Re: Zig Zag history

[Dennis Rittson <drittson@cia.com.au>]

Chris wrote:
> 
> I have often wondered why the Zig Zag railway was relaid in narrow gauge and
> uses mainly QR rolling stock.
> The story I heard was that in the early 1970's the NSW railways had refused
> to sell them steam locos and because of this they had to buy interstate.
> I don't think this could be true as other groups (Dorrigo, LVR and ARHS-Act
> div) had little trouble making purchases, and the NSW railways scrapped many
> working steam locos in the mid 1970's (well after the ZZR's first QR
> purchase in 1971).
> Or maybe there is another reason?


This legend is essentially true. The problem was that the Zig Zag was
the first group in that 1970's batch of Museums, fledgling and
otherwise, to try to buy steam locos of the NSWR, and like all those who
had tried over the many years before, it was knocked back. So it went
and got its locos from Qld and SA.

At just about the time that these locos started to arrive at Bottom
Points, that long-standing policy was overturned by the new Chief
Commissioner, a certain Mr. Shirley, who gained a certain infamy by
stopping the major overhaul of 3813, thus dooming it to a subsequent
life as a spare parts collection. He was so adamant about getting rid of
steam traction from the NSW rails that it seemed that he didn't cared
how it was disposed of, as long as it just went away.

Shirley overturned that policy just about the time that Dorrigo, LVR and
ARHS-Act started looking for locos and the rest is history. 

It was just a question of timing.


-- 
Cheers,

Dennis





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