Constructed by North British Locomotive Company of Glasgow, Scotland in 1951.
The R class were to be the “final word” in express passenger steam locomotives. The large wheel diameter and large boiler size were intended to replace the remaining A2 class locomotives on services such as the Overland, but by the time they were ordered the B class diesel locomotives had taken over. As a result they were relegated to secondary services or stored, only running to clear a bumper grain harvest.
The total working life of the class was 16 years, with the last of the class withdrawn in 1967.
R704 was shown on display at the 1951 Festival of Britain, and carries a large commemorative plaque on the side of the cab, as well as unique stainless steel boiler bands.
Photo by Andrew Henderson
Constructed by Newport Workshops in 1910.
A modification of the DD class design, shown by exhibits D2 604 and D3 635. All class members were built by Newport Workshops.
This type mainly saw service as suburban passenger engines prior to electrification on the longer and hillier lines, including Dandenong, Upper Ferntree Gully, Lilydale and Darling.
Following electrification the class were put to work as shunting engines, primarily at Flinders St and North Melbourne.
This exhibit is currently undergoing cosmetic restoration.
Constructed by Phoenix Foundry Ballarat, to a design by Kitson and Co of Leeds, in 1889.
The largest and most powerful 0-6-0 steam locomotives in Australia, the class of 32 were used commonly on passenger service around Melbourne before electrification, and on local freight services.
Y108 was the last of the class to be retired in 1963 as North Melbourne yard pilot.
The D3 class were introduced in 1902 as the DD class, and were later reclassed to D1, D2 and D3 as modifications were made.
The class were constructed by a number of manufacturers, including Thompson\’s Foundry Castlemaine, Walker\’s Maryborough (Qld), Baldwin Locomotive Works of Philadelphia, Beyer Peacock, and the Newport Workshops. This was one of the last times the VR used private manufacturers for locomotive construction.
D3 635 is one of very few imported Baldwin Locomotive Works locomotives in Australia, and believed to be one of the only remaining 5\’3\” gauge Baldwin locomotives in the world.
Constructed by David Munro workshops.
Originally identical in appearance to exhibit E236, but was modified by the Victorian Railways to 0-6-2 wheel configuration. ]
E369 ended service as Newport Workshops yard pilot in 1972.
Constructed by Newport Workshops and entered service in August 1913 as A 848.
It was modified with a superheated boiler, smoke deflectors, and renumbered A2 884 in the early 1930s, and retired in 1963.
Of the 125 constructed with outside Stephenson\’s Valve Gear, 884 is the sole survivor. Exhibit A2 995 displays the later more accessible Walscheart\’s Valve Gear.
From their introduction in 1907 to their withdrawal in 1963 the A2 class were a versatile staple of the Victorian Railways, with 185 class members running everything from The Overland to Serviceton, the Spirit of Progress, and goods trains across the state. By the late 1950s the class were progressively removed from service with the introduction of the B and R classes.
A total of 53 K class were constructed in batches between 1922-1923, and 1940-1946 at the Newport Workshops.
K165 entered service in May 1941, and was withdrawn in 1968.
These were versatile and popular locomotives that could be seen running branchline services across the state, and no less than 21 of the class have survived into preservation, with a number of those still operational on tourist and heritage railways.
The last class of steam locomotive ordered by the Victorian Railways, constructed by Vulcan Foundry, Newton-Le-Willows. They were constructed between 1953 and 1954, by which point the B class diesels had also been delivered and were proving their worth. As a result the J class only had 16 years of service before the last was withdrawn from shunting at Bendigo in 1972.
These were basically an updated K class, designed with more accessible motion gear, and the capability for gauge conversion.
J559 was the last steam locomotive ever delivered to the Victorian Railways.
Constructed at Newport Workshops in May 1916 and retired in 1963.
A2 995 displays the Walscheart\’s valve gear fitted to the last 60 members of the class. Exhibit A2 884 shows the earlier Stephenson\’s Valve Gear fitted to the other 125 class members.
This locomotive was converted from coal to oil burning in 1946.
A2 995 has the distinction of running the last broad-gauge Spirit of Progress on April 16 1962. Following this date the service moved to the newly commissioned standard guage and was hauled by an S or B class diesel locomotive.
From their introduction in 1907 to their withdrawal in 1963 the A2 class were a versatile staple of the Victorian Railways, with 185 class members running everything from The Overland to Serviceton, the Spirit of Progress, and goods trains across the state. By the late 1950s the class were progressively removed from service with the introduction of the B and R classes.
Constructed by Beyer Peacock of England in 1911, to the DD design of the Victorian Railways. It is similar to exhibit D3635, but with a smaller boiler.
D2604 was sold to Australian Paper Manufacturers in 1956, and was used as a shunter at the Morwell paper mill until the early 1960s.
APM converted it to oil firing, using a tender from a D3 locomotive tender on an underframe from a withdrawn A2 locomotive tender.