Object No.
B2237Object Statement
Railway carriage, first class, originally third class carriage 16N, later workmans van W363, timber / iron, made by Joseph Wright & Sons of Saltley, Birmingham, England, 1856, used on second railway in New South Wales, the Great Northern Railway between Newcastle and East Maitland, in 1857, rebuilt as a first class carriage by apprentices at Apprentice Training College, Public Transport Commission of NSW, Chullora, New South Wales, 1972-1973Physical Description
This first class carriage was originally built as a third class carriage and was converted into a second class carriage and later into a workman's van. The carriage was rebuilt from the workman's van into the "saloon" configuration of a first class, four-wheel, four-door, 18 window passenger rail vehicle with a seating capacity of 22. It comprises a timber body rebuilt in silver ash, timber roof and underframe with iron wheels, springs and couplings. The frame and wheels are black, the body is varnished timber and the roof is white. Each of the six doors (three on each side) is fitted with brass door handles and grab handles and features the words "First Class" in gold and black block lettering. The number 8 is finished in gold on the side panels closest to the front and rear of the carriage, and the monogram "GSWR", standing for Great Southern and Western Railway, is featured in two places on each side of the carriage. (There is no historical significance to this number, which was chosen at random.) Side chains are not fitted (missing) and the couplings are wrongly welded up. The carriage has no brakes, and footboards run the length of each side. Although the body has been rebuilt, the frame is an original Wright-built frame of 1856, distinguished by the inverted "V" shaped bracket bolted to its side.
The carriage interior does not depict a standard first class carriage of 1855, which comprised three cross compartments, each seating four passengers per side facing each other, with a capacity of 24. Instead the interior has been set out more like a saloon car, with perimeter seating in a large central compartment plus small end compartments, each with one seat. The saloon design featured in the modified Wright-built coupe first class carriage and Picnic Saloon carriages converted in New South Wales in the mid and late 1860s.
The interior features dark green vinyl deep-button upholstery on long perimeter bench seats, plus carpet and wallpaper. A shade or double roof is featured to help keep the carriage cool.