Have you seen the new hand crafted signs for the Maldon Vintage Machinery & Museum? The eye-catching artistry was meticulously created by Signwriter and Graphic Designer Kim Johnson of Signsation, based in Hepburn Springs and each sign depicts one of the vintage machines on display at the museum. President of the museum, Alan Miller, hopes they’ll help make the public more aware of the museum and of the work they do in restoring, preserving and recording our local history. You can even see the original Tarrangower Times printing press on display!
One of the signs illustrates ‘Pumpy’, a machine made at the Thompson’s foundry in 1953 and used on the Murray for irrigation. Pumpy only narrowly escaped scrapping fate when Alan stepped in to rescue it. After it was spotted in a paddock going to waste, Alan wrote a letter to the board of Redcliffs Pumping Station seeking permission to collect, restore and preserve it. Fun fact: Pumpy can pump 60,000 gallons a minute!
Another of the signs featuring an antique Singer sewing machine hangs at the new single-gate entrance to the museum on Vincents Road. The Museum is open Wednesday 11am – 3pm, Saturday 10am – 4pm and every second Sunday of each month 10am – 4pm. Entry is free, and donations are always welcome. Dedicated stewards of machines of a bygone era, the Maldon Vintage Machinery & Museum is well worth a visit, any time of the year.
This article appeared in the Tarrangower Times, 23 June 2023.
