Mary Ann plate reunion

JAY FIELDING

A PIECE of Maryborough’s past has been linked with its present.

The nameplate of the Mary Ann, the first locomotive built in Queensland, has been mounted on the train’s modern-day replica.

It is the only known surviving part of the original Mary Ann, which was built in 1873 by John Walker and Co and destroyed in a fire 20 years later.

The train, which featured an unusual vertical boiler, hauled timber at Cooloola to supply the Dundathu sawmill owned by William Sim and William Pettigrew.

Both men had daughters named Mary Ann.

The nameplate now adorns the rear of the replica Mary Ann so it can be seen in all its glory by passengers who enjoy a ride on Thursdays and the last Sunday of the month as it shuttles between Queens Park and the Mary River Parklands.

It was unveiled at a ceremony on March 28.

In attendance were James Sim and Barry Sim, William Sim’s great-grandson and great-great-grandson, and David Pettigrew, William Pettigrew’s great-great-grandson.

Also in attendance was Maryborough woman Marilyn Jenson, whose brother Merv Volkers donated the nameplate to the Maryborough City Whistle Stop just before Christmas.

The nameplate had been in the collection of rail memorabilia owned by Mr Volkers, a rail enthusiast from Ipswich.

Whistle Stop president Warren McPherson said investigations had since proved the nameplate was the original.

“One-hundred-and-fortyeight years ago, through the foresight of the Sim and Pettigrew families who are represented here today, began the rail construction industry here in Maryborough, with a little locomotive, built for the unglamourous job of transporting timber through the bush for shipment to the mill,” Mr McPherson said.

“In her short life, she managed to revolutionise the shipment of heavy materials, in difficult situations.”

The effort to build the replica Mary Ann in the 1990s was led by Maryborough engineer Peter Olds, who also attended the ceremony.