This model is part of the A.A. Stewart collection of ship, mechanical, and railway models acquired over nearly 30 years, from 1938 to 1963. Albyn A. Stewart was a trained engineer fascinated by engineering models ,and he constructed some of those in the collection. Others were bought from amateur and commercial modeler at great expense to Stewart, who travelled regularly to England to seek out models. In January 1938, Percival Marshall, the editor of "the Model Engineer", England's premier modelling magazine, devoted editorial space to the collection, where he stated that "Mr Stewart has been fortunate in acquiring some excellent examples of both screw and paddle marine engines of considerable value as records of real prototype practice". Later the same year, he further said, "As a trained engineer himself, his judgement of the technical merits of a model is very sound, and I should imagine that his collection is now the finest of its kind in Australia, in private hands. Many of the models are undoubtedly worthy of careful preservation, and I hope that they will eventually find a suitable resting place in one or more of the Australian national museums".

Stewart was first contacted by the Technological Museum, as the Powerhouse Museum was then known, in 1933. The then Director/Curator A. R. Penfold immediately recognised the importance of the engineering models and in 1935 began to lend items from the display. Penfold expanded the area available for display in the models as they were seen as instructive for students in the adjacent Technical College ,as well as for the general public.

In early 1938, Stewart's company, 'Lyndale Ltd.,' which owned most of the models, was approached about the purchase of a large part of the collection. Stewart was appointed to the Advisory Board of the Museum, and, in July 1938, it began to purchase the models it had lent, as well as the best examples in the rest of the collection.The cost of this was estimated at 3000 pounds. By 1943, the Museum was still acquiring material for the collection, and the Advisory Committee made a special appropriation request to the Minister of Education. "In view of the advantage of retaining a collection intact, and the national asset which the Museum possesses, the Committee recommends the purchase of the remainder of the Stewart collection offered at approximately 2400 pounds". This sum was approved, and between 1943 and 1945, around 80 more models were purchased. Apart from the monetary limitations, the acquisition was spread over a period of several years because some of Stewart's models needed to be finished before they could be sold.

The high costs reflected the quality of the models. Many of the working steam engines are one-off examples hand crafted by amateur modeler over the course of years. The same is true of some of the ship and locomotive models, many of which were made to exact scale, and include working parts. The models were carefully collected by Stewart, who collected as much for posterity as he did for personal interest. Once contacted by the Museum, he deliberately sought out models which would fill historical and technological gaps, and, as a result, the collection is one of the most significant still extant in Australia.

This model was purchased by the Museum in 1944.

Geoff Barker, March, 2007

Research by Rob Mayrick, volunteer, August 2009

References

Marshall, Percival, ' The Model Engineer ', London, April 29, 1937.
Marshall, Percival, 'The Model Engineer ', London, May 27, 1937.
Marshall, percival, 'The Model Engineer ', London, January 27, 1938.
Marshall, percival, 'The Model Engineer ', London, April 14, 1938.
Chalmers, A., 'The Model Engineer in Australia and New Zealand ', Melbourne, January,1939.
Davison, G., Webber, K., ' Yesterday's Tomorrows ; the Powerhouse Museum and its precursors 1880-2005', Powerhouse Publishing, 2005.
Lavery, B., Stephens, S., ' Ships Models ; their purpose and development from 1650 to the present ', Zwemmer, London,1995.

Model maker unknown.

The PS " Newcastle" was registered in Sydney in 1892. Registered dimensions length 80.65m., breadth 10.03m., depth 4.85 m., gross tonnage 1251 tons. She was built by J. Key & Sons, Kirkcaldy, Scotland for the Newcastle Steam Ship Company for their Sydney and Newcastle passenger and cargo service in opposition to the Hunter River New Steam Navigation Co.

After the Hawkesbury Railway Bridge was opened in1889, passenger trade fell off considerably, so that in1891 the two companies were amalgamated as the Newcastle and Hunter River Steam Ship Co. Ltd. One of the funnels and two boilers were removed. The "Newcastle" remained on the Sydney-Newcastle run until 1926, when she was then laid up except for a short spell on the Sydney-Launceston run. The vessel was sold to J.H.Grille of Sydney in 1928 for breaking up. She was stripped and the hulk towed to sea and sunk off Sydney in 1933.


Reference:
Andrews, G, 'A Log of Great Australian Ships', Reed, Sydney,1980, p104.

Scale model of Hunter River Company's paddle steamer "Newcastle" (SB). ship model, PS "Newcastle", complete with twin cylinder oscillating paddle engines and semi water tube boiler. Details include anchors and winches, deck winches, ventilators, six covered ship's boats in davits, ship's wheel, binnacle and telegraphs, bollards, deck rails and companionways, navigation lights. Hull carved from a block of cedar and finished in brick red and black with white upperworks, [Australia]; A A Stewart Collection (OF).

Missing from the original are donkey feed pump, Worthington bilge pump and ballast pump and propeller rod. Masts and rigging missing . Metalwork bent and corroded.

B894

540 mm

480 mm