Mary Valley Railway Cream Sheds facts for kids

The Mary Valley Railway Cream Sheds are special old buildings found at the railway stations of Kandanga, Amamoor, and Melawondi. These sheds are located along the Mary Valley Branch Railway in the Mary Valley, Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia.

They were designed and built by Queensland Railways. These sheds are important because they show how the dairy industry grew in Queensland. They were added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 14 October 2011, which means they are protected because of their historical value.

The Story of the Cream Sheds

Why the Sheds Were Built

The Mary Valley railway cream sheds at Amamoor, Kandanga, and Melawondi were built between the 1920s and 1940s. They were constructed by Queensland Railways. This happened because the dairy industry was growing fast in the Mary Valley. This area was one of Queensland's most important places for producing dairy products. Trains were the main way to transport milk and cream during this time.

Early Days in the Mary Valley

From the late 1870s, large areas of land in the Upper Mary River Valley were opened up for new settlers. This led to more small farms growing crops and starting dairy businesses. Nearby Gympie was a busy town, growing from a gold mining camp into an important regional centre. It provided a good market for farmers. At first, farmers in the Mary Valley mainly grew maize (corn) and potatoes.

How Dairying Grew in Queensland

The dairy industry became one of Queensland's main industries by the 1900s. Several new ideas helped it grow. In the 1880s, mechanical cream separators were introduced. These machines made it easier to separate cream from milk. Also, the government offered loans to build butter and cheese factories. The Department of Agriculture even had a "Travelling Dairy" to teach farmers new techniques. Farmers also started growing special grasses like paspalum to feed their cows better.

A man named Hugo Du Rietz brought the first mechanical cream separator to Queensland in 1882. This helped the dairy industry in the Gympie area. By 1894, there were many dairy farms around Gympie.

Co-operative Factories and Transport

By the early 1900s, many cheese and butter factories were owned by "co-operatives." This meant farmers worked together to own and run the factories. The Wide Bay Co-Operative was a big one in Gympie. Farmers would send their cream in metal cans to the factory. Trains were very important for this. The empty cans were then returned by train to the farmers.

The Mary Valley Railway Line

In the early 1900s, the Queensland government wanted to build more railway lines in country areas. This would help towns and farms grow. People in the Mary Valley pushed for a railway line there. In 1910, a plan for a line from Monkland (near Gympie) to Brooloo was approved. This was because there was a lot of timber, farm products, and dairy products to transport.

Work on the railway started in 1911. The line reached Kandanga in 1914 and Brooloo in 1915. When the railway opened, new towns like Kandanga, Brooloo, Imbil, Amamoor, and Dagun were created.

Cream on the Rails

Even though timber was the main thing transported at first, cream was also carried on the Mary Valley Railway from the very beginning. Trains were much better than carts for getting cream to the butter factories quickly. Farmers could take their cream cans to the nearest railway station.

After World War I, farming and dairying grew even more. In 1921, there were 93 dairy farms between Dagun and Brooloo. They were milking about 2,900 cows. In January 1922, a huge amount of cream was sent to the Wide Bay Co-operative Factory in Gympie from farms along the line.

Building the Cream Sheds

Because so much cream was being produced, Queensland Railways started building special cream sheds at stations. These sheds were built to a standard design. They were usually about 3 metres by 3 metres (10 by 10 feet). They had wooden walls with small gaps between the boards. This design allowed air to flow through, keeping the cream cooler. This helped stop the cream from spoiling before it reached the factory. The sheds had double doors that opened onto platforms on both sides. This made it easy to load and unload the cream cans.

By 1921, it was clear that cream cans at Kandanga station were getting too hot. In 1924, the Railway Commissioner saw how much "cream traffic" was on the line. He agreed to build cream sheds at Amamoor, Dagun, and Lagoon Pocket. The sheds at Amamoor and Imbil were approved in 1925. A shed at Melawondi was built later, in 1946.

These sheds showed how much dairying had grown in the Mary Valley. They were used most during the wetter summer months when cows produced more milk. Even during floods, special trains would pick up cream cans from the sheds.

The Dairy Boom and Decline

Between 1927 and 1937, the number of dairy cows in Queensland grew by 50 percent. Dairying was Queensland's most widespread farming industry in the 1930s. The Gympie area became one of Queensland's top dairy producing regions. In 1925, the Wide Bay Co-Operative built what was called Australia's largest butter factory. By 1935, it was getting cream from 2,000 farmers.

