Tjoo Tjoo: New life for antique locomotive
His depot days are over; its time for a makeover.
Transnet Foundation, a specialised unit within Transnet and mandated to preserve Transnet’s railway history, recently relocated a vintage steam locomotive from Krugersdorp to the Transnet Transport Museum in George.
This museum is the largest transport museum of its kind in South Africa under the curatorship of Transnet and houses a variety of steam locomotives, railway passenger coaches and other rail-related items, poetry, photographs, a model-train room, a harbour exhibition, model passenger planes, and display of crockery and cutlery used by the South African Railways and Harbours (SAR&H).
The Class A no 103 locomotive was kept at a Krugersdorp depot for a number of years before Kobus Volschenk of the Transnet Heritage Operation picked up on it and decided to add it to the museum’s collection.
According to Volschenk the locomotive is the oldest class A locomotive and is 125 years old. What may well have been the first locomotive of the 4-8-2 wheel arrangement in the world, the ‘Mountain type’ was introduced by the Natal Government Railways. One hundred of these tank locomotives were built by DUBS & Co between 1888 and 1889 for use on the heavily graded sections of the Natal Railway.
It most likely would have been an A class locomotive that took Gandhi on his journey to Pietermaritzburg – widely considered to have started his path of passive resistance after he was removed from a first-class compartment.
The Class A locomotives were used to haul armoured trains during the Anglo-Boer War. Both locomotives will be restored and form part of the already extensive display of various classes of steam locomotives at the Transnet Museum.
The years clearly show on the hardworking locomotive, but Volschenk assures that it will be restored to his former glory and will be but on display at the museum soon.
