 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (July 2017) |
| Dun Mountain Railway | |
|---|---|
 Dun Mountain Railway | |
| Overview | |
| Status | Closed |
| Owner | Dun Mountain Company Robert Levien Moses Crewdson Jonathan Harle Nelson City Council |
| Locale | Nelson, New Zealand |
| Termini |
|
| Stations | 2 (passenger) 4 (freight) |
| Service | |
| Type | Tramway |
| Operator(s) | Dun Mountain Company Thomas Nesbitt James McConkey William Weeden and Alfred Brind Bray Bros. William Taylor Stevenson and McGlashan Thomas Newton Robert Levien Moses Crewdson Jonathan Harle Nelson City Council |
| History | |
| Opened | 3 February 1862 |
| Closed | January 1866 (freight) 30 May 1901 (passenger) |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 21.5 km (13.4 mi) (original) 1.8 km (1.1 mi) (subsequent to the closure and lifting of the incline) |
| Character | mountainous, suburban |
| Track gauge | 3 ft (914 mm) |
The Dun Mountain Railway was a privately owned and operated 3 ft (914 mm) narrow gauge, 21.5 km (13.4 mi) long horse-drawn tramway from chromite mines in the vicinity of Duppa Lode on the eastern slopes of Wooded Peak to Nelson port in the Tasman District of New Zealand's South Island. It operated from 3 February 1862 to 30 May 1901, with the last mineral traffic on the incline section operated in January 1866.
This line was the first "railway" to be opened and operated in New Zealand, preceding the first public railway and the first railway to be operated by steam trains, the line between Ferrymead and Christchurch, which opened on 1 December 1863. The city of Nelson had the first city tramway to both open and close in New Zealand.