Junee and Coolamon

Today is many a boy or man’s perfect excursion, Junee Railway museum. Hope you’re excited.

Junee was a railway town where steam trains were sent for maintenance. It soon became obvious that a round house was needed to more efficiently accommodate the trains and work required. This started in 1946 and was completed in 1947. Workers during this time lived in tents with their families.

Conditions would have been difficult in summer and winter but you could use the railway facilities and have hot showers. Junee itself became a hub and the railway station had accommodation and a restaurant.Here is an idea of the accommodation costs and refreshments available.

Look at all the different engines. The steam engine is underneath a chute that would have removed the steam rather than filling the shed. The round house could hold 42 engines at any one time, Half of it is still being used for engine maintenance while the rest is the static display. I liked the mail van.

When I was young it would drop off the mail to a hook opposite my grandmother’s general store and post office at Tharbogan. Once my grandmother arranged for a banana to be included so I could see what it was like. Unfortunately it was summer….. black and mushy not quite like the book described.
If you are a train enthusiast, you would enjoy all the different memorabilia. Me I like finding all the different quirky figures and events on the model railway display. How did you go?

Coolamon is a thirty minute drive from Junee. According to the locals ,it is a thriving town with all the needed facilities for each age group. It certainly has kept its country town feeling with its historical buildings and wide streets, people seem to be interested in keeping its history alive in different museums.

There is  a fire museum and one showing the country coop where you can buy everything you need……farm equipment, supplies, a new outfit or perhaps shoes…it’s all there in one place.           

After a huge lunch at the Coolamon Cheese and a stroll around the town, it’s back on the train.A nap needed before dinner?  See you tomorrow.