Road trippin' to Patche

For the past fortnight  Brisbane-based mural artist Fintan Magee has been painting a giant mural on the walls of the Patchewollock silo. Nick Hulland farmer of Patche is the subject of the social-realist styled Fintan Magee.

Fintan in action, Photo: Wimmera Mail Times

 The mural depicts a tree dying and new growth to represent the bush life cycle. Fintan said the silos project was about making art more accessible; "bringing art out of the galleries and making it part of people's everyday lives".

Nick, whose grandfather settled in the Patche district under the post-World War I Soldier Settlement Scheme, said that if the Patchewollock mural "promotes our little town in any way, that's good".

And already the mural is attracting inter-state visitors to the town (after they work out where it is actually situated), many more people are planning a 'road trip' to see this and the Brim silo.

The proposal for the next silo art piece is for Adnate to work on the surface of the Sheep Hills silos in November.

The big palette

Compliments to the Yarriambiack Shire who are chasing dollars for 'the world's biggest art gallery'.

On the back of the phenomenal success of the Brim Silo Art project  (see the previous 'High art' post) the Shire is proposing a 'Silo Art Trail' - a 200km trail of landscape size silo art from Rupanyup in the south to Patchewollock in the north.

Sheep Hills silos (which would have looked the part in 'The dressmaker' film)

Yarriambiack Mayor Cr Ray Kingston wants to commission renowned artists to paint giant murals on silos along the length of the municipality at Rup, Sheep Hills, Rosebery, Lascelles and Patche.

Guido, Adnate & Rone 'Wall to Wall' in Benalla

Discussions are taking place with the local communities, Graincorp, Juddy Roller (who helped bring Guido Van Helten to Brim), and government. They are targeting high profile street artists for the project, so it would be great to see, say an Adnate piece decorating a silo wall.

Silos at Rosebery, across the road from the Desert Gallery & Cafe

WDA's new director Ralph Kenyon said that the project would tie the long narrow municipality together (Yarriambiack is over 7,000 square kms, but over 160kms long and under 70kms at its widest).

Lascelles provides a variety of canvases

 As Dean Lawson stated it is a master stroke for increasing growth & development via tourism in Yarriambiack, as visitors will want to tick off each location as they bag each 'peak', in the biggest regional art project in Australia's history.

Adnate in the Geelong B Power Station

Would have liked to have seen the Nullan silos get a guernsey, they have a wonderful symmetry as they rise from the plain, particularly good at dawn.

Nullan siding silos, near Minyip

 

Railways - Patchewollock line

A Patche bound steam train at Warrack (from "C.R.S.V.")

The Patchewollock line branched from Murtoa, efforts to extend the line were due in a large part to the lobbying of pastoralist Edward H. Lascelles. He started construction of the private line, but it was completed by Victorian Railways. The line was changed from broad to standard gauge at the same time as the main line to South Australia. The line beyond Hopetoun was closed in December 1986 and the tracks removed.

Coromby's weighbridge scales still in situ

Coromby Grain has always been an important component of the Patche line, in fact all the rail-lines in the Wimmera. Though Coromby's silos are now disused, evidence of that grain cartage still remains, including its weighbridge manufactured by Hawke & Co of Kapunda in South Australia (Henry Binney Hawke established the H.B. Hawke iron foundry and engineering works in 1857, and created the first hydraulic car hoist, the broadcast seed sowing machine and the weighbridge. The company closed in 1983).

Minyip station and sheds (from "C.R.S.V.")

The first train steamed into Minyip in January 1886, but the station was not officially opened until May with a daily passenger service. Stock yards were erected in 1887, the goods platform extended in 1888, and a weighbridge and Diary Produce shed added in 1889. The tender for construction of the station building was let in 1890.When built in 1939, the silos were largest capacity in Victoria. A steel annex bin and oat shed were erected in the 1950s, and a 250,000 bushel bulkhead in 1969. In 1976 a road bus replaced the passenger rail-motor and by the mid 1980s the stock yards and goods shed were demolished. The classic boarded-up station and platform still remains.

