Johnston's Sawmill Steam Plant facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Johnston's Sawmill Steam Plant
Johnston's Sawmill Steam Plant, 2009
Location	corner of Santowski Crescent and the Peninsular Development Road, Mount Molloy, Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia
Design period	1919 - 1930s (interwar period)
Built	1914-1954
Queensland Heritage Register
Official name: JM Johnston's Sawmill (former) Steam Plant
Type	state heritage (built)
Designated	15 July 2011
Reference no.	602776
Significant period	1914-1963
Significant components	boiler room/boiler house, machinery/plant/equipment - forestry/timber industry
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The Johnston's Sawmill Steam Plant is an old sawmill site in Mount Molloy, Queensland, Australia. It's a special place because it shows how important the timber industry was in the past. This site has old steam-powered machines that helped cut wood. It was built between 1914 and 1954. Today, it's protected as a heritage site, added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 2011.

A Look Back at Mount Molloy's History

The Johnston's Sawmill Steam Plant includes a brick boiler, a chimney base, a steam engine, and a steam winch. These parts are located in Mount Molloy, where Santowski Crescent meets the Peninsular Developmental Road. A smaller sawmill was here around 1908. Then, JM Johnston's bigger sawmill operated from 1914 to 1963.

Mount Molloy was first called "Smelter Town." It grew because of a copper mine and a smelter built nearby. Copper was found in 1885. The mine was later bought by a company in 1898.

To avoid moving copper ore by road, a smelter was built in Mount Molloy in 1904. A small sawmill also started in 1905. It made timber for mine supports and buildings. A small railway track was built to connect the mine and the smelter.

In 1907, a private railway was built to connect Mount Molloy to Biboohra. This made it easier to transport goods. However, copper prices dropped, and the mining company faced money problems. The smelter closed in 1908.

The Rise of the Timber Industry

Even though mining stopped, timber became a new way for Mount Molloy to make money. Sawmills in the Cairns area grew a lot over time. Before this, much of the timber for North Queensland came from the south. By the late 1800s, more sawmills were opening in the Cairns district.

The first steam-powered sawmill in Queensland opened in Brisbane in 1853. Many sawmills used steam engines before World War II. These engines needed a lot of water for their boilers. A large spinning wheel, called a flywheel, helped the saws cut wood smoothly. Power went from the engine to the saws using belts and pulleys. When a sawmill closed, its machines were often moved and used somewhere else. This is why not many old sawmill parts are left today.

The railway helped the timber industry grow. Logs could be moved easily to sawmills along the railway lines. Sawmills were first built near rivers, but railways made it possible to build them closer to the forests.

The railway reaching Mareeba in 1893 and Atherton in 1903 helped transport timber to the coast. Over the next 20 years, the Cairns region became a major sawmilling area. Important timber companies included Cairns Timber Limited and JM Johnston.

After logging, land was often cleared for farming. This helped new towns grow. In Mount Molloy, dairy farming helped the town survive after the copper mine closed.

Johnston's Sawmill Begins

In 1907, the Mount Molloy company started looking into timber. They got permission to cut a lot of timber from Crown land. One rule was that all timber had to be sawn in Queensland. This meant they couldn't just export logs.

Even though the smelters closed in 1908, the timber business helped the company keep going. They used teams of bullocks, horses, and even a traction engine to move timber. They cut different types of wood like hickory and kauri pine.

A small sawmill near the smelter was used for local orders. A special mill for making railway sleepers was also set up near the main railway line. This sleeper mill was likely where Johnston later built his sawmill.

In 1909, the company also got a sawmill in Mareeba. Most of its logs came from Mount Molloy.

The Mount Molloy company eventually went out of business in 1913. However, the government bought the railway line in 1917. This helped the area continue to develop.

John Michael Johnston, who was born in Iceland in 1884, had worked in sawmills around the world. He bought the Mount Molloy sawmills in 1914. He planned to start operations soon. Johnston's sawmill became very important for jobs in Mount Molloy.

How the Steam Plant Worked

The boiler and steam engine at Johnston's sawmill were likely put in between 1914 and 1938. Old photos show the Marshall steam engine and boiler under separate sheds. The Walkers steam winch was used with a crane to move logs. The brick chimney base was shorter back then.

The Marshall steam engine was the main power source for the saws. It used a large belt from its flywheel to power the machines. The Stirling boiler made the steam for this engine and others. Water-tube boilers like the Stirling boiler were popular in the early 1900s. They were safer for larger operations.

The Mount Molloy boiler is a "W" type. It has three steam drums at the top and two water drums at the bottom, connected by tubes. An extra steam drum on top helped make sure there was enough steam for the engine when cutting logs. The boiler is about 2.7 meters wide, 6.3 meters long, and 5.8 meters tall.

Growth and Challenges

By 1916, Johnston's new sawmill was sending sawn timber by railway. In 1917, it was called the "mainstay" for jobs in Mount Molloy. However, logs couldn't be moved in the wet season. A railway extension to the north was needed to keep the mill working all year.

