SteamFest

SteamFest is the Society's major event. It is held in conjunction with the the following groups, clubs and indiviuals:

Tractor Pulling and Vintage Tractor Association of Tasmania

Howe Family collection of steam engines and equipment

Kentish Lions Club

North West Branche of the Historical Machinery Club

Mr Terry Dooley, Mr Greg Bedfood, Mr David Toyne, Mr David Von Stieglitz, Mr Bernard Boone

Spreyton Scouts

Photograph by Bruce Hutchison

 

This event is a must for those who enjoy taking a trip back into the days of our grandparents with working displays and exhibits from yesteryear presented at Steamfest.

In addition to the two foot gauge steam train rides running through the site, Steamfest will feature steam traction engines and steam road rollers and many displays of a heritage nature. A tractor pulling competition will also be held on the site featuring old, new and modified tractors.

Numerous craft and food stalls will be amongst the old time general store, displays of vintage tractors, historical petrol and diesel engines, antique kerosene lamps, antique sewing machines, a working quarry and horse drawn coaches and wagons, vintage cars and shingle splitting demonstrations.

The entire family will enjoy the live band and the grand parade of all mobile machinery held each afternoon.

STEAMFEST exhibits will include( subject to availability)

A ride on the Redwater Creek Railway over their 1km track from the original Sheffield Railway Station.

Tractor and Four Wheel Drive pulling contests for the three days where tractors and Four Wheel Drives pull a sled along a dirt track. The sled progressively moves a tank filled with water from wheels at the rear onto the sled thereby progressively loading the vehicle.

Archery

Shirl Brown - Country and Rock Music singing and playing keyboards each day.

Military vehicle display

Spinners and Weavers

Shingle Splitting

Timber Models

A heritage lamp and sewing machine display

Remote control car racing demonstrations

Live reptile show

Pony rides and sheep shearing

Craft and food stalls.

Steam displays with traction engines and steam rollers.

Novelty events like the tug of war with a traction engine or steam roller

Exotic chook display, face painting and jumping castles for the children

Spreyton Scouts will construct and operate a hurdy-gurdy ride for the younger generation.

A country kitchen/shop set up just the way they were at the turn of the century

A working model quarry

Vintage cars, engines, and bikes

 

Engine line up at SteamFest 2007

DAILY ADMISSION PRICES are expected to be:- Adults & children over 16 years of age $10.00 Children $4.00 Children under 5 years of age Free Family - 2 adults & 2 children $20.00 Aged and invalid pensioners $5.00

OPENING HOURS ARE:- Saturday and Sunday 10am to 4.00pm Monday 10am to 3.00pm

The attractions, setting and displays for SteamFest will take you back in time to days past when life was simple and work was plentiful. SteamFest is all about living history and creating its own history. People can, once again, catch a steam train out of the original Sheffield railway station and experience the machinery and skills once employed by their forefathers. This event can only be brought to you with the assistance of some very generous sponsors.

This list is a list of regular sponsors:-

Gold Sponsors - over $5,000 " Spirt FM for terrific coverage of the events " Treloar Transport are transporting much of the steam equipment to the event

Silver Sponsors - over $2,000 " Kentish Council " Think Small Printing/Kentish Chronicle " Southern Cross TV

Bronze Sponsors - over $500 CSE Tasmania Civil Structural & Enviromental Engineers, Greenmoin Garden Service, Richmond Conceptse Print

Steam Level Sponsors Australian Paper

The original Sheffield Railway Station is one of the features of the Redwater Creek Railway. The building was the Sheffield station on the Railton - Roland Branch Line from 1914 to 1957 when the line closed due to increasing competition from road transport. The station has been relocated from the original station yard which was about 200m from its existing location. Its restoration and relocation has been made possible by the Kentish Council, Mersey Skill Training, our members and the generosity of many local businesses.

Caretakers Cottage

This is now one part of a house, that was donanted by the Denny family from Nook, this house was originally built by a canadian by the name of William Morgan who came to australia to teach local loggers the art of falling trees using shoes.

If you would like to read more about the history of the Roland Branch Line, the second addition, a book commissioned by the Redwater Creek Steam and Heritage Society and written by local historian Mr Len Fisher & Ms Barbara Wells is available on site. It makes very interesting reading.

