| 1929 Charters Towers |
| About this Railway Ambulance |
| Basic data |
| Name | 1929 Charters Towers | Power | initally JAP then Harley Davidson |
| 2-2wPMR | |
||
| Gauge | 3ft 6in | |
|
| Builder | D Webb | |
|
| Year | 1929 | # in Class | 1 off |
| * car orignally built as open, in later years enclosed. Not to be confused as 2 different RA's even thought it changed QATB bases. |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| In service |
| Above photo thought to be taken outside Charters Towers QATB centre |
 |
| Image above and image below are the same car, years apart. |
 |
| Above - Pentland Rail Ambulance Car, Bob Groth (Mrs A Bahr) |
 |
| Above - Cutting from Newspaper, courtesy of J.W. Knowles. |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
| About this Railway Ambulance by J.W. Knowles 1990 |
| By 1929, the QATB at Charters Towers had a four wheeled rail motor, built locally by D. Webb, for operation to Pentland to teh west, and Ravenswood to the south-east (The Ravenswood branch closed that year). The stretcher occupied one side, the driver sat in the centre at the front, and to his right was the engine, taken from a motor cycle, originally a JAP, later a 2.5hp Harley Davidson. Drive was by chain. |
| Behind the engine were two seats in line. The wooden frame was 10 feet (3m) lone and there were four handles at each end, so that four men could lift the vehicle from the line. |
| There were wooden brake blocks, and splashers about the trolley type wheels. There was a glass windscreen in front while the canvas roof was similar to that fitted to some cars. |
| There were roll down canvas blinds for the sides and the front beneath the windscreen. In front were two large acetylene headlamps, and there was a tail light. |
| In 1945, the operating base of the car was moved to Pentland, where it was given considerable use taking patients to Charters Towers, driven by, or under the supervision of the Station Master there. As roads were improved, it was given to the local Hack Club in 1963, which sold it to the QATB in Hughenden. By then it had been fitted with more permanent sides and front, a single front electric headlight. |
| It was never used at Hughenden, and has since been broken up. |
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| About the location(s) |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| About the railway line (extracts used from Triumph of Narrow Gauge, J Kerr) |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| About the people helped |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| More info from JWK Database. |