Plains Vintage Railway & Historical Museum

Since then the museum has grown to incorporate a farm, worked by our vintage machinery, a pioneer village and - of course - a vintage railway.

It was the railway that brought the museum international recognition, with the restoration of Rogers K 88, which was dug out of a river where it had been buried for 50 years and returned to operational service in 1981.

Alongside Rogers 'K' 88, which pulled New Zealands first 'express' passenger train between two urban centres, the museum is home to Dubs & Co 'A' 64, New Zealands second oldest operational Steam Locomotive. Also on shed is Hillside, Dunedin built 'Ja' 1260, which hauled New Zealands last steam hauled express, Vulcan Railcar 'RM' 50 - still New Zealands official Rail Speed Record holder and a fleet of diesel shunters, ranging from the small Tr 38 to the 30 ton Dsa 218 and the infamous “J&F Howard” locomotive - one of only two survivors in the world of the type.

The rural history department is home to a massive “Buckeye” triple-expansion steam engine - once used by the Fairton freezing works for compressing ammonia for refrigeration purposes - a large fleet of vintage tractors and a vast array of old machinery, from horse drawn gorse cutters to tractor drawn ploughs.