Southland Group Restoring Historic F150 Steam Train

A group of Southland train lovers are working hard to bring a piece of railway history back to life. The F150 steam locomotive, built in Glasgow in the late 1800s, was once one of the most widely used trains in New Zealand and is now being restored by the Southern Steam Charitable Trust.

The locomotive, part of the F class, was retired in the 1950s and later used as a playground feature in Invercargill. Over the decades, it toured across the country before finally returning to the South Island. Now, the trust wants to restore the train to working condition — partly to promote tourism, and partly, as chairman Lindsay Buckingham puts it, “out of mischief.”

If successful, the train could soon be running again on the recently closed Ohai line, which was previously used for coal transport until its retirement in 2023. The trust is also planning tourist trips between Invercargill and Bluff, as well as appearances at local events.

But the task is far from simple. Decades of wear and exposure have left parts of the locomotive badly rusted. Some components are so damaged they will have to be completely rebuilt. Despite this, Buckingham remains positive, saying, “many hands make light work.”

Local support has already begun to pour in. Volunteers are offering their time and skills, while businesses are helping out with discounts and services. The trust has launched a $1 million fundraising campaign to support the work.

“These are challenging times at the moment,” said trustee Roger Beattie. “But if we can get the funding in place, we do anticipate that we could have the project basically up and running in a year’s time.”

Buckingham highlighted the value of every donation, big or small. “I’ve got one donator who puts in $10 every two weeks just as a regular thing,” he shared. “We’re obviously chasing some of the bigger funders around and continuing to make applications, and we trust that we’ll be successful and raise the balance.”

The trust is aiming to have the F150 restored and ready to ride again by Christmas this year.