Reefton, New Zealand

Reefton
Reefton, seen in 2009
Reefton
Coordinates: 42°6′55″S 171°51′47″E / 42.11528°S 171.86306°E / -42.11528; 171.86306
Country	New Zealand
Region	West Coast
District	Buller District
Population (2013)
• Total	1,026

Reefton is a small town on New Zealand's West Coast region, some 80 km northeast of Greymouth, in the valley of the Inangahua River. State Highway 7 passes through the southern part of the town, and State Highway 69 runs north to connect to State Highway 6. Ahaura is 44 km south-west of Reefton, Inangahua Junction is 34 km to the north, Maruia is 63 km to the east, and the Lewis Pass is 66 km to the south-east.

In 1888 Reefton became the first town in New Zealand and the Southern Hemisphere to receive electricity, the work of Walter Prince, and its streets were lit by commercial electricity generated by the Reefton Power Station.

The population was 1,026 in the 2013 Census, an increase of 8.2 percent, since the 2006 Census.

Rich veins of gold found in a quartz reef near the town led to its name, and also its former name of Quartzopolis. Gold was first discovered near the town in 1866, although the major discovery was made in 1870. Soon after, the town briefly boasted a population of several thousand. This has dwindled to less than a thousand. Other industries in the town are coal mining, forestry, tourism and angling.

Locally received radio stations include repeaters of both Classic Hits Scenicland FM from Greymouth and Coast FM from Westport. The Greymouth Star newspaper is also received daily in the town.

Reefton is located on the Stillwater–Westport Line railway, which diverges from the Midland Line in Stillwater. On 29 February 1892, the line was opened to Reefton, but it terminated on the southern bank of the Inangahua River opposite the town. Early in the 20th century, a bridge was built across the river and the present-day station established in Reefton. The line was opened beyond Reefton to Cronadun in 1908, but it was not until 5 December 1943 that the line officially became a through route to Westport, though trains had been operating the length of the line since July 1942. On 3 August 1936, a railcar passenger service began operating in the morning between Hokitika and Reefton utilising small Leyland diesel railcars, but low patronage meant this service ceased to operate all the way to Reefton in August 1938. In the early 1940s, much larger Vulcan railcars were introduced to New Zealand and they provided two services to Reefton: one local service from Greymouth that terminated in Reefton, and a service that ran between Westport and Stillwater to connect with the West Coast Express. In 1967, all passenger services through Reefton ceased. Today, the primary traffic on the railway is coal, with multiple coal trains operating daily.