and a tunnel to emerge on Beach Street before terminating on a new wharf. Soil excavated from the tunnel was used for the reclamation of land for the new wharf on which the railway line terminated. When the railway line opened on 1 January 1873 it was the first 1,067 mm narrow gauge railway in New Zealand. The opening of this line bought to an end the lightering service between Port Chalmers and Dunedin. The branch line was subsequently incorporated into the national rail network through a connection at Sawyers Bay to the Main South Line, which was opened through to Christchurch on 7 September 1878 and Invercargill on 22 January 1879. As the Main South Line passed along the hillside above Port Chalmers a railway station locally called the “Upper Station” was built to service passengers. The terminus of the branch line on the wharf continued to service freight and was known as the “Lower Station”. Since roads on Otago Peninsula were non-existent, boats were used to cross the harbour. The first dedicated ferry service was introduced on the harbor in 1859 but it was not profitable. As the region’s rapidly increased due to the Gold Rush scheduled ferry services began between Port Chalmers and Portobello and ran from 1876 to 1954. The development of the town reflected the growth of Dunedin and Otago with rivalry between the city and Port Chalmers over which would handle the bulk of shipping. The establishment of a floating dock and later a graving dock in the 1870s lead to Port Chalmers emerging as a significant ship repair center. Dredging of the Victoria ship channel As Dunedin grew, and particularly with the increase in commerce that developed following the Otago Gold Rush of the 1860s, the merchants of Dunedin pushed for dredging of a channel to allow ocean-going vessels to reach the city's wharves. Though a contentious decision, it was agreed to dredge what became known as the Victoria Ship Channel along the north-western side of the harbor. The channel was finally opened in 1881. The initial channel was narrow and shallow, and did not get off to an auspicious start, as the Union Steam Ship Company's SS Penguin, the first ship to use it, was temporarily grounded while using it. As finance allowed, the channel was gradually widened and deepened, and by 1907, twice as many ships were using Dunedin's wharves as