SteamFest

Tractor Pulling

Come and see which tractor/four wheel drive is the strongest. This contest is organised by the Tasmanian Tractor Pulling & Vintage Tractor Association. It consists of tractors/four wheel drives pulling a specially designed sled over a 100m long course. The sled is designed to progressively load the tractor as it moves along the course. Tractors of all makes and ages will be competing.

If you would like to try out your four wheel drive, please speak to the organisers near the pulling track. A 4WD pulling competition is also part of this event.

You may also see a steam traction engine take on the task and you will be amazed at the power these wonderful old engines have.

Traction Engines, Steam Roller and Portable Steam Engines

Have you ever heard one of these engines coming along the road and wondered what its history is? We are lucky to have the largest displays of steam equipment you will see operating in Tasmania each year.

Displays will include some of the Howe family's collection of steam traction engines, including an Avelling & Porter steam roller, Bernie Boon's Foden traction engine, Dave von Stieglitz and David Toyne's traction engines Terry Dooley's Marshall traction engine & Chris & Vivian Martins Marshall steamroller.

Some of the histories are presented below.

Terry Dooley's Marshall S class 7nhp Piston Valve engine.

Operates on 180 psi. Built 1927 and brought to Tasmania by Hill Brothers at Evandale for agricultural threshing and chaff cutting. It ended up in Scottsdale working in a sawmill from where it was purchased into preservation by Ralph Proctor. Ralph had the engine for 40 years before selling it to Terry. Ralph was one of the founding members of the group who restored the Krauss locomotive. Terry is a long time member of the Don River Railway.

David Toyne's 1913 Marshall single 8hp OK (old kind) traction engine.

Marshalls made S class and Q class (none of these came to Tasmania). The engine weighs 15 tonnes with fuel and water and 13 tonnes without.

This engine was exported to New Zealand where it remained unsold up to 1920 when it was exported to Australia. In 1922 the engine was purchased by Mr William Peterson of Westbury as a threshing engine however it was found to be unsuitable for driving on the bridges of the time due to it exceeding the capacity of many of the local bridges. It sat in Peterson's yard for 4 to 5 years and was then sold to Walters for use in their sawmill at the Sidling on the scottsdale Highway until the 1950's. The engine was preserved in the late 1960's.

This engine is thought to be one of the most original in preservation as it has not been altered since it rolled out of the Marshall factory in 1913.

Public Works Department Fowler built in 1929. The engine had an operating pressure of 200 psi which would be the highest pressure boiler on the site.

This engine was initially purchased by the Victorian Water Board and used for building dams. It was then purchased along with its sister engine by Tasmania's Public Works Department and used for crushing in the North of the State - based in Ulverstone. Its sister engine was based in Perth where it performed similar duties.

Aveling Steam Roller - Betsy built 1927 6hp.

This engine was owned by Eric Howe's father - Ralph. It was used for contract rolling in the north of the state with one of its last jobs being construction of the dual carriageway running from the Don River towards Lillico strait, near Devonport.

Marshall Steam Roller

Chris and Vivian Martin 15 ton Marshall steam roller was built in 1927. Originally owned and operated by Longford Council. 4 Marshall rollers were purchased about the same time by various Tasmanian Councils. They are all in still in Tasmania. This roller was purchased from Renison Bell by Mr Peter Martin circa 1962.

Stationary Engines Will be exhibited by both private collectors and members of the Southern Historical Machinery Club. Stationary engines were used in the early 1900's until electricity became widely available. They were commonly used for sheep shearing, milking machines, saw benches, generators and water pumping.

Threshing

Is the process of removing grain from the straw in all cereal and grass crops including beans and peas. Oats have, at past SteamFests, been threshed using a Marshall threshing 'Drum' built in 1885.

Chaff Cutting

Chaff is cut from oats, hay and lucerne. The chaff consists of all the grain and stalks cut to about 6mm long and packed in chaff bags. It is commonly used for horse and sometimes cow feed.

Hay Pressing

The straw (after removal of the oats in the threshing machine) will be pressed into bales which are tied by hand using wire. The stationary hay presses were superseded by 'mobile' presses which travel around the paddock picking up the hay or straw as they travel. In the past at SteamFest Eric Howe has used his 1910 Ann-Arbour, stationary hay press previously owned by Mr. Sam Cope - of Ulverstone.

 

 

Photograph by Bruce Hutchison