This souvenir shows a bird's eye view of the engineering features of the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme, which diverts east-flowing water westwards and captures energy from the water as it falls through huge turbines. The souvenir was designed to promote the Scheme and to educate tourists who visited the region during its construction, which began in 1949 and was completed in 1974. Building the Scheme was a massive engineering project, and the Snowy Mountains Authority ran a major public relations exercise to boost public and political support and so ensure that the vision for the Scheme would be fully realised.

The model shows the layout of the two arms of the Scheme: one to divert water from the Snowy River and its tributaries into the Murrumbidgee River via the Tooma and Tumut Rivers and Blowering Reservoir; and the other to divert water into the Murray River. It shows Lake Eucumbene as the link between the two arms. The flooding of valleys to create both Blowering Reservoir and Lake Eucumbene displaced many people but created new opportunities and led to the building of new towns.

The topography depicted by the model is the source of the Scheme's success, as it ensures that the Snowy Mountains region receives the most reliable precipitation in mainland Australia. The topography was also the source of many challenges to the engineers and workers who constructed the Scheme. Each tunnel, dam and power station was to become an achievement, a source of wealth and national pride, but at the cost of workers' lives and environmental damage. The model is complemented by object 99/73/2, a model showing cross-sections of the Scheme.

The model is of historical interest as it depicts some structures that were never built; plans for the Kosciusko power station and reservoir were scrapped, due to cost and environmental concerns rather than a loss of political support. The model uses the older simplified spelling of Kosciuszko, the name of the Polish hero after whom Polish-born explorer Paul Strzelecki named the mountain in 1840, when he climbed to its summit and noted that it is Australia's highest point.

Debbie Rudder, Curator, 2009

The model was made for the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority between 1960 and 1965.

The Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Authority sold many copies of this topographic model and accompanying cross-section model (99/73/2) for promotional and educational purposes. During a family visit to the Scheme in 1971, the donor, Brenda Longworth, and her husband Tom bought the model and map as educational tools for their three boys to use in school projects.

Topographic model of the Snowy Mountains Scheme, plastic, Snowy Mountains Authority, Australia, 1960-1965

This model consists of a thin moulded plastic sheet shaped to form mountains and valleys. The area represented by the model is bounded by Tumut and Canberra to the north, Cooma to the east, Dalgety and Thredbo towards the south, and Tooma and Tumbarumba to the west.

Higher areas are coloured white, with mountain elevations noted in feet, and lower areas are green. Rivers and reservoirs are blue, roads are brown, and the railway line and towns are black. The borders between NSW and Victoria, and between NSW and the ACT, are marked.

The Snowy Mountains Scheme's tunnels are marked in red, with black arrows to indicate the direction of water flow. Its power stations and pumping stations are indicated by black circles filled with yellow.

Maker: Snowy Mountains Authority; Cooma, New South Wales; 1960 - 1965

Printed in black in bottom right corner is "Copyright: Snowy Mountains Authority"

99/73/1

1960 - 1965

75 mm

360 mm