Steam Up this Sunday at Rockville Museum
Rockville Museum stalwart Ivan Riley removing insulation cork from the Museum’s inner room. Photo: Gerard Hindmarsh.
Sure to attract a crowd will be another Steam Up at the Golden Bay Machinery and Settlers Museum at Rockville this Sunday, 26 October, from 10am - 3pm.
Fonterra Takaka boilerman Graham Balck will again supervise the firing up of the two Anderson boilers that run the half-dozen steam-powered machines, while other members attend to all manner of other interesting and mainly agricultural contraptions on display.
Steam-up days are the very public side of the operation. The latest job that a willing bunch of volunteers has been tackling behind the scenes has been removal of the deteriorating thick cork insulation off the walls in what used to be the "inner room" or coolstore of the one-time Collingwood Dairy Company. The cork sheeting was applied with tar to the brick walls and sarked ceiling, and a close inspection reveals a double layer deftly joined together with meat skewers. A small section of the original wall has been retained for display.
Inheriting an old building was always going to mean ongoing maintenance. One of the next major projects is to seal all the walls to stop condensation. Treasurer Pam Gardiner says a leaking roof is also still an issue. "It runs in odd directions with not a lot of fall. We have to get the structure right before we start on the beautification. It comes down to a matter of resources."
Money raised for the museum has always come from grants, door donations, and Steam Up days, including the selling of tea and scones in the pioneer kitchen.
The museum started up 26 years ago with the intention of retaining as much settler heritage in the Bay as possible. Currently it has around 28 members and five life members, who at different times have freely donated their time and expertise. Monday has become the usual day to turn up, with Ivan Riley and Lewis Campbell in particular acknowledged as core regulars.
One of the purchases coming up will be a fibreglass horse and cow to better display some of the farm animal gear and machinery.
"The intention is not so much meticulous restoration, but rather getting everything up and running so people can see how things used to work," says Ivan Riley. "For us volunteers, it's about keeping for future generations things that were once important in the Bay."
Gerard Hindmarsh
