Moerewa railway station

Moerewa railway station
Moerewa in 1962
General information
LocationNew Zealand
Coordinates35°23′13″S 174°01′27″E / 35.3870°S 174.0242°E / -35.3870; 174.0242
Elevation61 ft (19 m)
Line(s)Opua Branch
History
Opened29 April 1912 (1912-04-29)
Closed21 June 1976
Services
Preceding station   Historical railways   Following station
Otiria
Line closed,
station closed
2.83 km (1.76 mi) towards Whangārei 		  Opua Branch
NZR 		  Kawakawa
Line closed,
station open
3.76 km (2.34 mi) towards Opua

Moerewa railway station was a flag station at Moerewa on the Opua Branch of the North Auckland Line in New Zealand.

The portion of the Opua–Grahamtown Line from Kawakawa to what was then called Scoria Flat[1] was finished about 1905. In May 1908 it was noted that trains ran to Scoria Flat about once a week, as there were no houses and "what little traffic arises is almost solely from villages further inland." By 1909 plans were being made for stockyards and a gravel pit, but on 23 December 1910 the Minister of Public Works decided to abandon the station at Scoria Flat and move the shelter shed, platform, goods shed, loading bank, small stockyards, 2 x 400 gallon tanks and sidings to Otiria Junction, "as the site was found unsuitable for the junction of the Kaikohe Branch." Bay of Islands County Council and others asked for the station to be reinstated,[2] but that didn't happen until the Kauri Timber Company negotiated for a site for a sawmill.[3]

On 14 July 1910 the Public Works Department connected the rails from Whangārei to Kawakawa. On 31 March 1911 the Towai–Kawakawa Section got a certificate of Inspection, as safe for traffic at 20 mph (32 km/h).[2] The line from Whangārei was officially opened on Thursday 13 April 1911.[4] Waipuna, as it was then known, didn't become a stopping place on the line until 29 April 1912.[5] In 1921 trains took about 3½ hours to cover the 43 mi 54 ch (70.3 km) from Whangārei.[6] From December 1925 to November 1956 the Auckland–Opua Northland Express called.[7] Mixed trains continued a passenger service until 18 June 1976.[8] The line from Otiria to Opua ceased to be used in 1985.[9]

The Post Office, named Moerewa,[10] moved from the sawmill to the station from 1 July 1914 to February 1934. Affco Meat Works opened in 1922,[11] and had sidings from about 1925.[12] By 1938 it was reported that heavy trains left Whangārei most evenings with stock for the freezing works.[13] The station burnt down on 13 February 1926[14] and a letter in 1936 complained that only a shed replaced it.[15] The sawmill closed in 1927.[16] Moerewa Dairy Factory opened in 1929[17] A small office, shelter shed[18] and a platform remained in 1962.[19] By 1964 the passing loop could hold 42 wagons. From 16 March 1969 only private siding traffic remained.[2] The rails were lifted in 1993.[20] Pou Herenga Tai – Twin Coast Cycle Trail opened through the station site in 2017.[21]

  • Log train near Moerewa in 1924
    Log train near Moerewa in 1924
  1. ^ "Railway extension. New Zealand Herald". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 27 March 1911. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Scoble, Juliet. "Station Archive". Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand.
  3. ^ "Timber traffic. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 30 October 1911. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  4. ^ "Towai-Kawakawa Railway Section. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 15 April 1911. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  5. ^ "Local and general. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 26 April 1912. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  6. ^ "The freezing works idea. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 25 August 1921. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  7. ^ J. D. Mahoney, Kings of the Iron Road: Steam Passenger Trains of New Zealand (Palmerston North: Dunmore Press, 1982), 13.
  8. ^ Churchman & Hurst 2001, p. 96.
  9. ^ Churchman & Hurst 2001, p. 95.
  10. ^ "Waipuna. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 3 July 1914. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  11. ^ "The advance of North Auckland: the Moerewa Freezing Works, which were opened last week Auckland Weekly News". kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz. 6 April 1922. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  12. ^ "Private siding at Moerewa for Auckland Farmers' Freezing Co, 1925". MOTAT Collection Online. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  13. ^ "Heavy stock killings. New Zealand Herald". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 19 January 1938. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  14. ^ "Local and general. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 15 February 1926. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  15. ^ "Moerewa's requirements. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 8 October 1936. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  16. ^ "Local and general. Northern Advocate". paperspast.natlib.govt.nz. 6 August 1927. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  17. ^ "Bay of Islands Co-operative Dairy Company Limited". Massey University Library. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  18. ^ "Moerewa Rail Station". www.facebook.com. 20 May 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  19. ^ "Moerewa, Bay of Islands". natlib.govt.nz. 21 May 1962. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  20. ^ "NAL Business Case" (PDF). 9 May 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  21. ^ "Northland's Twin Coast Trail opens". NZ Herald. 7 January 2017. Retrieved 6 July 2024.