An old corrugated iron railway shed at the disused Little River Station, Banks Peninsular, New Zealand

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Little River is a small town in New Zealand's South Island on Banks Peninsular about 45 minutes' drive from Christchurch. It is on State Highway 75, which goes to Akaroa. When Europeans first arrived in Canterbury, the valley in which Little River nestles was heavily forested. Saw milling was the townships first industry and timber from Little River was used for many of Christchurch's earliest buildings. A railway line was built to Little River partly to take the timber into the city. After the timber was all milled, or had been burned to create farmland, Little River became a farm service village. The trains now carried thousands of bags of cocksfoot seed. (Cocksfoot thrived on the ash-enriched Peninsula soils and was in great demand to establish pasture on newly cleared North Island farms.) The trains also carried cheese, butter and other farm products. No trains have run to Little River since the 1950s. But the historic station survived and now houses a craft shop, information centre and historic displays.

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Size: 5315px × 3536px
Location: Little River Station, Banks Peninsular, Canterbury, New Zealand
Photo credit: © Martyn Annetts / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

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