Erua railway station
39°13′41″S 175°23′55″E / 39.227998°S 175.398703°E / -39.227998; 175.398703
Preceding station | Historical railways | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
National Park Line open, station open 6.67 km (4.14 mi) | North Island Main Trunk KiwiRail | Makatote Line open, station closed 3.29 km (2.04 mi) |
Erua was a station on the North Island Main Trunk line,[1] in the Ruapehu District of New Zealand. It served the small village of Erua.[2] For a month in 1908 it was the terminus of the line from Auckland. Makatote Viaduct and tramway are about 3 mi (4.8 km) south of Erua.
History
Surveying for the route between Hīhītahi and Piriaka began in 1894.[3] From 1 April 1908 the line from Auckland was extended from National Park to Erua. That reduced the coach journey to the southern railhead at Ohakune to 14 mi (23 km).[4] From 1 May 1908 Erua was supplanted by Makatote as the railhead.[5] On 9 November 1908 NZR took over from the Public Works Department the Taumarunui to Erua line and on 14 February 1909, the line south to Waiouru.[6] Goods trains ran south from Erua from 7 January 1909.[7] Four 5-roomed houses and a 6th class station were built in 1908, with a 23 ft (7.0 m) by 11 ft (3.4 m) shelter shed and urinals on a 200 ft (61 m) by 15 ft (4.6 m) platform, a 20 ft (6.1 m) by 30 ft (9.1 m) goods shed with verandah, a loading bank, cattle and sheep yards and a cart approach. A passing loop could take 49 wagons. Erua was described as a tablet station from 1908. There was a Post Office at the station from 1912 to 1937.[8] Overnight, on 30 May 1921, the station burnt down.[9] It closed to goods traffic, except in wagon lots, on 11 August 1969 and to all traffic on 13 September 1986,[8] prior to electrification. There is now only a single line through the former station site.[10]
- Erua between 1912 and 1916
- Erua station about 1920
- Erua between 1912 and 1916. Already most of the bush shown in the 1908 photo had gone
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/35/Bush_scene_at_Erua%2C_with_timber%2C_bush_railway_lines%2C_and_steam_log_hauler_ATLIB_267644.png/220px-Bush_scene_at_Erua%2C_with_timber%2C_bush_railway_lines%2C_and_steam_log_hauler_ATLIB_267644.png)
Timber
Like the other stations along this part of NIMT, Erua had freight from several timber mills. To supply timber to the Frankton Junction Railway House Factory, a sawmill NZR opened a forestry block. 57 were working in it in 1924,[11] though the number was reduced from 1927[12] and it closed in 1928.[13] To work this block, NZR built a 4.2 km (2.6 mi) siding from Pokaka, which continued to have some use until about 1932.[14] A tablet lock was added to Karioi Sawmill Co.'s siding between Erua and Pokako in 1930.[15] There were several other timber companies at Erua, including Wanganui Sash and Door,[12] whose tramway closed in December 1956.[16] Waikune Prison had a sawmill near the station until 1927.[17]
Marton Sash and Door Tramway
Crighton Bros had a tramway, which ran about 11 km (6.8 mi) west from the station.[16] Some of the tramway became part of a 16 km (9.9 mi) Marton Sash and Door cycleway[18] in 2014.[19] The Marton mill at Erua burnt down in 1939,[20] though it still had a tramway in 1942.[11]
References
- ^ Scoble, Juliet. "Names & Opening & Closing Dates of Railway Stations in New Zealand 1863 to 2010" (PDF). Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 January 2018.
- ^ "Erua, Manawatu-Wanganui". NZ Topo Map. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ "THE RAURIMU SPIRAL. NEW ZEALAND HERALD". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 1 November 1929. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
- ^ "EVENING POST". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 31 March 1908. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
- ^ "READY BY CHRISTMAS. DOMINION". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 1 May 1908. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
- ^ "RAILWAYS STATEMENT. BY THE MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, THE HON, J. A, MILLAR". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 13 October 1909. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ "OUR VOLUNTEERS. WANGANUI HERALD". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 16 December 1908. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
- ^ a b "Stations" (PDF). NZR Rolling Stock Lists. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 10 August 2020.
- ^ "LOCAL AND GENERAL. MANAWATU TIMES". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 3 June 1921. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
- ^ "Manawatū Whanganui 0.3m Rural Aerial Photos (2016–2017)". basemaps.linz.govt.nz. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
- ^ a b "RAILWAY SAWMILLS. WAIKATO TIMES". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 27 December 1924. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
- ^ a b "DISMISSAL OF MEN. AUCKLAND STAR". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 2 April 1927. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
- ^ "STATE BUSH CLOSED. EVENING POST". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 9 April 1928. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
- ^ "Pōkākā Sawmills". NZ Railway Observer: 9–13. April 2021.
- ^ "RAILWAYS STATEMENT BY THE MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, THE HON. W. A. VEITCH". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 1930. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ a b New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas (Fourth ed.). Quail Map Co. 1993. ISBN 0-900609-92-3.
- ^ "NEW ZEALAND HERALD". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 28 September 1927. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
- ^ "Marton Sash and Door Tramway Trail Mountain Bike Trail, Ohakune, New Zealand". MTB Project. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
- ^ "Public Business" (PDF). Ruapehu District Council. 12 August 2014.
- ^ "SAWMILL FIRE. MANAWATU STANDARD". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 9 October 1939. Retrieved 6 January 2021.
External links
Photos – 1957 aerial view of the station and railway cottages