Originally called ‘Bluff’, the name of Coalgate has was adopted in recognition that the railway station was the ‘gateway’ to the coalfields in the Malvern Hills. In the early 1900s Coalgate had a railway station, hotel, blacksmith’s shop, general store, police station, and exchanges of mail twice a day with Christchurch. From 1911 to 1914 traction engines hauled supplies from the Coalgate railway station approximately 60 km to the construction site of the Lake Coleridge power station. The trail known as the Coleridge Run became famous for its notorious and dangerous path and the drivers’ antics. The mineral industry continued to develop in later years when 10 million tonnes of high-grade bentonite was discovered in the nearby foothills. Canterbury Bentonite Ltd opened a processing plate in Coalgate in 1967.

Glentunnel Township has a close historical association with local coal, clay and sand mines of the Whitecliffs/South Malvern area. Originally named ‘Surveyors Gully’, ‘Glentunnel’, derived from the tramway tunnel in the glen that gave access to the Homebush coal mine. Coal was discovered in 1871, along with deposits of fire clay, which lead to the establishment of brick, tile, and pottery works that survived until the 1980s. The Whitecliffs railway was the essential link to the outside world for the coal and clay industries and for the transport of farm produce. Evidence of earlier industry can still be seen in the brick community buildings including the library and stable, and many of the miners’ cottages are still lived in today.

Discover the Glentunnel Heritage Walk on the Township Trails Selwyn App Click here

Whitecliffs takes its name from the bluff above the Selwyn River and was so named by Lady Barker, author of Station life in New Zealand, who lived at nearby Steventon. It was once the terminus of the Whitecliffs branch railway from Darfield which ran from 1875 to 1962 (the engine shed still stands). The settlements of Whitecliffs and South Malvern held one-time importance for coal, lime, sand, clay mining, and pottery works, with a hotel, guest house, church, post offices, and several shops. The school was located in South Malvern.

Situated at the head of the Wairiri valley halfway between Hororata and Windwhistle, Glenroy was named by Sir John Hall’s head shepherd after his homeland in Scotland. This district was once a thriving coal mining area with its own school, community hall and post office. There were many small holdings and residences of people who worked on the larger stations.

The original Windwhistle settlement was located further up the Coleridge Road on the farm now known as Long Spur. At Windwhistle House, alongside a small lake known as The Whistle, locals could collect their mail or have repairs done at the blacksmith’s shop. The accommodation house, originally run by Williams Adams, and the smithy were burned down in the late 1890’s. The accommodation house never reopened but the blacksmith’s shop transferred to the site of the current Windwhistle Garage at what is now known as Windwhistle.  Positioned above the Rakaia Gorge, Windwhistle takes its name from the gale force nor’west winds that frequently batter its inhabitants.