In 1920, the government started extending the railway north. This helped with timber cutting and new settlements. A new railway station was built in Mount Molloy. The old line was used as a special track for Johnston's sawmill. The railway reached Rumula in 1926.

By 1930, Johnston's sawmill ran all year. It was almost the only supplier of butter boxes and fruit cases in North Queensland. Johnston added to the Mount Molloy sawmill until about 1926. He then moved to Stratford, where he had built another sawmill. The number of workers at the Mount Molloy sawmill dropped from 100 to 60.

In 1930, one of the sawmill's timber trucks was damaged by explosives. In 1932, a fire damaged the repair workshop at the mill. Later that year, a new company, Molloy Sawmills Pty Limited, was formed. Johnston still owned the mill, but key employees were given a share in the business.

Another fire destroyed Johnston's sawmill in 1934. Many machines were lost, but employees saved the boiler and main engines. Johnston had bought new machinery for another sawmill. After the fire, he brought some of it to Mount Molloy. He said the mill was very important for his business, especially for hardwood supplies.

Another fire happened in 1938 in the planing building. Johnston used his Stratford sawmill for planing until the Mount Molloy mill was fixed. JM Johnston passed away in 1943. He was known for building many sawmills across North Queensland.

Bunning Bros bought Johnston's Stratford and Mount Molloy mills later. Rankine Bros bought the Mount Molloy sawmill in the early 1960s. Electricity came to Mount Molloy in 1956. From 1968 to 1986, Rankine Bros ran an electric sawmill near Johnston's old site. In 1988, logging on Crown land stopped due to the Wet Tropics becoming a World Heritage Site.

The last fire destroyed Johnston's sawmill in 1963. This time, it was not rebuilt. The railway to Mount Molloy closed in 1964. Some parts of the steam plant, like the boiler and winch, were still there in 1973. Other buildings and cranes have since been removed.

Even though the sawmill buildings are gone, the steam plant remains. It's a strong reminder of when the timber industry was vital to North Queensland's economy.

What You Can See Today

The remaining steam plant from JM Johnston's sawmill is easy to spot. It's on a raised grassy area at the southern entrance to Mount Molloy.

The Stirling water tube boiler is the biggest part. It's made of brick with metal parts. It's a "W" type boiler with three metal steam drums at the top and two water drums at the bottom, connected by tubes. An extra steam drum is also on top. The name "The Stirling Boiler Co Ltd, Edinburgh & London" is on the metal doors. The furnace doors are at one end, and the brick chimney base is at the other. The main steam pipe is still there. Some plants are growing out of the brickwork.

A metal blowdown tank is connected to the boiler. It's a round tank with a vent pipe. This tank was used to clean out dirt from the boiler using steam pressure.

Near the boiler is a Walkers Ltd steam winch. This winch was used to power a crane that moved logs. It has two cylinders and a single drum.

About 7.6 meters south of the boiler is the Marshall steam engine. It doesn't have a name, but it looks like a Marshall, Sons & Co. engine. This engine is horizontal, meaning its cylinders are sideways. It has two cylinders, a high-pressure and a low-pressure one. The engine sits on a concrete base. Its large flywheel is 3 meters across and 0.5 meters wide.

You can also see some old timber pieces and metal pipes on the site.

Why This Place is Special

The former Johnston's Sawmill Steam Plant was added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 2011. This means it's an important part of Queensland's history.

• It shows how Queensland's history changed.

The steam plant shows how important the timber industry was in North Queensland. Before 1988, when the Wet Tropics became a World Heritage site, timber was a huge business. The spread of railways helped the region become a major sawmilling area. The timber industry was second only to mining in helping North Queensland grow. Johnston's sawmill helped Mount Molloy survive after the copper mining stopped. It operated for many years, from 1914 to 1963. The site also shows how important steam power was for sawmills before electricity was widely available.

• It shows rare things about Queensland's culture.

Steam engines were once common in Queensland sawmills. But now, it's rare to find old steam engines and boilers still in place at sawmill sites. The Stirling water tube boiler, its tank, the Marshall steam engine, and the Walkers steam winch are mostly complete. They still show how these machines worked together in a steam-powered sawmill. Using large Stirling water-tube boilers and big steam engines was also rare in sawmills. Most sawmills used smaller engines. This example might even be one of a kind in Australia.

• It looks really cool!

The remaining parts of the JM Johnston sawmill are easy to see. They are on a raised corner along the main road into Mount Molloy. These old machines are often photographed by tourists. They are a powerful reminder of the past.

• It's linked to an important person.

JM Johnston was a very well-known person in the North Queensland sawmilling industry. His businesses grew a lot in the early 1900s. He built sawmills in many places, including Ravenshoe, Mount Molloy, Stratford, Mareeba, Millaa Millaa, Bloomfield River, and Shipton's Flat.