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Scenic World Steam ClockPrint Page
The steam clock commemorates the the coal miners and their pit ponies who mined coal in the Megalong Valley from 1883 to 1895.
It’s an unusual event where the audience sings Waltzing Matilda, but that’s the tune the clock plays so that was the theme of the singalong at Scenic World last Friday. The occasion was the unveiling of Australia’s only steam-driven clock.
The design is based on the original railway built to haul coal up from the rainforest floor to the clifftop at the Katoomba site. Twelve brass whistles on the top play sections of Waltzing Matilda on the quarter-hour and the whole shebang on the hour. Mr Hammon, who has 47 clocks in his personal collection, said he was inspired after seeing a steam-powered clock in the historic Gastown precinct of Vancouver some years ago. “We already had steam at Scenic World for our natural gas-fired boilers [and] that will now supply the clock with the required steam for operation.”
Mr Saunders, of Landmark Clocks International, said it was the seventh steam clock he had built and it took him almost five years. “It was one of my most challenging jobs but I loved it. I trust this clock will stand the test of time,” he said. The steam clock is in a new public observation area opposite the attraction’s entry.
Blue Mountains Gazette, 2 April 2014.
Location
Address: | Cliff Drive, Scenic World, Katoomba, 2780 |
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State: | NSW |
Area: | AUS |
GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -33.728661 Long: 150.300951 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
Monument Type: | Clock |
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Monument Theme: | Technology |
Sub-Theme: | Industry |
Actual Event Start Date: | |
Approx. Event Start Date: | 1883 |
Actual Event End Date: | |
Approx. Event End Date: | 1895 |
Designer: | Phillip Hammon |
Artist: | John Cervenka |
Monument Manufacturer: | Raymond Saunders (Canada - clock) |
Dedication
Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Friday 28th March, 2014 |
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Plaque :
Steam Engine - A kit from Stuart Turner Models built by John Clarke of Lynx Model Works Ltd. Alford, Lincolnshire UK.
Clock - Ray Saunders of Timeworks, Vancouver, Canada to Phillip Hammon`s design
Figures of the miners and the pit pony - local artist John Cervenka.
Declaration
This clock is dedicated to the coal miners and their pit ponies, without whom, the Scenic Railway would not exist today.