungerie station. Just look at the way it was stacked, with the vertical walls facing the railway line.

Looking further north, two more stacks can been seen. These appear to be hay or wool stacks but are too indistinct to be identified properly. A gem of a photo!

So, for me its back to Trove and more digging!

Ciao for now,
Don.   



 

 

A few memories of wheaties at Eumungerie

Given that I have written more about grain traffic on the Coonamble branch than any other human (how's that for a claim to fame?) I should really know 'stuff', but I don't. It falls to the generosity of time and spirit of others to improve my education, along with a couple of decent national institutions. I am going to drag a few of these influences together in this post.

First, a very straightforward explanation of peak season wheat train workings in the Eumungerie area provided by my father...

When the peak was on, a train of empties would arrive early and drop off the Eumungerie allocation on the silo track. These would be gravitated or barred to the chute and loaded. 

In the afternoon a loco (tender leading) and van would arrive from Dubbo and pick up the now loaded train and return it to Dubbo. The original would have continued on dropping off empties as allocated towards Gilgandra. 

As this area of land was marginal for wheat growing, there was extensive use of superphosphate.  This came from Newcastle or Port Kembla in tarped 'S' trucks. These were often added to the afternoon engine/van train and placed on the loading bank or near the crane.

Finally in the late afternoon the original loco would come back from Gilgandra and head to Dubbo with its loaded train.

Second, many will know of Col Hussey's most excellent blog Essence, worth reading both for the HO railway under construction and Col's explanation of real life operations on the NSWGR. Through the Aus_Model_Rail chat group Col recalled that during the large 1964/65 wheat harvest, trains that operated from Dubbo as far as Gilgandra were worked by bogie tendered 32 class as there was a triangle there to turn them there.  On specials that ran as far as Eumungerie they ran tender first out and engine first back. So, I think we have corroboration!

Finally, the benefit of having decently resourced national institutions? I refer in particular to the National Library of Australia's Trove website which contains 15,000 references to Eumungerie alone. It also has a series of photographs taken in December 1958 by a Mr J Tanner. I am reproducing several of the series below to illustrate the wheat loading process at Eumungerie.

First up, the morning train has been out and deposited a collection of BWH and RU hoppers on the silo road. One BWH has been loaded and a RU is in the process of being loaded.

Here is a close-up of the RU being loaded - great OHS!

Inside the road receival facilities farmers were either dumping bulk grain, or emptying bagged grain.
 

Emptying bagged grain would have been particularly lousy and hot work. Lucky this bloke is well dressed for it!

Finally, other farmers have a decent wait, especially if every bag needs to be emptied. Note the loaded BWH and directly behind it, a rare shot of the station officer's residence.

I strongly encourage everyone to log onto the Trove site - it is a national treasure.  I'll refrain from calling Col and my father national treasures, but they are very useful sources!

Ciao for now!
Don

Dubbo's steam shunters

Yes, it has been a while but for once it hasn't been my slackness or distractions... my 'telco service provider' hasn't been able live up to its name since the week before Christmas.

My last post involved LVR's esteemed P class, 3237. I don't have any shots of it at Eumungerie or working the Coonamble branch, but I do have a collection of steam locos shunting Dubbo yard in the 1960s which does include 3237.  So I thought I would dig them up.

When sorting the photos I have been a bit sidetracked by 30T tenders - the forthcoming 30T model by Shrike Models being in the back of my mind (and wallet). So, tenders is a bit of a focus for the first few photos. First up, 3055T with its bogie tender.

3080T has the standard 30T six-wheel tender.

3102T has the less common narrower, six-wheel tender nicked from a scrapped Z16 class loco.

Here is two shots of 3122T, and I don't know what chronological order they should be in.  They are evidence however that 30Ts swapped tenders from time to time. Here is 3122 with a bogie tender.

And here it is with a six-wheel tender.  OK, the front of the loco has been cropped off by the photographer, but the interest in this particular shot is the antiquated equipment being used to make repairs to the driving rods (note the slide rods cover is off).

