The Onerahi Branch, sometimes known as the Grahamstown Railway, was a branch line railway in the Northland Region of New Zealand. It operated from 1911 until 1933 and linked the city of Whangarei to the nearby harbour in Onerahi. A branch line is a relatively minor railway line which branches off a more important through route. ... The Northland Region, one of the regions of New Zealand, is, as the name suggests, the northernmost of New Zealands administrative regions. ... 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... Whangarei (the initial consonant is often prounounced F) is the northernmost city in New Zealand and the regional capital of Northland Region. ...

History

In the early 1880s, a wharf near the city of Whangarei had been established in the upper reaches of Whangarei Harbour. Roughly twenty years later, the maintenance bill was rising and the wharf's inadequacies were being revealed as it was too shallow for some vessels to access. The deep-water wharves in nearby Onerahi were considerably more desirable, and in 1899, approval was granted to extend the railway from Whangarei to Onerahi. It took until July 1901 for construction to actually get underway, and in May 1902, a contract was let to build a bridge across the Whangarei Harbour. It was to be 323 metres long and incorporate a central lifting span, and construction progressed steadily, with completion achieved in 1904. It wasn't long before the bridge was nicknamed the Gull Roost, for obvious reasons. // Events and Trends Technology Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ... 1899 (MDCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1901 (MCMI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... 1902 (MCMII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1904 (MCMIV) was a leap year starting on a Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Genera Pagophila Larus Rissa Creagus Xema Rhodostethia Gulls are seabirds in the family Laridae. ...

Some work continued for two years after the bridge was finished, but then construction ground to a halt in 1906 and no more work was done for four years. It finally recommenced during 1910 and the line was finished the next year. It came into the possession of the Railways Department on 2 October 1911. At this time, it was the southern end of the isolated Whangarei railway network that extended northwards to Okaihau and Opua, though construction of the North Auckland Line that would link the isolated section to Auckland and the national rail network was underway. 1906 (MCMVI) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... -1... October 2 is the 275th day (276th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 90 days remaining. ... 1911 (MCMXI) was a common year starting on Sunday (click on link for calendar). ... The Okaihau Branch, sometimes known as the Kaikohe Branch and rarely as the Rangiahua Branch, was a branch line railway that joined with the national rail network of New Zealand at the northern terminus of the North Auckland Line in Otiria. ... The North Auckland Line is a major railway line in New Zealands national rail network. ... Auckland, in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest urban area in New Zealand. ... // National Rail Network The national rail network (currently owned by a State-Owned Enterprise, the New Zealand Railways Corporation) was constructed largely by government entities from 1863 onwards. ...

Operation

For over a decade, the Onerahi Branch was a very busy line. When it opened, the primary route of transportation between Auckland and Whangarei for both passengers and freight involved a steamer between Auckland and Onerahi and the train from Onerahi into Whangarei. Trains ran to connect with the steamers, with both dedicated goods services and "mixed" trains of both passengers and freight operating. It has been suggested that paddle steamers be merged into this article or section. ...

In 1925, the North Auckland Line was completed, establishing a direct railway link from Whangarei to Auckland. This was far superior to the coastal steamers and both passenger and freight traffic on the Onerahi Branch rapidly spiralled downwards. The condition of the wharf was also declining, and when the Great Depression set in, there was no reason to continue operating the railway and it closed on 30 June 1933. In 1937, the wharf was removed. 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar). ... Dorothea Langes Migrant Mother depicts destitute pea pickers in California, centering on Florence Owens Thompson, a mother of seven children, age twenty-nine, in Nipomo, California, March 1936. ... June 30 is the 181st day of the year (182nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 184 days remaining. ... 1933 (MCMXXXIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ...

The branch today

Unfortunately, the Gull Roost bridge no longer exists, but some of the track has been converted into a public walking track, the Waimahanga Walkway. It includes the use of old railway bridge piers to support footbridges over two creeks. Some other formation unused by the walkway is also visible.

Similar proposals

Interestingly, in the 1970s, two proposal to build a similar branch line from Whangarei to a deepwater port were made. This line was to closely follow the route of a much earlier proposed line that was nearly built. In 1914, a railway was surveyed to run south from Whangarei to Waipu Cove, and although World War I delayed the start of any work, the construction of formation was in progress in 1920. However, in 1924, construction was abandoned without any track laid as road transportation was beginning to compete with rail and an insignificant branch to serve local farming interests was no longer seen as necessary. The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... 1914 (MCMXIV) was a common year starting on Thursday. ... Combatants Allies: • Serbia, • Russia, • France, • Romania, • Belgium, • British Empire and Dominions, • United States, • Italy, • ...and others Central Powers: • Germany, • Austria-Hungary, • Ottoman Empire, • Bulgaria Casualties 5 million military, 3 million civilian (full list) 3 million military, 3 million civilian (full list) World War I, also known as the First World... 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday (link will take you to calendar) // Events January January 7 - Forces of Russian White admiral Kolchak surrender in Krasnoyarsk. ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

Many years later, a deepwater harbour was established at nearby Marsden Point as an oil port, and after the 1973 oil crisis, it was proposed to convert the nearby Marsden B Power Station to use coal from the Waikato. The railways have always carried significant tonnages of Waikato coal, and this proposal would have certainly required a railway link had it come to fruition. At the height of the crisis in the United States, drivers of vehicles with odd numbered license plates were allowed to purchase gasoline only on odd-numbered days of the month, while drivers with even-numbers were limited to even-numbered days. ... Waikato is the name of a region in the North Island of New Zealand. ...

In 1979, another proposal was made; it was suggested that Marsden Point could be used to serve forestry export interests. New Zealand's railways carry significant bulk quantities of forestry products and a fourteen kilometre branch from the North Auckland Line was proposed. To this day, this remains as merely a proposal and no line has been built to the Marsden Point wharves. This page refers to the year 1979. ...

References

• Churchman, Geoffrey B., and Hurst, Tony; The Railways Of New Zealand: A Journey Through History, HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand), 1991 reprint
• Leitch, David, and Scott, Brian; Exploring New Zealand's Ghost Railways, Grantham House, 1998 revised edition