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ALBUM - Gibbons and Harris locomotive at Bell Hill.1969.
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DescriptionWest Coast Tram : Believed to be a Gibbons and Harris 0-4-0 at Bell Hill in 1969 which I think was the Jack Bros and went north out of Kotuku - another supershot from Ray Mathewson.
Second and third pics Geoffrey Bell:
Nothing to do with the Midland Line, wrong Gauge. This photo is of two of Jack Bros' Locos at the Bell Hill Sawmill. They ran on a Maze of Tramlines from Kotuku to Bell Hill. Other Lines ran close to the area from Ruru and Te Kinga. This photo shows the rear Loco, a Johnson, in use at the Bell Hill Mill. Noel Nestor proudly standing in front. It is now at McLean's Island. AND
Another photo of the rear Loco at the Bell Hill Sawmill. Noel Nestor at the Helm.PhotographerRay MathewsonDate of Photo1969Map[1] ContributorClaire Ward
Second and third pics Geoffrey Bell:
Nothing to do with the Midland Line, wrong Gauge. This photo is of two of Jack Bros' Locos at the Bell Hill Sawmill. They ran on a Maze of Tramlines from Kotuku to Bell Hill. Other Lines ran close to the area from Ruru and Te Kinga. This photo shows the rear Loco, a Johnson, in use at the Bell Hill Mill. Noel Nestor proudly standing in front. It is now at McLean's Island. AND
Another photo of the rear Loco at the Bell Hill Sawmill. Noel Nestor at the Helm.PhotographerRay MathewsonDate of Photo1969Map[1] ContributorClaire Ward
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Location (city or town)Bell HillOrganisation (eg business)Gibbons and HarrisEventBush loco
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Category Tagtransport
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LinkFacebookDate Created2017-04-20CommentsClaire Ward Can anyone confirm the above, please? :)
Geoffrey Bell Nothing to do with the Midland Line, wrong Gauge. This photo is of two of Jack Bros' Locos at the Bell Hill Sawmill. They ran on a Maze of Tramlines from Kotuku to Bell Hill. Other Lines ran close to the area from Ruru and Te Kinga. This photo shows the rear Loco, a Johnson, in use at the Bell Hill Mill. Noel Nestor proudly standing in front. It is now at McLean's Island.
Don Hutton Is this it?
Geoffrey Bell No Don Hutton. They were both Ogilvie's from Gladstone.
James Codyre Seems strange the locos had not been scavenged for scrap metal by 1969?Many others from the Ngahere, Nelson Creek,and Bell Hill area would be in Jap steel works by then?
Geoffrey Bell Another photo of the rear Loco at the Bell Hill Sawmill. Noel Nestor at the Helm.
No automatic alt text available.
Like · Reply · 1 · April 18 at 1:46pm
Don Hutton
Don Hutton Geoffrey Bell Would this loco have still been in use in that area in 1957 - 58? I remember seeing bush locos when surveying in the Kokiri to Bell Hill area. Where available, some of the older rights of way were useful for getting across the pakahi swamps we were measuring up for redevelopment.
Geoffrey Bell No Don Hutton, not in use then. The Mill closed in 1955 and the two Locos in the photo were parked up by the Mill. My father and Dutchy Gillman had leased the Mill off Jack Bros in the 1940's., Dutchy ran the Bush and my father ran the Mill.
Don Hutton Had all the bush trams in that general area stopped by 1957 - 58? Even over towards Ruru & Te Kinga ?
Like · Reply · April 18 at 6:41pm
Geoffrey Bell
Geoffrey Bell I think the trams at Te Kinga went for longer Don Hutton, but I can't be sure. This one from Recollect shows Te Kinga Hill in the background, but no date.
Don Hutton That looks very much like the one I saw. The fact that the photo is in colour suggests it could be late 1950s or 1960s. Most of us probably didn't use colour films before c.1955.
Like · Reply · 1 · Yesterday at 8:50am
Don Hutton
Don Hutton PS It's a great historic photo!
Geoffrey Bell That Loco is now at Ferrymead Don.
Don Hutton This is the sort of clear felled country the Lands & Survey used to redevelop into "Farm Settlements" in the 1950s & 60s. We had to redefine the old boundaries. The look of dryness here is deceptive. Off the tram tracks it was often wet and boggy. Thankfully the old surveyors had used very substantial marking pegs (totara? silver pine?) which stood up to the wet conditions pretty well.