However, the dairy industry started to decline in the 1950s. People started eating less butter. Also, Britain, a big market for butter, joined the European Economic Community. Farmers also began producing milk instead of cream, which needed bigger farms and new equipment. Many small farmers left the industry. New rules, lower prices, and competition from margarine also hurt the industry.

By the 1970s, milk was stored in large vats on farms and transported by road tankers. The last cream was delivered to the Gympie factory in a can in 1973. The factory stopped making butter in 1978.

What Happened to the Sheds

As cream production ended, some cream sheds on the Mary Valley railway were removed. Others were used for storage. The sheds at Lagoon Pocket and Dawn were removed in the 1960s. Dagun's cream shed was joined to a goods shed.

The Mary Valley railway line became less profitable. By the late 1980s, its future was uncertain. In 1988, station staff were removed from Imbil, Amamoor, and Dagun. Many railway buildings were sold. Queensland Railways decided to keep the cream sheds at Kandanga, Amamoor, Melawondi, Dagun, and Imbil (though the Imbil one was later removed) for storage.

The railway line was not formally closed, and in 1996, the Mary Valley Heritage Railway started running tourist trains. The "Valley Rattler" steam train rides are now a big tourist attraction. The cream sheds at Melawondi, Kandanga, and Amamoor are still there. They remind us of how important the dairy industry was to the Mary Valley in the 1900s.

What the Cream Sheds Look Like

Amamoor

The cream shed at Amamoor railway station is at the southern end of the station yard. It faces west, next to the railway line. It's a square timber building with a gabled (pointed) corrugated iron roof. The shed is made of timber frames. Its walls are covered with horizontal hardwood boards. There are small gaps between the boards on the outside, and the inside boards are placed to cover these gaps. This design helps air move through the shed, keeping it cool.

There are double timber doors that open onto wooden platforms on both sides of the shed. A few low timber steps lead up to the platform facing the railway. There's also a guard log in front of the shed. The colourful painting (mural) on the outside of the shed is a recent addition and not part of its original historical importance.

Kandanga

The cream shed at Kandanga railway yard is west of the station building. It faces north, next to the railway line. This shed is also a square timber building. It has a gabled roof made of corrugated fibro (a type of fibre cement). Like the other sheds, it has timber frames and horizontal hardwood boards with gaps for air circulation.

Inside, there are some metal panels and shelves that have been added for storage. Double timber doors open onto wooden platforms on both sides. A set of low timber steps leads up to the platform facing the railway. This platform extends to the west, becoming an earth loading bank supported by timber boards and steel posts. The mural on this shed is also a recent addition and not part of its historical significance.

Melawondi

The cream shed at Melawondi railway yard faces east, next to the railway line. It's the only building left in this yard. This shed is a square timber structure with a gabled corrugated iron roof. It stands on low timber and concrete stumps. Its walls are also made of timber frames with horizontal hardwood boards and gaps for air circulation.

Double timber doors open onto wooden platforms on both sides of the shed. Some of the timber boards on the front platform are missing.

Why They Are Heritage Listed

The Mary Valley Railway Cream Sheds were added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 14 October 2011. This means they are important for several reasons:

The sheds show how Queensland's history developed. The Mary Valley railway cream sheds are important because they show how the dairy industry grew in the Wide Bay-Burnett region. This was one of Queensland's most important dairy areas in the 1900s. Building the railway (1911–1915) and more farms in the Mary Valley helped dairying expand. The cream sheds, built from the 1920s to 1940s, show how much the industry grew. They also show how important railways were for moving dairy products across Queensland.

The sheds show what typical railway cream sheds look like. The sheds at Amamoor, Kandanga, and Melawondi are in very good condition. They show the main features of railway cream sheds built along Queensland railway lines. These sheds helped transport dairy products in the 1900s. They are small, square buildings located next to the railway line in station yards. They were built to a standard design. Their walls have horizontal hardwood boards with gaps, both inside and out. The inside boards are offset to cover the outside gaps. These gaps helped air circulate, keeping the inside cooler. The sheds stand on low stumps and have gabled roofs. They also have double doors that open onto platforms on both sides, making it easy to load and unload cream cans.