Edward (Ted) Phillips started his transport business at Bunbartha in 1935 and after taking a role as a buying agent for tomato processors he was able to buy another two Maple Leaf trucks and helped fill the void for SPC, carting firewood to feed their boilers.
It was hard yakka and Ted had to convince workers to camp rough in the bush for extended periods using axes and a motorised swing saw to gather timber.
The sweat was worth it because it allowed Phillips Transport to grow, adding eight new K55 International trucks by 1945 and run the first truck from Shepparton to Perth, a three-week return journey.
Gary Philips said he was humbled to drive the truck back into Shepparton to be part of the new museum.
“It has been at the museum in Alice Springs for 16 years but (we) have such a strong connection to Shepparton we wanted to bring it back and support the new museum here,” he said.
The first Kenworth truck was purchased in 1978, starting a long relationship with dealer Bryan Thomson, and it was still on the road until 2006.
“We got this truck and another on Christmas Eve, Bryan Thomson delivered them to us and they did interstate (trips) for years and runs locally around Shepparton,” he said.
The family business grew with Shepparton and although the family sold the company more than a decade ago, former employees are already looking forward to seeing the museum and the old Kenworth.
“The trucking business was good for the family, we had great employees and a great family business, there will be a lot of people come to view it and the trucks from the other local transport companies as well.”