Freight Wagons

Saturday 25th October 2025 ((From 3:00pm ’til 8:00pm))

2 Ton Lift Hand Crane

This unidentified hand crane is on long term lease to us from the Cantebury Railway Society. Its a 2 Ton lift crane that is worked not by steam, diesel, electricity or air, but instead by sheer man power!

It is unknown when this crane was built, but if the axle-box dates are anything to go by it dates from the 1870’s.

5 Ton Lift Steam Crane

Our Steam Crane came to us from the Oamaru Harbour Board, where it had been used working the wharves, in 1978.

The crane was used extensively in the earlier years of The Plains Railway, mainly for lifting out and dropping in new track sets when a section of the line needed re-railing.

As well as being able to lift and turn around using steam power, the crane is self propelled – albeit at a very slow speed.

Our steam crane has been out of action since the 1990’s after part of the slewing gear became seized.

Coaling Crane 360

Coaling Cranes were once a vital part of the railway system, without them coaling a steam locomotive was an extremely labour intensive process. Coaling cranes, our one included, were usually air operated – they would be connected to the locomotives braking system when it was time to coal up and the air from the locomotives brake would be used to lower the crane up and down to pick up the coal ‘tubs’ full of coal. Our coaling crane came to us in 1987 from Invercargill.

Our crane was originally built as crane number 301 and was in service in 1911 before being written off in 1925 when it was damaged. It is assumed that during this period it spent its life at Invercargill as it did after its 1926 rebuild when it became crane number 360. It is recorded at being at the Invercargill shops in 1933 and was noted in 1979 as not requiring one of the new ‘TMS’ type computer generated numbers as it was confined to the Invercargill depot.

How our crane survived the steam era and was still to be found intact in Invercargill in 1987, some 15 years after the end of steam is a bit of a mystery! But one that has allowed us to preserve what is an unusual type of coaling crane compared to the ‘counterbalanced’ types that are more common in preservation. In order to balance the crane ours instead rests on a large hunk of concrete that sits atop its wagon.
Coaling Crane 360 is currently unoperational and awaiting restoration.

More About THE PLAINS VINTAGE RAILWAY & HISTORICAL MUSEUM HISTORY

The branch was opened in sections, to Westerfield at 13.39 kilometres in April 1880, to Anama at 30.9 kilometres in October 1882 and onto Cavendish at 35.02 kilometres from the junction at Tinwald in March of 1884. The line originally terminated here, on the south bank of the Ashburton River. However, the decision was made to extend the line 2.58 kilometres to the township of Mt Somers, a bridge was built over the Ashburton River and the line opened in October 1885. The termination of the line at this point, still relied on cartage of coal and lime to Mt Somer's township, from the bush tramway built behind the Mountain. For this reason the line was extended a further 5.5 kilometres to Springburn which opened in September 1889, bringing the branches total length to 43.17 kilometres.

The branch operated a daily 'mixed train' - that is to say a train carrying both goods and passengers - for almost half a century, before roading improvements saw the decline in passenger numbers leading to the closure of the line to passengers in 1933. The branch continued to see less and less traffic, until World War II. A military camp was opened at Westerfield which saw military passenger services and and increase in general freight for the duration of the war. However, this traffic increased proved to be a spike, and after the war the traffic returned to its pre-war levels. This led to trains being run from Ashburton, instead of the branches western terminus of Springburn, and a reduction in services to two per week down from daily. Closure of the Mt Somers - Springburn section was first mentioned in 1930, and in 1957 the Railways Department closed this section to all traffic. The continual decrease in traffic saw the entire line closed to traffic in January 1968, however wheat trains continued to run from a small country station named 'Valetta' until April of the same year.

Work on tearing up the line started at the Mt Somers end, and made its way down the remaining track towards Tinwald not long before 1970. With the closing of the Mt Somers/Springburn branch in 1968 a small group of local enthusiasts who belonged to the local model engineers decided to try and save a small portion of the branch line with the intention to run a steam train on it for the locals and visitors. A public meeting was held and the “Ashburton Railway & Preservation Society Incorporated” was officially formed on the 4th June 1971, with the goal to preserve and operate a vintage train as well as to display some of the local agricultural history of Mid Canterbury. After negotiations with New Zealand Railways, a 50 chain portion was purchased, and later a further portion of the line, bringing the total distance to a mile from Tinwald, to Frasers Road, about 2.5km. The section from the South Island Main Trunk to the Plains Railway’s section, including the mainline turnout, was retained by the Railways Department, later Tranz Rail and now Kiwi Rail.

The Society at this time, also gained a motorised trolley jigger, an un-restored ‘A’ class carriage (36 seater ‘A’ 184, built at Addington Workshops in 1913), a wooden sided M Wagon, and were negotiating the purchase of the last steam locomotive in service through Ashburton (Ja 1260) which pulled the Friday and Sunday evening “midnight” express service from Christchurch to Invercargill, from the NZR.

Other donated and loaned exhibits were housed in Ashburton’s Pioneer Hall. A two road Engine Shed, complete with a concrete inspection pit, was built from donated and recycled Materials from an old Railway shed on West Street.

The Minister of Railways at the time was Mr Tom McGuigan officially opened “The Plains Railway”, by driving the last golden spike into the line in 1973. A ceremonial trip was then run with all the official guests on board, including the Deputy Mayor Mr L R McNally, Member of Parliament R Talbot, and Society President John French, travelling in the 1913 Carriage towed by the then 100 year old Dubs Locomotive. Tom McGuigan is quoted as saying, “Not everything can or even should be preserved, but there are certain things which are highly significant of an event or an era. The steam train is a fine example of such things, not only because of the large and important role it played in this country’s development, but also because it was – and indeed remains – something which fascinates people of all ages”. The Gala Opening was attended by hundreds of visitors, who enjoyed a ride on the train, traction engines and a hand-powered jigger, along with other restored vehicles.

Alongside the railway The Plains also operates vintage and historic farm machinery to grow crops on the agricultural land owned by the Museum. This machinery includes traction engines, harversters, ploughs and even an old style Threshing Machine.