Waimahaka is a locality in the

Southland Southland may refer to: Places Canada * Dunbar–Southlands, Vancouver, British Columbia New Zealand * Southland Region, a region of New Zealand * Southland County, a former New Zealand county * Southland District, part of the wider Southland Re ...

region of New Zealand's

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

. It is situated in a rural area, inland from

Toetoes Bay Toetoes Bay is the easternmost of three large bays lying on the Foveaux Strait coast of Southland, New Zealand, the others being Te Waewae Bay and Oreti Beach. The 240 km Mataura River drains to sea at Toetoes Bay, first passing through the ...

. Nearby settlements include Pine Bush and Titiroa to the northwest,

Fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

and Te Peka to the east, Pukewao and Tokanui to the southwest, and

Fortrose Fortrose (; gd, A' Chananaich, sco, Chainry) is a town and former royal burgh in Highland, Scotland, United Kingdom. It is on the Moray Firth, about north-east of Inverness. The burgh is a popular location for trying to spot bottlenose dolp ...

on the coast to the south.

Railway

On 18 June 1899, an extension of the Seaward Bush Branch was opened from

Gorge Road Gorge Road is a locality in the Southland region of New Zealand's South Island. It is on the Southern Scenic Route and is situated on the western bank of the Mataura River. Nearby settlements include Ashers to the west, and across the Mataura ...

to Waimahaka.''New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas'', fourth edition, edited by John Yonge (Essex: Quail Map Company, 1993), 30. This

branch line A branch line is a phrase used in railway terminology to denote a secondary railway line which branches off a more important through route, usually a main line. A very short branch line may be called a spur line. Industrial spur An industri ...

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

linked Waimahaka with

Invercargill Invercargill ( , mi, Waihōpai is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. The city lies in the heart of the wide expanse of t ...

, and an

engine shed The motive power depot (MPD) or locomotive depot, or traction maintenance depot (TMD), is the place where locomotives are usually housed, repaired and maintained when not being used. They were originally known as "running sheds", "engine shed ...

, locomotive turntable, and

goods shed A goods shed is a railway building designed for storing goods before or after carriage in a train. A typical goods shed will have a track running through it to allow goods wagons to be unloaded under cover, although sometimes they were built ...

were established at the Waimahaka station.David Leitch and Brian Scott, ''Exploring New Zealand's Ghost Railways'', revised edition (Wellington: Grantham House, 1998

995 Year 995 ( CMXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Japan * 17 May - Fujiwara no Michitaka (imperial regent) dies. * 3 June: Fujiwara no Michikane gain ...

, 125-6. The opening of the railway allowed Waimahaka to develop at the expense of Fortrose, as the railway provided quicker transport to

than the vessels that called at Fortrose's small port.Catlins Promotions Association
"History - Fortrose"
accessed 15 November 2007. On 20 December 1911, the railway was extended to Tokanui and Waimahaka's engine facilities were transferred there. Passengers and freight were carried together on

mixed train A mixed train or mixed consist is a train that contains both passenger and freight cars or wagons. Although common in the early days of railways, by the 20th century they were largely confined to branch lines with little traffic. Typically, servic ...

s that ran daily to and from Invercargill. In 1951, these were cut to operate just once per week, mainly for the benefit of families employed by the Railways Department who lived in the area; goods-only trains operated on other days. On 1 June 1960, passenger services were fully cancelled and trains through Waimahaka catered solely for freight until the line officially closed on 31 March 1966 as freight levels had not been profitable for years. The station platform and loading bank remain identifiable, and the goods shed has been refurbished for other uses. Some of the line's old

formation Formation may refer to: Linguistics * Back-formation, the process of creating a new lexeme by removing or affixes * Word formation, the creation of a new word by adding affixes Mathematics and science * Cave formation or speleothem, a secondar ...

can still be seen in the vicinity of Waimahaka.

Education

Waimahaka has a small primary school. Named Waimahaka School, it had sixteen students on its roll as of 2007.Te Kepe Ipurangi
"School Information: Waimahaka School"
accessed 16 November 2007. The school is well resourced with netball courts, a rugby field, and a covered swimming pool, heated with solar panels. The library is extensive boasting over 3,000 books. The classroom has an interactive whiteboard and a computer for every child. The school has fast high-speed wireless internet. ERO has visited recently and given the school a good report.

References

{{Southland District Populated places in Southland, New Zealand The Catlins Southland District