Goulburn Historic Waterworks is recognized as an Historic Engineering site. This plaque on a large rock outside the entrance is the official marker. The site is listed on the State Heritage Register and that of the National Trust, so this great example of Victorian engineering is well protected. The boilers were the ones that supplied steam to the Appleby engine. They were operated in rotation, one fired up and the other being cleaned. The one in use would be operating 24/7. The engine in the bottom photos is the oldest of just three of its type left in the world. It is a Hick and Hargreaves Horizontal Engine and uses a rare type of valve gear. It was used in a gold mine at Araluen between1867 and 1896, then in a tannery at Botany until the early 1960s, finally being restored at the Waterworks in the 1970s. As you can see, this small bear was allowed to check the valves on the piston housing; not many visitors can do that.
# posted by Bart Bear @ 3:36 pm
