A recent clean out of the Gasworks site at North Bendigo has revealed a pair of steam tram trailer bogies that were acquired by the Bendigo Trust in 1989. The bogies came with a very derelict steam trailer body (No. 2) which in 1891/1892 was built by combining the bodies of two former battery trams and adding platforms at each end. These trailers were extremely dangerous due to the bogies being located close to where passengers boarded and exited.. There were several instances of people having their feet crushed and in one tragic accident, a tram conductor on his way to work was run over and killed in Mitchell Street, Bendigo, when he alighted before the tram had stopped. Some of the big bogie steam trailers were retained by ESCo. at the Hargreaves Street depot when the electric trams commenced in 1903, but no photos exist of them being towed by the electrics. They were probably too heavy to be towed and too dangerous for general use or ESCo., being the tight-wads they were, were not prepared to pay the wages of two conductors, that would be required to operate them.

Cheers,

Andrew Cook.