Makarewa

Makarewa

Makarewa is a small community north of Invercargill (the southernmost city in the South Island of New Zealand).

Facilities include a primary school with a roll of about 130 children, meeting rooms for clubs, a playcentre, country club, squash courts, lawn bowling club, and an indoor swimming pool on the school grounds.

Makarewa was formerly the junction of two branch line railways, where the Tuatapere Branch diverged from the Kingston Branch. A third line, the Ohai Branch, left the Tuatapere Branch in Thornbury. On 15 January 1978, the Tuatapere Branch closed beyond Thornbury, and on 13 December 1982, the Kingston Branch closed beyond Makarewa. The line through Makarewa has since been incorporated into the Ohai Branch and only freight services operate.