Midland Rail Heritage Trust

Last updated

L 312 on 1 January 1889 for the opening of the Midland Railway, Stillwater junction. Opening of the Midland Railway, Stillwater junction, 1889.jpg
L 312 on 1 January 1889 for the opening of the Midland Railway, Stillwater junction.

The Midland Rail Heritage Trust was founded on 28 April 2004 by a group of railway enthusiasts to preserve and promote the Midland Railway line and the steam locomotives that worked it. It is based at the Old Railway Yards, Pococks Road, Springfield. [1] The Trust is a member of the Federation of Rail Organisations of New Zealand. [2] The Trust is also the owner and sole shareholder of the Midland Railway Company (NZ) Limited. [3] As of 2021, Mainline Steam Heritage Trust's Christchurch depot was moved to here after the owner of the old depot in Middleton asked them to move on.

Contents

History

The Trust was formed in April 2004. It was incorporated under the Charitable Trusts Act 1957 on 27 May 2004. [4]

In 2005 three locomotives that had been dumped in the Grey River at Omoto were recovered. They were Uc 369, Uc 370 and La 312. [5] White Bus Family Production's had obtained the resource consent for the recovery and gave Uc369 and Uc370 to the Trust on the understanding that should the Trust fold then ownership would return to it. Ownership of La 312 was retained by White Bus Family Production. [5]

Also in 2005 a pair of diesel shunters from the Islington Freezing works were donated to the Trust, and a 15 tonne gantry crane and equipment from the Otira Railway Workshop was acquired. In 2008 track was obtained from the old Burnham Army Camp siding. The lines from the old railway yard were connected to the Kiwirail network in January 2010. Through 2011 with the help of four workers from a Work and Income job scheme buildings were repaired and track work was undertaken.

Steam locomotive, P class no. 107. P 107.jpg
Steam locomotive, P class no. 107.

The Trust's secretary in 2012 was Simon Walker. [6] At that time the club made a submission to Parliament opposing the Gambling (Gambling Harm Reduction) Amendment Bill as they considered it would remove a source of funding from charitable gaming trusts that the club used.

Locomotives and rolling stock

Locomotives

Key:In serviceIn service, Mainline CertifiedUnder overhaul/restorationStoredStatic displayScrapped
NumberBuilderBuilder's numberYear builtArrived in Springfield Notes
DS 134 (pre-TMS: DS 213) Drewry 2411/D16019532005Entered NZR service in June 1953. Renumbered as DS 134 in 1978. Withdrawn from service in November 1982 in Christchurch. It was then sold to the Islington Freezing Works for shunting uses. It was later repainted into PPC's white livery. In 2005 the MRHT purchased it and is currently in storage awaiting restoration. [7] [8] In Late 2021, shunting occurred, moving Mainline Steam's carriages and tanks around the yard with DS 134 in operation.
DS 157 (pre-TMS: DS 215)Drewry2413/D16219532005Entered NZR service in May 1953. Renumbered as DS 157 in 1978. Withdrawn from service in November 1982 in Christchurch. It was then sold to the Islington Freezing Works for part supply for DS 134. In 2005 the MRHT purchased it and is currently in storage with no plans for restoration. [7] [8]
LA 312 Nasmyth Wilson & Co 32218872005Entered service for the New Zealand Midland Railway Company in 1887 as NZMRC No. 3 for the construction of the Midland Line. It was then purchased by the NZR in 1900 and reclassified as LA 312. Withdrawn in 1928 and dumped at the Omoto locomotive dump. It was recovered privately and is currently on loan to the MRHT for future restoration. [8]
P 107 Nasmyth Wilson & Co27818832008Entered NZR service in May 1887. Withdrawn from service in 1928. It was then dumped in the Clutha River on 8 August 1932. Recovered by Project Steam in 1992 and moved to Dunedin. It was later transferred to the Dunedin Gas Works. In 2008 redevelopment occurring at the Gas Works necessitating the group's removal from the Gas Works and is currently leased to the MRHT for restoration. [8]
UC 369 Sharp, Stewart & Co. 475319012005Entered NZR service in 1901 and reclassified. Withdrawn in 1957 and dumped at the Omoto locomotive dump. It was recovered by the MRHT for future restoration. [5] [8] [9]
UC 370Sharp, Stewart & Co.475419012005Entered NZR service in 1901 and reclassified. Withdrawn in 1957 and dumped at the Omoto locomotive dump. It was recovered by the MRHT for future restoration. [8] [9]
Ds class shunting locomotives nos. 213 and 215. Ds 213 and 215.jpg
Ds class shunting locomotives nos. 213 and 215.

