Benalla’s resident rail enthusiast, Charlie Mead, had a big day out on Sunday, October 15, to celebrate 150 years of the north-east line.
Following a celebration at Seymour train station on Saturday, October 14, the original Spirit of Progress locomotive travelled to Albury and back the following day, with invitations extended to those with a connection to the line.
Regular Ensign readers would be aware of Charlie’s work on the railways, which included being a first responder to the Southern Aurora crash at Violet Town and having an active role on the Southern Aurora Memorial Garden committee.
Charlie worked his entire career on the north-east line and would often gaze in wonder at the luxurious ‘Parlor cars’ being pulled by the Spirit of Progress.
On October 15, he had the chance to travel in one, which was everything he had hoped for.
“We went down to Seymour on the Saturday and it was just fantastic,” Charlie said.
“There was a speaker from V/Line, and (State Member for Euroa) Annabelle Cleeland gave a speech. Then my friend Dave Watson said some words.
“He used to be one of my bosses when I worked on the railway.”
The next day, Charlie was back in Seymour, and his eyes lit up as the Spirit of Progress pulled into the station.
“We had a seat in the parlor car,” Charlie said.
“When the Southern Aurora first started, it had one parlor car.
‘’That is where you might find the Prime Minister or other important people.
“It had comfortable seats and a little button you would press.
“There was a bar at the front and when you pushed the button, the stewardess (or steward) would come and take a drink order.
“And there were two little holes on the side of the carriage.
“When it got to Spencer St (Melbourne), they would plug in a telephone for travellers to make a call.”
On Sunday, the train had several parlor cars, and Charlie said he had always wondered what it would be like to be a passenger in one.
“The journey took about three hours,” he said.
“We stopped at Benalla, Wangaratta and Wodonga.
‘’There was a sausage sizzle at each stop, and people at the station could walk through before we set off again.
“I sat with my friend Dave Watson, who worked on the railways for 40 years. We had a nice talk about the good old days.”
Charlie said Dave was not his only former colleague on the trip.
“The icing on the cake for me was that, on that train, we had three of my old workmates and two of my old bosses,” Charlie said.
“Dave Watson said to me he never thought we’d both be sat together in a parlor car celebrating 150 years of the north-east line.
“He said it was a great honour to work with me and that the trains never had any trouble when I was on the track.
“We both felt so honoured to be invited to go along. It was a fantastic day.”