Mataura railway station is a dilapidated railway station in the New Zealand town of Mataura, in Southland. It was originally created in but after it was destroyed by fire in 1920, it was replaced by a new building that was completed in 1921. In 1996 Heritage New Zealand listed Mataura railway station as a Category 2 historic place.
Passenger services to the railway station ceased in 2002. It later fell into disrepair, having rotting weatherboards and boarded up windows and doors. In 2019 the Gore District Council voted to buy the railway station for $1 from KiwiRail under the condition that it be moved and restored, but in the following year the council abandoned these restoration efforts. In 2025 the Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand was announced as the new owner, and the building is expected to be restored.
History The first railway station in Mataura was opened , about five years after the South Island Main Trunk passed through the town. In 1913 there was a proposal to move the railway station to an unnamed location, but it faced community opposition and the move was never completed. On 11 May 1920 the railway station burnt down. The replacament building was completed in March 1921 and was designed by Sir George Troup, in what has been described as a "late Troup Vintage" style. The new building cost £1,696 and the verandah cost £600.
In 1982 the goods shed was removed. In 1996 Heritage New Zealand listed Mataura railway station as a Category 2 historic place. In 1998 the railway station building was partially restored, and from 1999 a cafe was in operation, but in 2002 passenger trains stopped using the station. In 2018 KiwiRail offered to sell the railway station to Gore District Council, as long as it moved the building, restored it and upgraded its earthquake-prone chimneys. The council voted to buy the building in 2019, but in 2022 the council ended its efforts to relocate and restore the building. The dilapidated building still had not been restored by 2024—it was reported then as having rotting weatherboards and boarded up windows and doors.
In August 2025 Winston Peters, the Minister for Rail, visited the station and announced the change of its ownership from KiwiRail to the Rail Heritage Trust of New Zealand. The trust's executive has stated that restoration of the building is scheduled to be completed in August 2027. In 2026 the Rail Heritage Trust reported that it was in search for signage used in the railway station a hundred years prior.
List
List of historic places in Gore District
References