Bunyip – who built this locomotive?

Meet Bunyip … an 0-4-0WT locomotive that comes with a mystery attached.

We know where it worked … at the Wallaville sugar mill from 31^st August 1896 to somewhere around 1962. Wallaville is a small town, roughly west of Bundaberg in Queensland, that once had its own sugar mill and network of cane lines.

Bunyip was the first locomotive purchased by the mill but there are no records remaining that show where the locomotive came from and there are no records from the usual builders of the time e.g. Krauss, that relate to this locomotive.

The similarities that Bunyip has to other similar locomotives is clear but there are enough differences to make it almost impossible to know who built this loco.

Obviously Bunyip does have some similarities to Krauss locomotives of that era but there are also a number of differences.

To add to the mystery there are no identifying marks or brands anywhere on the locomotive that could help to identify the builder.

So where Bunyip came from is a mystery that may never be solved.

If you want to take a look at Bunyip for yourself then you will find it at the Gin Gin Historical Museum. It is on display in a part of the Museum that is always open to the public.

Bunyip on display at the Gin Gin Historical Museum