ON behalf of our volunteers at the Canberra Railway Museum, I would like to say thank you to the people of Orange and the central west district for their generous patronage during the recent long weekend with the visit of the massive steam locomotive 6029 City of Canberra.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Over 2000 passengers travelled on the train trips to Blayney and Molong and thousands more waved us on from vantage points along the way.
On board, it was a joy to see older adults savouring a touch of nostalgia, or for the younger ones, an authentic experience of our past.
We thank your newspaper and the Orange visitors' centre for their excellent collaboration and advice.
We were also proud to work with TrainLink staff at Orange Train Station who were invaluable in helping a number of disabled people climb aboard.
In particular, thank you to the museum volunteers from Canberra who put in many hours preparing the train to a high standard.
Passengers told us how much they appreciated the friendly welcome they received from our crew in the carriages.
We look forward to sharing more rail experiences and the opportunity to support the people of the Orange district the way they have supported us in our biggest rail venture so far aboard this fabulous piece of Australia’s rail heritage.
Garry Reynolds, Canberra Railway Museum
Map makers dinner
IN January 1976, just over 300 employees of the NSW public sector's Central Mapping Authority (CMA) moved from Sydney to Bathurst in the largest regional decentralisation initiative ever undertaken by the NSW state government. The organisation is currently called Land and Property Information (LPI).
This year marks 40 years since that move. Very little recognition of this important milestone has occurred locally. The impact that 300 new people and their families had on the economy and many facets of Bathurst community life, particularly in sporting and service organisations, was quite significant.
Nowadays, nearly all of those 300 original employees have retired. Quite a few still reside in Bathurst and are active within the Bathurst community. So to some extent, the move in 1976 is still having a positive effect on the city.
In 1976, there were no personal computers, no mobile phones, no internet or GPS. In the digital world, maps are now produced from spatial data.
The demand for high accuracy of the spatial data is 25 to 50 times greater than the accuracy which was achievable in 1976. The number of users of digital maps has increased at least 100 fold so the demand for the production of up to date, accurate spatial data will only increase in future.
To celebrate the four decades of mapping in Bathurst, it is planned to hold a special dinner on Saturday, November 5. There will be other events planned around the weekend, including a social golf event on Friday, a Sunday lunch and other functions.
As well as the people who moved to Bathurst in 1976, we encourage all previous and current employees of the organisation to join in and celebrate with us.
If you are an ex-employee of the CMA or current employee of LPI, please save the date in your diary. If you would like to participate in the celebration, please email your details to 40yearsmappinginbathurst@gmail.com. You can also see us on Facebook.
