The business
Southern Cross was started in 1871 by a newly arrived English immigrant - George Griffiths. Originally operating as an ironmonger and doing mechanical repairs in
Toowoomba, Queensland, he was soon joined by his engineering graduate brother,
John. At or about 1874 Giffiths Bros. & Co. purchased more land in
Toowoomba and started The
Toowoomba Foundry.
Over the years
Southern Cross has manafactured a wide range of equipment catering to the needs of pioneering farmers. It was realised early on that the most basic need in the successfull development of rural Australia was a constant, reliable supply of water for farming and associated comunities. In response to this the company built some of the earliest windmills in Australia. These were The Simplex, The Simplex Economy and The Little Wonder.
In 1903 the company built a series of windmills under the trade name " Southern Cross". These were an immediate success. Other watering and
bore equipment produced soon after was also sold sucessfully as "Southern Cross" and so the name was adopted by the company. By 1913
Southern Cross employed over 400 people in 9 acres of factory property in
Toowoomba.
They were also involved in producing dredging equipment used in the initial dredging of the
Brisbane River. Rolling stock, railway sleepers and steam engines were also manafactured by the company. Their agricultural equipment included - wool presses, dairy equipment, various pumps, compressors, lighting plants, windmills,
well drilling equipment, steam engines, IC engines for petrol, kero and diesel and all equipment associated with these machines. During WW2 they supplied munitions, engines, pumps and compressors for the British in North Africa, the Americans in the east and to the Australian Navy and Army. They have also extensively supplied the mining industry in Australia with diesel engines, compressors, gensets,
winches, ore crushers and of course pumps.
(The windmills became known as the "Griffiths" Mills. In 1903 the
Toowoomba factory sold its first commercial windmill under the trade name the "Southern Cross". The
Southern Cross windmills were design by Bert Giffiths and it was simple, robust and relatively cheap. The windmills were 8ft high and made from galvanised steel. The
Southern Cross became the best known and sold windmill in Australian history and is now an Australian icon.)
In 1933 they started manafacturing a range of medium speed heavy duty diesel engines. They were simple and effective and sold
well with power outputs ranging from the small single cylinder YB of 3 horsepower, to the 42 horsepower 4 cylinder YGB. Prices in the 1941 catalogue range from 73 pounds for the YB to 470 pounds for the YGB. They used wet liners,
shell big end bearings, standard CAV or Pyrox injection pumps and could be cold started without pre-heating.
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Note: The first engine I found had the plate on it, it has the Gov't arrow stamped on the plate, made in 1942 it was probably used by the Military , further research into this is ongoing.
In 1947 the "Y" range was upgraded with the "B" range. The (now 4 hp) YB however was continued and sold
well with the newer BDC, BEC, BFC and the big 4 cylinder BGC 40 horsepower engines. One feature of the "B" range is that they all had the same
bore and stroke and most vitall parts including pistons, valves, liners, con rods and bearings were the same on all models. Prices in the "B" range were from the base model YB at 137 pounds to 842 pounds for an electric start BGC of 40 HP.
Aesthetically the "B" range are just big, functional but not generally sought after by collectors. The YB being only 4 HP and relatively small are still popular and can often be seen at shows and rallies.
Southern Cross engines peaked in their appearance with the YDB. They are tall, slender, powerfull engines ( 10.8 HP ) that look great if one has room for an engine that size and more difficultly - can find one.
Southern Cross ceased production of diesel engines in 1970 due to their inability to compete with cheaper imports.
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