Events In History
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21 December 1971Full steam ahead for Kingston Flyer
A few months after the last steam locomotives had been withdrawn from this country's scheduled rail operations, New Zealand Railways launched a new tourist-oriented steam passenger venture in the South Island. Read more...
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25 October 1971End of the line for steam railways
The Christchurch–Dunedin overnight express, headed by a JA-class locomotive, ran the last scheduled steam-hauled service on New Zealand Railways (NZR), bringing to an end 108 years of regular steam rail operations in this country. Read more...
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24 December 1953Tangiwai railway disaster
The worst railway disaster in New Zealand’s history occurred on Christmas Eve 1953, when the Wellington–Auckland night express plunged into the flooded Whangaehu River, just west of Tangiwai in the central North Island. Read more...
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6 July 1923Main Trunk Line express train disaster
The Auckland−Wellington express ploughed into a huge slip that had slumped across the tracks at Ōngarue, north of Taumarunui in King Country. Read more...
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7 August 1908First train runs length of main trunk line
The 'Parliament Special' travelled over a makeshift track in the central section of the still-unfinished main trunk line. It carried MPs north to greet the American navy's 'Great White Fleet'. Read more...
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20 July 1892Steam locomotive sets world speed record
The Wellington and Manawatu Railway (WMR) Company’s locomotive No. 10 established a world speed record for the narrow 3 foot 6 inch (1067 mm) gauge, averaging 68 km per hour on a two-hour run and hitting a top speed of 103 kph. Read more...
Articles
The North Island main trunk line
All aboard! The North Island main trunk railway was 100 years old in 2008. Take a trip back in time to explore the epic story of its construction, the heyday of the steam passenger train and the place of the iconic railway refreshment room in New Zealand life.
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Page 3 – Rise and fall
A history of the North Island railway main trunk line since the first through train left Wellington on 7 August 1908
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Page 4 – Travelling by train
For most second-class travellers, travelling the main trunk meant a long, sleepless journey on hard-backed seats, struggling to find 'elusive comfort with the NZR pillow'.
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Page 5 – Refreshments
Refreshments are an essential and often talked about part of any train journey.
Tangiwai disaster
New Zealand's worst railway disaster occurred 60 years ago on Christmas Eve 1953, when the Wellington–Auckland night express plunged into the swollen Whangaehu River near Tangiwai. Of the 285 people on board, 151 were killed. The tragedy stunned the world and left a nation in mourning.
- Page 1 - Tangiwai railway disasterNew Zealand's worst railway disaster occurred 60 years ago on Christmas Eve 1953, when the Wellington–Auckland night express plunged into the swollen Whangaehu River near
Notes for My Successor
Until the late 1960s New Zealand's governors-general were British, mainly minor aristocrats, or admirals or generals.
- Page 7 - The governor-general on the moveHow the governors-general moved about the
Seddonville
The West Coast coalmining settlement of Seddonville, 50 kms north of Westport, was named in honour of the Liberal Premier Richard Seddon. It was also the site of an early experiment in state socialism – New Zealand's first state coal mine opened there in 1903.
- Page 7 - Seddonville's rail heritageThe Ngakawau-Seddonville branch line was built solely for the transport of coal from mines near Seddonville to Westport harbour, where it was then transported around New Zealand
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Main image: Train at El Alamein station