James Codyre The old tram tracks gave good walking access for shooting and possuming.One line went along the base of Bell Hill and Brian O'Lynn behind where the Cooperites are now behind Lake Haupiri.
Geoffrey Bell Correct James Codyre. I used to do the same on the Cameron's Tram. From Camerons to the old Foley's Creek Mill, then a short distance to Bain Bay at Lake Brunner.
James Codyre A few mills used tramways still in the 50's.New Forest Sawmills where I worked still had a steam Loco for shunting and railing timber waggons about a mile down to Ngahere Station.Before that had tram lines running out to the Lake Hochstetter area and the Kangaroo behind Nelson Creek that closed in the late 50's or early 60's.Gibson's had trams running up Redjacks Creek when I was growing up and used rail tractors to pull the log bogies.Bushmen went to work in a converted Model A that dragged a pole when going up "The Big Hill""to stop it running away backwards.
Claire Ward Steve Watts
Wayne Garraway Just showed this pic to mum and can only remember horse taking the timber on the tramline from the mill to the mainline.
Geoffrey Bell Wayne Garraway. Although this map depicts the Kotuku Oil Wells, it does show the Tram that ran from Jack's Mill across Molloy's farm to the Kotuku Railway Siding. Would this be the Tram Line your mum was talking about?
No automatic alt text available.
Like · Reply · 1 · 9 hrs
Wayne Garraway
Wayne Garraway Correct Geoffrey Bell. Mum can only every remember horses being used on the tramline between the station siding and the Mill. She said Pop Johns looked after the horses.
Geoffrey Bell Wayne, I had a copy of a photo of a Loco towing timber to the Station, taken in the middle of Molloy's farm. I have hunted but can't find it now.
Wayne Garraway Maybe they upgraded the tramline at a later date.
Geoffrey Bell What you say has me thinking Wayne. I always thought the tram had wooden rails, so that wouldn't be suitable for a Loco to run on. I was told the photo of the Loco was on Molloy's farm, but it may not have been. More research I think.
\
Wayne Garraway Yes me too. I think I have a photo of horse on the line.
Don Hutton Geoffrey Bell Is that the date of the map on the right below the frame? I can't quite make it out so hope you might. Thanks!
Geoffrey Bell Don Hutton. Sorry Don I can't make it out either. But I would say it was about 1905, give or take a couple of years. The reasons being are that there is no road from where the School is now through Molloy's Farm to the Railway Station and also the Bell Hill and No Town Roads are not formed, only Pack Tracks.
Don Hutton Geoffrey Bell I've compared the oil map with the current NZ Topo50 BU20 Moana and think it's probable the operating bush tram I saw was somewhere along the Kotuku - Bell Hill Road. One of the blocks we worked on was just west of Bell Hill where there was a top dressing airstrip which I see is still there today. Unfortunately the bush tram tracks on the oil map don't extend quite that far and the topo map doesn't show where the disused rights of way are.
Geoffrey Bell Nothing to do with the Midland Line, wrong Gauge. This photo is of two of Jack Bros' Locos at the Bell Hill Sawmill. They ran on a Maze of Tramlines from Kotuku to Bell Hill. Other Lines ran close to the area from Ruru and Te Kinga. This photo shows the rear Loco, a Johnson, in use at the Bell Hill Mill. Noel Nestor proudly standing in front. It is now at McLean's Island.
Don Hutton Is this it?
Geoffrey Bell No Don Hutton. They were both Ogilvie's from Gladstone.
James Codyre Seems strange the locos had not been scavenged for scrap metal by 1969?Many others from the Ngahere, Nelson Creek,and Bell Hill area would be in Jap steel works by then?
Geoffrey Bell Another photo of the rear Loco at the Bell Hill Sawmill. Noel Nestor at the Helm.
No automatic alt text available.
Like · Reply · 1 · April 18 at 1:46pm
Don Hutton
Don Hutton Geoffrey Bell Would this loco have still been in use in that area in 1957 - 58? I remember seeing bush locos when surveying in the Kokiri to Bell Hill area. Where available, some of the older rights of way were useful for getting across the pakahi swamps we were measuring up for redevelopment.
Geoffrey Bell No Don Hutton, not in use then. The Mill closed in 1955 and the two Locos in the photo were parked up by the Mill. My father and Dutchy Gillman had leased the Mill off Jack Bros in the 1940's., Dutchy ran the Bush and my father ran the Mill.
