Cooma Monaro Railway

 

The Cooma yard surrounding the station is not only interesting, but is of historical significance.

State Rail's Heritage department has recognised the importance of preserving the Cooma railway precinct "because it is one of the very best examples of a small rural railway depot. the precinct retails most of its original buildings, including the state's last locomotive straight shed. It is therefore a very significant building and has State Rail's highest level of heritage value."

The photo above depicts the station building after its original restoration by the CMR. Our Cooma Station page shows it following its recent restoration in heritage colours.

 

Two Views of Cooma Yard - Before and After Station Lighting Re-installed

As a result of the heritage assessment, CMR qualified for a heritage grant, which was applied to restoration of the shed, with new doors, windows and roof panels to return it more to how it looked after its construction in 1888.

A feature not visible in the yard photos is the turntable. It is still in (manual) operation, and is used to turn the CMR's rolling stock from time to time.

In any venture such as the restoration of a railway environment, success depends on periodic help from people and organisations outside of the local restoration group. CMR has been fortunate to obtain generous assistance from many such sources, such as Skitube, Cooma TAFE and the NSW Signal Society. Along with many others, their input at critical times kept the CMR dream alive.

 To see more of the features of the Cooma Railway Precinct, go to The Barracks or the Yard Improvements pages.