The Minyip station building

Nullan

The symmetry of the Nullan silos

Originally known as Tarkedia, the name was changed to Sheep Hills in 1886, when the railway arrived and a township grew up around the station. The station was a brick building with a cool storage chamber.

The Sheep Hills siding with the main line on the right

The now abandoned Warracknabeal building

Warracknabeal the line from Murtoa reached Warracknabeal in May 1886. Now the disused red brick station building and passenger platform remain. The extension of the line northwards was orginally known as the Warracknabeal-Lake Corrong Railway Line.

Warracknabeal Station (from "C.R.S.V.")

Warrackside is still a major grain siding, a kilometer north of the Warracknabeal station, part of the facilities are a large silo and an old distillery grain storage. Below the Warrackside line branches from the main Patche line. Some of the silos are visible along with the large bunker sites in blue tarps.

Batchica Siding work to extend the line beyond Warracknabeal began in February 1892, at a time when the Mallee wilderness was being opened up to farming.

Lah A variety of silo styles sit on the plain surrounding Lah.

The line opened to Brim in January 1893 (the township wasn't surveyed until 1890). The station handled grain and stock and had a passenger service, now only the grain traffic remains. The grain shed constructed in 1894 was also used for community functions. The silos were constructed in 1938.

The Goods Shed at Brim

Brim Gangers quarters with an extra 2 room extension, shifted to Wardle's 'Klondyke' farm on the back of Keith Hunter's truck in the early 1970s

Galaquil station was located on the division between the Wimmera and Mallee, and it also served as the town Post Office (the postal boxes are visible below the Galaquil sign in the photo below) until the closure of passenger services in July 1976.

Galaquil in 1971 (from "V.R stations & stopping places")

Beulah The rail line reached Beulah in June 1892, and officially opened in March 1893. A second railway station building erected in 1910 was destroyed by fire in April 1928. A rail motor passenger service from Murtoa commenced in 1926, the last passenger train was in July 1976. The Beulah ticketing office is now used as a club meeting room.

A crowd of passengers await the train on the Beulah platform, 1986 (from "C.R.S.V.")

In contrast - the deserted Beulah station in 2009

Beulah's cement silos were built in 1939, and the 1 million bushel silo complex opened in 1963. Beulah GEB Siding while there is no longer a Beulah passenger service, the grain silos and bunkers are still operational.

Rosebery passenger services stopped in 1961, but the siding & silos remained. The silos are opposite the old church building which is now the Outback Cafe.

Goyura residents petitioned for the line to deviate to the township, and a siding was approved.

Hopetoun the first steam locomotive reached Hopetoun in December 1893, and the Beulah-Hopetoun section was officially opened on April 11 1894. The rail motor passenger services from Murtoa began in 1934 and ceased in July 1976. Hopetoun is again the terminus of the line. The passenger station building has been removed leaving only the silos and goods shed.

Hopetoun's goods shed from the platform mound

Burroin siding closed in 1953.
Dattuck siding closed in 1955. (below) J542 locomotive on the broad plains between Hopetoun and Dattuck with goods for Patchewollock, in December 1966

J542 near Dattuck (from "Patterns of steam")

Today, Yarto has more than the appearance of isolation, at the end of a 'no through road' backing onto the sandhills of the Big Desert and Wyperfeld National Park.

The 200 tonne silo at Yarto

Willa siding closed in 1953, today Willa is surrounded by encroaching mallee, and the faded sign is the only evidence of the 'Willa Railway Station'.

A forlorn looking Patche station

Patchewollock construction of the 27 mile line extension to Patche began in September 1923, and terminated 2 miles short of the town. It was officially opened in May 1925. The galvanised iron goods shed was erected in1928. A weekly goods train service ceased in September 1975. The 1925 weighbridge was computerised in 1985. The line closed in December 1986 and the rails were ripped up, but the small weatherboard station building and goods shed were left. The silos are still in operation.

J542 again, approaching a sand fence shortly after leaving Patchewollock in 1967 (from "Patterns of steam")

Further information and photographs at Shane McCarthy's "Patterns of steam" and Neville Gee's "VR stations and stopping places" and John Sargent's "Country railway stations Victoria" series