Queensland Museum Rail Workshops

Queensland Museum Rail Workshops Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Queensland Museum Rail Workshops, History Museum, North Street, Ipswich.
(1458)

Queensland Museum Rail Workshops will take you on an eye-opening journey through the state's history as seen from the birthplace of rail in Queensland, the heritage-listed Ipswich Railway Workshops. Queensland Museum Rail Workshops administers this page as a forum to exchange stories, information, ideas and images that enhance the richness and variety of the collections and research outcomes of th

e Museum. Comments and other content posted by you on this page may be removed and the user banned by the administrator if it:

• impersonates any other person or falsely claim to represent any other person, whether living or dead, real or fictitious
• is abusive, harassing, threatening or violates the legal rights of others
• is misleading, deceptive, false, defamatory or libellous
• is a statement that may interfere with or prejudice the course of or otherwise deals with civil or criminal proceedings that are presently before any court, tribunal, commission or similar body or any investigation by the police, Crime and Misconduct Commission or other agency
• seeks to raise personal matters which have been dealt with or concluded judicially
• uses insulting, threatening or provocative language or language that is hateful towards a certain group of people
• incites hatred on the basis of race, religion, gender, nationality or sexuality or other personal characteristic
• includes indecent, obscene, pornographic or otherwise inappropriate language, information or other content
• infringes the intellectual property rights of others or discloses their confidential information
• contains any commercial advertising material
• is not relevant to the themes currently being discussed and sought to be addressed in connection with the Queensland Museum Network
• invades the personal privacy of any other person or groups without their consent
• is attempting to re-sell tickets to museum events

Users found to be repeatedly engaging in the above activities will be banned from this page.

This view of the Maryborough loco sheds in 1968 represents the end of an era. Steam locomotives operated across the Mary...
03/06/2026

This view of the Maryborough loco sheds in 1968 represents the end of an era.

Steam locomotives operated across the Maryborough region from the 1880s, following the discovery of gold at Gympie. Extensive rail maintenance facilities were established, and many locomotives were also manufactured in Maryborough.

The 1960s saw increased use of diesel locomotives and the end of the steam era for QR services, but there were still 48 locomotives operating from Maryborough in 1965, including these two PB15 locos, numbers 561 and 531.

📷 Photographer Brian Martin, Queensland Museum Collection

Happy first day of winter ❄️ You know what that means... it's officially soup season! This Refreshment Room sign comes f...
31/05/2026

Happy first day of winter ❄️ You know what that means... it's officially soup season!

This Refreshment Room sign comes from the Toowoomba Railway Station, whose refreshment rooms operated from 1887 to 1971.

Before onboard catering was common, passengers relied on station refreshment rooms for a hot meal during short stops to service locomotives or load freight. Travellers would hop off the train, grab something warm to eat, then hurry back aboard before the whistle blew.

Queensland once had an impressive network of railway refreshment rooms, from Toowoomba to Roma Street, Townsville, Rockhampton and Mackay. At their peak in the late 1930s, nearly 100 refreshment rooms were operating across the state, serving up hearty meals to generations of travellers.

Long before kick-off tonight, Queensland and New South Wales were battling it out at Wallangarra StationAt the historic ...
27/05/2026

Long before kick-off tonight, Queensland and New South Wales were battling it out at Wallangarra Station

At the historic border station, even the railway architecture showed state pride. Depending on where you arrived from, you’d step out under a stylish Queensland veranda or a New South Wales awning.

📸 Wallangarra Station and Yard, 1986. Queensland side (left) is narrow gauge, NSW side (right) is standard gauge. Queensland Museum / Queensland Rail collection.

Three diesel locomotives, led by 1300 Class No.1302, haul a load of coal from the Dawson mines in 1970. The Dawson Compl...
27/05/2026

Three diesel locomotives, led by 1300 Class No.1302, haul a load of coal from the Dawson mines in 1970.

The Dawson Complex is a mine operating near Moura, Gangulu Country, at the southern end of the Bowen Basin in Central Queensland. The Moura Coal Rail System connects the Dawson mines to export terminals at the Port of Gladstone.

📷 Queensland Museum/Queensland Rail Collection

A Queensland Rail workshops facility was established at Banyo in the 1950s. The Banyo Workshops became a crucial part of...
20/05/2026

A Queensland Rail workshops facility was established at Banyo in the 1950s.

The Banyo Workshops became a crucial part of improving track maintenance capacity with the inclusion of a flash butt rail welding shop, pictured here in operation in 1970.

📷 Queensland Museum/Queensland Rail Collection

Australian Fashion Week kicking off in Sydney this week has us thinking about these concept drawings for the Great South...
13/05/2026

Australian Fashion Week kicking off in Sydney this week has us thinking about these concept drawings for the Great South Pacific Express (GSPE) uniforms. Serving carriage couture and railway realness 🤌

The GSPE aimed to rival the world’s most famous luxury trains, so naturally it needed uniforms worthy of the journey - custom-made and Australian designed of course!

The GSPE was Queensland Rail’s ambitious luxury train, built in Townsville and launched in 1999 to rival iconic services like the Orient‑Express.

The project provided vital work for the Townsville Railway Workshop, resulting in 21 custom‑built carriages designed for high‑end east coast journeys between Cairns, Brisbane and Sydney.

Although tickets cost thousands of dollars, the service only operated until 2003, making the GSPE a short‑lived but striking chapter in Australia’s rail history.

Calling all teachers and home educators! Don't miss this FREE event for students of all ages, held in our outdoor spaces...
12/05/2026

Calling all teachers and home educators! Don't miss this FREE event for students of all ages, held in our outdoor spaces for one day only on Wednesday 22 July.

Designed to be highly interactive and self-guided, students can engage with STEM experts and learn firsthand about their fascinating research and careers.

North Queensland has long used a network of 2-foot (610 mm) gauge tramlines to transport sugar cane and products between...
12/05/2026

North Queensland has long used a network of 2-foot (610 mm) gauge tramlines to transport sugar cane and products between plantations and farms, processing mills and shipping ports.

This photo shows a rebuilt DH class locomotive loading sugar at Plane Creek Mill, near Sarina, Yuwibara Country, during the 1970s. Today, Plane Creek Mill is owned by Wilmar Sugar Australia, and the network of over 1600kms of rail carries around 15 million tonnes of cane every crushing season.

📷 Queensland Museum/Queensland Rail Collection

Promoting Queensland tourism and travel services was the responsibility of The Queensland Government Intelligence and To...
04/05/2026

Promoting Queensland tourism and travel services was the responsibility of The Queensland Government Intelligence and Tourist Bureau from 1907 to 1979. The Bureau was transferred into the Railway Department in 1929, and its focus became promotion of the ‘Sunshine Route’ service from Brisbane to Cairns, highlighting the Great Barrier Reef.

This 1970s Bureau display shows coloured corals and promotional posters. During the 1970s tourism to the Great Barrier Reef increased along with environmental awareness, leading to the 1975 Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Act which provided formal management and protection.

📷 Queensland Museum/Queensland Rail Collection

02/05/2026

Just a glimpse of the incredible aerobatic performance put on by Matt Hall Racing’s Flight Lieutenant Kris Sieczkowski.
Last chance to get along to Fully Charged today, open until 4pm. Tickets at the gate!

Address

North Street
Ipswich, QLD
4305

Telephone

+61734325100

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Queensland Museum Rail Workshops posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category