Although the Cape Foulwind railway was built for the transport of granite rock from the quarries at the
Cape to Westport for harbour construction, it was also very useful for some other industries that had
developed. From 1886 timber and flax mills used rail for transport to Westport replacing the previous
transport mode of horse drawn vehicles.
The forests at the Cape had large quantities of good timber and three companies established mills –
Marris Bros, McKays and Gibsons. With the completion of the railway, timber milling increased
substantially. The largest milling company was that of Marris Bros who moved to the Cape in 1880 after
shifting their sawmill from Charleston. Long tramways extended for up to 6 km into the bush and logs
were brought to the sawmills located alongside the railway. Tram Road on Landcorp’s farm follows one
of these tramways.
According to Cliff Smith of Westport, who worked in the local timber industry for many years, the main
tree milled in the Cape Foulwind forests was rimu. There were also substantial quantities of yellow pine
milled. Yellow pine has a high resin content and as a result is particularly resistant to decay. It was highly
sought after for railway sleepers, power and telegraph poles, house piles and fence posts. While some
timber was used in Westport, most was shipped out of Westport harbour to eager markets around the
country.
In 1907 William Bowater and Frank Bryan, who had been milling in the Reefton area since 1880, moved
to Westport after purchasing the assets of Marris Bros. The Marris brothers William and John and
William Bowater’s father Charles had been at Charleston during the gold rush where they been involved
with gold mining and timber milling.
Bowater and Bryan Ltd continued the Cape milling operation for another 30 years and in the 1920’s was
employing around 40 staff. Most of the Bowater family moved to Nelson in 1921 where Raymond
Bowater started Bowater Motors in 1948.
Stu Henley August 2018