Thorndon Railway Station

Thorndon
WMR then NZR
Owned by	Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company (WMR) then New Zealand Railways Department (NZR)
Line(s)	Wellington-Manawatu Line
Platforms	Side
Tracks	Siding (1)
History
Opened	24 September 1885
Closed	8 June 1937

Thorndon Railway Station in Wellington, New Zealand was opened in 1885 as the southern terminus of the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company’s Wellington-Manawatu Line. This line is now part of the Kapiti section of the North Island Main Trunk.

The station had one side platform, and was lit by electricity. It was off Thorndon Quay just north of Davis Street, and once had a tramway stop.

The station was the main terminus for the WMR, so had a goods yard, engine shed, workshop and maintenance facilities. It was built on reclaimed land. The company was allocated 19 of the 30 acres of reclamation, made with spoil from the tunnels.

Passenger trains were run to the Longburn terminus, and also local trains via Johnsonville to Porirua or Paekakariki. By 1908 there were seven local trains each way on weekdays and Saturdays, and one each way on Sunday.

History

The Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company (WMR) was established in 1881 to build the second or West Coast line out of Wellington after the new Government decided to postpone the project. The line was opened to Plimmerton in October 1885 and to the Longburn terminus in November 1886. The WMR had planned to share the two terminal stations at Wellington and Longburn with the New Zealand Railways Department, but because of government procrastination had to build its own stations. Thorndon station was built in 1883, but was not put into use until 1885 (Churchman).

The Government took over the WMR in December 1908, but retained two adjacent stations in Wellington, Thorndon and Lambton until June 1937 when the new Wellington Railway Station was opened. Thorndon closed on 8 June.

References

Cassells, K.R. (1994). Uncommon Carrier: The History of the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company, 1882-1908. Wellington: NZRLS. pp. 55, 148 and 149. ISBN 0-908573-63-4.
Churchman, Geoffrey B. (1988). The Story of the Wellington to Johnsonville Railway. Wellington: Industrial Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-9597832-1-0.
Hoy, Douglas (1972). West of the Tararuas: An Illustrated History of the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. Wellington: Southern Press. pp. 33 and 53–54.

External links

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