The last of the 30T collection for the time being is 3142T in the distance. Take my word for it! I love this photograph for the quality of the roof on the shed and the ash stacked high in the S wagon in the foreground. Great character!

 
If you haven't had enough of 30Ts, scroll down to my post in May 2014 (or click this link) to see blue 3028T with a bogie tender and green 3144T with a six wheel tender and extended smoke box.  Unfortunately I don't have any photos of a 30T at Dubbo with a Baldwin tender! Leaving 30Ts we return to the loco which started this post - 3237.

I think I may have posted the following photo before? Anyway 3289 looks so nice it deserves another run.

For the last shot it is time to take a peak at Dubbo's own standard goods - 5408.

Its good to be back on the air... ciao!

A Christmas tradition

One of the best Sydney Xmas traditions is the Special Kids Christmas Special.

Each year 3801 Ltd runs a special train to Rosehill Gardens for unlucky kids who are lucky for at least a day. Today is that day.

Today 3237 is on the front...

There is a connection with Eumungerie, as 40 years ago this loco was a Dubbo loco. And today it looks better than it did then.

It will be a hot one for the crew.

And an immaculate 4501 tails the 10 carriages.

Always good to see a P in Sid-en-née. Repeat after me... Always good to see a P...

Ciao for now!

Don

Not where I thought?

Here is a photograph of a fairly everyday experience from about 1965 (I think).

The loco in question - 3222 - was allocated to Dubbo in 1965 and 1966. It looks like the train it has behind it is a very healthy up pickup, with wool and wheat loading. 

The railway precinct is also rather interesting - the edge of the turntable can be seen, along with the water tank and carriage shed. Gillespie Bros. flour mill can be seen in the background, along with a relatively rare Metcalfe silo.

I had always had this photograph pegged as Gilgandra - principally due to the fact that the word 'Gil' was written on the slide mounting frame! Fairy reasonable conclusion to draw...

But now am not so sure. I am fairly sure the Metcalfe silo is out of town, and Gilgandra had a turning wye rather than a turntable (or maybe both?).

Wherever it is, its a cracker as a modelling proposition given most of the major infrastructure is on one side. Dead flat too.

The clue to where it is - and it may yet be Gil - may lie in the S trucks at the front of the train.  It appears that the second is part filled with some sort of uncovered aggregate or rock.

Enjoy the mystery!

A grim future for Eumungerie's farmers

Graincorp have recently announced their 'Regeneration' project, which will result in the closure of tens of grain silos across NSW in a triumph of value stripping out of a former publicly-owned service.  Its a nice bit of 'regeneration', if you define regeneration as sawing off one of your legs in the hope that the lost weight will mean that you can run faster.

For the Coonamble line it will mean that Coonamble and Gilgandra are the two primary sites, with Gular as the third site.  Curban will be held for overflow in future years, while Armatree will remain open for overflow in 2014/15, then to move to 'non-operational' from 2015/16.

Eumungerie and Combara will be placed into 'non-operational' - in simpler words, closed. Last year's harvest was probably the last.

All may not be lost, yet. Graincorp will rent you a silo at Eumungerie, Combar or Armatree. All you need to do is download a form from their website.

Sigh...

Village life in 2012

I am planning  bit of an assault on clearing some of the 'blog backlog' over the coming months.  One thing I thought would be timely is a bit of a look around the village of Eumungerie as it stands now.

These photos were taken around dusk on 12 January 2012.  No trains in this one, but there are few landmarks in Eumungerie that don't reek of railway.  First up, the railway yard...

Next, where all thirsty railway workers go - the pub. Currently known as the Drover's Dog.

And here is the village post office - or at least it was in 2012.  Hopefully it is still there...

This well-restored property's substantial out-building with chimney is a reminder that 40 odd years ago this was Pope's Bakery.

The local petrol station has seen better days, about 50 years ago.

And now for the Eumungerie-Coboco Hall.  Lucky it wasn't built at Coboco, as nothing exists at that location these days.

 

This rather substantial buildings was once the general store, and sold the best lollies in town.  The best of everything, actually.

Time to leave Eumungerie, with a shot of why it ever existed...