Carriages

Key:In serviceIn service, Mainline CertifiedUnder overhaul/restorationStoredStatic displayScrapped
NumberBuilderYear builtArrived in Springfield Notes
Al 1764 (TMS AL 50090) NZR Addington Workshops 19322013Entered NZR service on 2 January 1932 as A 1764 as a wooden cladded carriage. Converted to Steel Clad on 20 July 1963 and reclassified as AL 1764 on 11 October in the same year. It was the renumbered as AL 50090 in 1978. Withdrawn from service on 13 August 1983 and purchased by the Otago Excursion Train Trust. It was then reclassified as XPC 481. Withdrawn in September 2009 by the Taieri Gorge Railway. Purchased by the MRHT and is currently in storage awaiting restoration. [8] [10]

Wagons

Key:In serviceIn service, Mainline CertifiedUnder overhaul/restorationStoredStatic displayScrapped
NumberBuilderYear builtArrived in Springfield Notes
Yc 821 (TMS: YC 1532) NZR East Town Workshops 19632007Entered NZR service in November 1963. Renumbered as YC 1532 in 1978. Withdrawn from service in 2007 and purchased by the MRHT and is currently in storage awaiting restoration. [8] [11]
Yf 912 (TMS: YF 161)NZR Addington Workshops1964
Ks 4825 (TMS: KS 15215)NZR East Town Workshops1970

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Railway preservation in New Zealand</span>

Railway preservation in New Zealand is the preservation of historically significant facets of New Zealand's rail transport history. The earliest recorded preservation attempt took place in 1925, although the movement itself did not start properly until 1960.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weka Pass Railway</span> Heritage railway in New Zealand

The Weka Pass Railway is a New Zealand heritage railway based in Waipara, North Canterbury. It is operated on a 12.8 km length of the former Waiau Branch railway between Waipara and Waikari. The railway is operated by an incorporated society which consists solely of members and volunteers, and are largely resident in the city of Christchurch, 60 km to the south. The railway began carrying passengers in 1984 and is now well established locally and nationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rail transport in New Zealand</span> Overview of rail transport in New Zealand

Rail transport in New Zealand is an integral part of New Zealand's transport network, with a nationwide network of 4,375.5 km (2,718.8 mi) of track linking most major cities in the North and South Islands, connected by inter-island rail and road ferries. Rail transport in New Zealand has a particular focus on bulk freight exports and imports, with 19 million net tonnes moved by rail annually, accounting for more than half of rail revenue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingston Flyer</span>

The Kingston Flyer is a vintage steam train in the South Island of New Zealand at the southern end of Lake Wakatipu. It used 14 kilometres of preserved track that once formed a part of the Kingston Branch. Originally, Kingston Flyer was a passenger express train between Kingston, Gore, Invercargill, and less frequently, Dunedin. It was operated by the New Zealand Railways (NZR) from the 1890s to 1957. In 1971, NZR revitalised the service as a tourist venture, later leasing the locomotives and rolling stock in 1982 to a private company. Since then, the Kingston Flyer has been through a number of owners, most recently being owned by the Kingston Flyer Ltd. A group of volunteers has restored the railway, rolling stock and locomotives to service. In July 2021 the Kingston Flyer received resource consent to operate, initially for tour groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ocean Beach Railway</span> Heritage railway in Dunedin, New Zealand

The Ocean Beach Railway (OBR) is a heritage railway that operates in Dunedin, New Zealand. It is located between John Wilson Drive in the suburb of Saint Kilda and sports grounds near Forbury Park Raceway, and runs parallel with the city's main beach, Ocean Beach. This is near where the Ocean Beach Branch once ran, but not on the same formation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Plains Vintage Railway & Historical Museum</span>

The Plains Vintage Railway & Historical Museum is a heritage railway and recreated historic village in the Tinwald Domain, Tinwald, New Zealand. The railway runs on approximately three kilometres of rural railway line that was once part of the Mount Somers Branch. The village and railway are open regularly to the public. The railway utilises preserved and restored locomotives and rolling stock once used on New Zealand's national railway network, while the village shows visitors how life was lived in New Zealand's pioneering past.

Locomotives of New Zealand is a complete list of all locomotive classes that operate or have operated in New Zealand's railway network. It does not include locomotives used on bush tramways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand DJ class locomotive</span>

The New Zealand DJ class locomotive is a type of diesel-electric locomotive in service on the New Zealand rail network. The class were built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and introduced from 1968 to 1969 for the New Zealand Railways Department (NZR) with a modernisation loan from the World Bank to replace steam locomotives in the South Island, where all of the class members worked most of their lives. Nine of the locomotives remain in use, mainly with Dunedin Railways.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Zealand Railways Department</span> Government agency (1880–1982)

The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was corporatised on 1 April 1982 into the New Zealand Railways Corporation. Originally, railway construction and operation took place under the auspices of the former provincial governments and some private railways, before all of the provincial operations came under the central Public Works Department. The role of operating the rail network was subsequently separated from that of the network's construction. From 1895 to 1993 there was a responsible Minister, the Minister of Railways. He was often also the Minister of Public Works.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steam Incorporated</span>

Steam Incorporated, often abbreviated to Steam Inc., is a railway heritage and preservation society based at the Paekākāriki railway station, Paekākāriki at the southern end of the Kāpiti Coast, approximately 50 minutes north of Wellington on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. Unlike some societies who operate on preserved sections of closed branch lines, Steam Incorporated owns a depot beside one of the country's most important railway lines, the North Island Main Trunk railway, and restores heritage locomotives and rolling stock for use on excursions on the regular national rail network.

