Lost railways of New Zealand

by Mike Crean

England was once criss-crossed by railways. Not any more. A recent TV programme tells the stories of their “Lost Railways”. New Zealand lost railways too. And they have stories to tell.

Starting in the south, a railway linked Gore and Mossburn. It ran through a junction at Lumsden, where the Invercargill – Kingston line also ran. These lines were familiar to notorious baby killer Minnie Deans. Less notorious were the “goingson” of thirsty Gore labourers in the Prohibition era. They would catch the evening train to Lumsden but get off at Mandeville where Prohibition rules did not apply. There the men slaked their thirst. Some took their bikes on the train and cycled the 10 miles home afterwards.

The Roxburgh Branch began at Clarksville, near Milton. Just outside Lawrence was the Wetherstons gold-mining site. Here a brewery was established and run by a man who dearly loved daffodils. He bought daffodil varieties and planted thousands on the low hills beside the brewery. Their glorious blooms in springtime drew hordes of people to the site. In the 1920s and ‘30s heavily laden excursion trains brought picnickers from Dunedin. They walked from the Lawrence station to enjoy the “host of golden daffodils”.

The Central Otago line ran from Dunedin to Cromwell. Beside the track, near Hyde in the Ranfurly area, is a memorial to the 21 passengers killed and 47 injured when their speeding train crashed in a cutting. The train driver was found to have consumed liquor at Ranfurly and to have driven on recklessly. This happened during World War II. It was the worst train crash in New Zealand then.

A railway once linked Oamaru to the tiny town of Ngapara. Wheat was a common crop in the South Island and trains carted much of it to Ngapara’s grand milling plant. Trains then carted the flour back to Oamaru. Some of it was exported to Australia. New Zealand now imports flour from Australia. Ngapara’s mill remains as an impressive landmark.

A branch line ran inland through the Waimate district. Local farm worker Ted D’Auvergne left home and popped into the pub at Waihao Forks to await the train. He was on his way to fight in World War II. He bought a bottle of beer but before he could drink it, the train arrived at the station across the road. Ted told the barman he would come back to finish his beer when the war ended. His bottle remains in the bar, unclaimed. Ted was killed in action.

The Waiau Branch Line ran from Waipara to Waiau, in North Canterbury. It never quite reached the town of Waiau but stopped at the Waiau River. Similarly, the Central Otago line stopped at the Clutha

River. Bridging these mighty rivers would have been very expensive.

The story goes that blokes used to sit in the bar at Waikari’s Star and Garter hotel most evenings. The hotel stood just below the Waiau line. On a wintry night a loaded train would skid on the icy rails as it climbed the hill leading into the Weka Pass. The driver would then reverse the train a few miles, the fireman would shovel on more coal and the train would attack the hill again. Sometimes the train would reverse two or three times before it got over the hill. Meanwhile, the chaps in the bar placed bets on how many attempts the train would need. The winner would yell with glee. The publican would shush him, as the bar should have closed at 6pm and the local cop might hear them.

The announcement that the Waiau Branch was to close was premature. Violent gales in 1975 felled most of the trees in Balmoral Forest. The railway’s life was extended so the logs could be removed. Another closure date was set in 1977. Families in Waikari kept their kids up to see “the last train” go past. But there were still more logs and still more trains to go.

So the kids scored a few more late nights.

An annual highlight of the Waiau branch was the Wild West scene of cowboys on horses herding cattle into the stockyards at Culverden. The cattle came off Molesworth Station. They were driven on foot for several days before loading onto railway waggons bound for Christchurch.

After decades of construction, Nelson’s railway reached Kawatiri, short of Murchison. It did not last long before the Government made the unpopular decision to close the railway. A group of women protesters sat on the track at Kiwi Station so the rails could not be lifted. They were arrested, charged and fined. Public donations poured in to pay their costs. Their Member of Parliament, Keith Holyoake, had supported the closure. He shifted to the North Island.

There were other “lost railways”. All had their stories.