Don Hutton Had all the bush trams in that general area stopped by 1957 - 58? Even over towards Ruru & Te Kinga ?
Like · Reply · April 18 at 6:41pm
Geoffrey Bell
Geoffrey Bell I think the trams at Te Kinga went for longer Don Hutton, but I can't be sure. This one from Recollect shows Te Kinga Hill in the background, but no date.
Don Hutton That looks very much like the one I saw. The fact that the photo is in colour suggests it could be late 1950s or 1960s. Most of us probably didn't use colour films before c.1955.
Like · Reply · 1 · Yesterday at 8:50am
Don Hutton
Don Hutton PS It's a great historic photo!
Geoffrey Bell That Loco is now at Ferrymead Don.
Don Hutton This is the sort of clear felled country the Lands & Survey used to redevelop into "Farm Settlements" in the 1950s & 60s. We had to redefine the old boundaries. The look of dryness here is deceptive. Off the tram tracks it was often wet and boggy. Thankfully the old surveyors had used very substantial marking pegs (totara? silver pine?) which stood up to the wet conditions pretty well.
James Codyre The old tram tracks gave good walking access for shooting and possuming.One line went along the base of Bell Hill and Brian O'Lynn behind where the Cooperites are now behind Lake Haupiri.
Geoffrey Bell Correct James Codyre. I used to do the same on the Cameron's Tram. From Camerons to the old Foley's Creek Mill, then a short distance to Bain Bay at Lake Brunner.
James Codyre A few mills used tramways still in the 50's.New Forest Sawmills where I worked still had a steam Loco for shunting and railing timber waggons about a mile down to Ngahere Station.Before that had tram lines running out to the Lake Hochstetter area and the Kangaroo behind Nelson Creek that closed in the late 50's or early 60's.Gibson's had trams running up Redjacks Creek when I was growing up and used rail tractors to pull the log bogies.Bushmen went to work in a converted Model A that dragged a pole when going up "The Big Hill""to stop it running away backwards.
Claire Ward Steve Watts
Wayne Garraway Just showed this pic to mum and can only remember horse taking the timber on the tramline from the mill to the mainline.
Geoffrey Bell Wayne Garraway. Although this map depicts the Kotuku Oil Wells, it does show the Tram that ran from Jack's Mill across Molloy's farm to the Kotuku Railway Siding. Would this be the Tram Line your mum was talking about?
No automatic alt text available.
Like · Reply · 1 · 9 hrs
Wayne Garraway
Wayne Garraway Correct Geoffrey Bell. Mum can only every remember horses being used on the tramline between the station siding and the Mill. She said Pop Johns looked after the horses.
Geoffrey Bell Wayne, I had a copy of a photo of a Loco towing timber to the Station, taken in the middle of Molloy's farm. I have hunted but can't find it now.
Wayne Garraway Maybe they upgraded the tramline at a later date.
Geoffrey Bell What you say has me thinking Wayne. I always thought the tram had wooden rails, so that wouldn't be suitable for a Loco to run on. I was told the photo of the Loco was on Molloy's farm, but it may not have been. More research I think.
\
Wayne Garraway Yes me too. I think I have a photo of horse on the line.
Don Hutton Geoffrey Bell Is that the date of the map on the right below the frame? I can't quite make it out so hope you might. Thanks!
Geoffrey Bell Don Hutton. Sorry Don I can't make it out either. But I would say it was about 1905, give or take a couple of years. The reasons being are that there is no road from where the School is now through Molloy's Farm to the Railway Station and also the Bell Hill and No Town Roads are not formed, only Pack Tracks.
Don Hutton Geoffrey Bell I've compared the oil map with the current NZ Topo50 BU20 Moana and think it's probable the operating bush tram I saw was somewhere along the Kotuku - Bell Hill Road. One of the blocks we worked on was just west of Bell Hill where there was a top dressing airstrip which I see is still there today. Unfortunately the bush tram tracks on the oil map don't extend quite that far and the topo map doesn't show where the disused rights of way are.
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West Coast New Zealand History (27th Dec 2023). ALBUM - Gibbons and Harris locomotive at Bell Hill.1969.. In Website West Coast New Zealand History. Retrieved 7th Jun 2026 21:46, from https://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/19928