The Rimutaka Incline Railway Heritage Trust is a non-profit, charitable trust in New Zealand that was established in 2003 with the objective of reinstating an operating heritage railway over the Remutaka Ranges using the original route of the Wairarapa Line between Maymorn and Featherston, including the world-famous Rimutaka Incline.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A & G Price</span>

A & G Price Limited is an engineering firm and locomotive manufacturer in Thames, New Zealand founded in 1868.

The NZR DS class locomotive is a type of 16 diesel shunting locomotives built by the Vulcan Foundry and supplied by the Drewry Car Co from 1949–1955, for New Zealand Railways (NZR).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waitara Railway Preservation Society</span> Railway society established in 1999

The Waitara Railway Preservation Society is a society established in 1999 to operate a heritage railway over the former Waitara Industrial Line railway that operated between Lepperton and Waitara in the New Plymouth District of New Zealand's North Island. The line had been closed that year after 124 years of operation, after the closure of the local AFFCO freezing works in the town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Branxholme locomotive dump</span> Railroad facility

Branxholme locomotive dump is a steam locomotive and wagon dump located on the eastern bank of the Ōreti River adjacent and just to the north of Southland's Wairio Branch Line in New Zealand. Locomotives and rolling stock have been dumped here for river protection since the 1920s. In the time since numerous items have been recovered for preservation purposes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oamaru locomotive dump</span>

Oamaru locomotive dump was created in New Zealand so that obsolete locomotives and rolling stock could be used to stabilize loose ground where rivers and the coast were eroding the ground where the railway lines were built. This was done at a time when scrap steel was an uneconomic proposition. It was located on the coastline in the North Otago town of Oamaru to stabilise land used by New Zealand Railways for their freight yards. Here the coastline of the Pacific Ocean pounded heavily against the land causing major erosion.

NZR U class

The NZR U class, the first tender locomotives built in New Zealand, were a class of 4-6-0 Ten Wheeler locomotive designed to the requirements of Mr T. F. Rotherham and built at NZR Addington between 1894 and 1903. They were amongst NZRs' longest lived tender engines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Napier railway station, New Zealand</span> Railway station in New Zealand

The Napier railway station in Napier, New Zealand was the main railway station in Napier and an intermediate stop on the Palmerston North–Gisborne Line. On 12 October 1874 the station and the first section of the line south from Napier to Hastings was opened. The line through the Manawatū Gorge to Palmerston North and hence to Wellington was opened on 9 March 1891. The first train carrying passengers had been organised by the contractors, John Brogden and Sons, on Tuesday 30 June 1874 to run from Napier to Waitangi.

NZR U<sup>C</sup> class

The NZR UC class were a group of ten 4-6-0 steam locomotives obtained from Scottish builders Sharp, Stewart and Company for New Zealand Railways (NZR). Essentially they were developments of the firm's previous batch of 4-6-0s' for NZR.


The Wellington Heritage Multiple Unit Preservation Trust (WHMUPT) was formed to preserved D 2130, DM 556 and D 2411 or otherwise known as the "Cyclops" EMU set. The trust is based at Maymorn near the Rimutaka Incline Railway Heritage Trust (RIRHT). The set was purchased in January 2013 and arrived at their base on 21 April the same year. One trailer from this unit has been used as a passenger carriage by the RIRHT for their operational running days, and is stored undercover. Minimal conservation work has been done to the rest of the set which is stored outside.

References

  1. ↑ "Midland Rail Heritage Trust Home". Mrht.org.nz. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  2. ↑ "Federation of Rail Organisations of New Zealand, Inc". FRONZ. Archived from the original on 21 August 2014. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  3. ↑ "Document Filings Details". Business.govt.nz. 12 November 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  4. ↑ Certificate of incorporation
  5. 1 2 3 "WHITE BUS FAMILY PRODUCTIONS - The Locomotive Salvage Exercise at Omoto". Whitebusfamily.co.nz. 19 May 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  6. ↑ "New Zealand Parliament - Midland Rail Heritage Trust". Parliament.nz. 2 August 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  7. 1 2 NZ Railways Rolling Stock Register: Class DS
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 New Zealand Rolling Stock Register
  9. 1 2 "Uc Class Locos". MRHT. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  10. ↑ "AL - Luggage Section - NZR Rolling Stock Lists". Nzrailwaysrollingstocklists.weebly.com. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  11. ↑ "NZR Rolling Stock Lists - Home". Nzrailwaysrollingstocklists.weebly.com. Retrieved 20 August 2014.

43°19′52.36″S171°55′40.82″E / 43.3312111°S 171.9280056°E / -43.3312111; 171.9280056

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.