Denniston is a small settlement in the northwestern South Island of New Zealand. The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island in the West Coast region. Naming To New Zealanders the term 'The Coast' generally refers to the West Coast of the South Island, and 'Coasters' to those that live there It is on the small Mount Rochfort Plateau in the Papahaua Ranges 600 metres above sea level, 18 kilometres north-east of Westport. The Papahaua Range is a mountain range on the West Coast of New Zealand 's South Island east of the town of Westport. Westport is a town in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand.
During the early years of the 20th century Denniston's population was close to 2000, due to the large coal mine close to the town. Mining is the extraction of valuable Minerals or other geological materials from the earth usually (but not always from an Ore body It is now little more than a ghost town, with a population of less than 50. A ghost town is a Town or City that has been abandoned usually because the economic activity that supported it has failed or due to natural or human-caused The location, history and fate of Denniston are similar to those of Millerton, New Zealand. Millerton is a small settlement in the northwestern South Island of New Zealand in the West Coast region.
Denniston's main noteworthiness was for its mine railway, the Denniston Incline connecting with the the Conns Creek branch line [1]. The Conns Creek Branch was a short Branch line Railway in the West Coast region of New Zealand 's South Island. Opened in 1879 [2][3]and operating until 1968 [4], the incline was gravity operated, with full loads of coal descending, returning empty wagons to the plateau. Year 1879 ( MDCCCLXXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common Year 1968 ( MCMLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Data about its grade varies: according to the Solid Energy web site it fell 330 metres in 1. 8 kilometres, while Westcoast.org says 510 metres in 1. 7 kilometres. Some sections had gradients steeper than 1 in 1. 3. The incline had many accidents, frequently with loss of life.
Coal is still mined in the area, at the Stockton coal field. Stockton is a small settlement in the northwestern South Island of New Zealand in the West Coast region.
References
- ^ NZ rail geography
- ^ Coal and coal mining - The 19th century - Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand
- ^ Buller Development Company - Denniston
- ^ [1]
External links
- Te Ara Encyclopaedia: Coal Mining & the Dennison Incline (video)
- NZ Institute of Professional Engineers Heritage page on Denniston Incline
- Photos of Denniston and the coalhead as it is today
- Photos of Denniston and the coalhead as it was.
- Details on the operation of the Incline.
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