Celebrating Southland's history with talks, tours
Southland Express SHM Feature – 26 February 2026
Heritage South Project Manager, Senga White
TRAINS, talks and tours are themes connecting many of this year's Southland Heritage Month activities.
Every year a vibrant mix of activities—from Southland's rural traditions to a celebration of our cultural identity, special places, landscapes, buildings and churches, foods, art, stories, skills and practices—are organised to celebrate the region's heritage.
Southland Heritage Month 2026 is launched at the Invercargill Public Library on March 1 with the celebration of 20 years of the Southland Oral History Project. At 2pm, Dunedin-based freelance oral historian Helen Frizzell will join us to reflect on her 40-year career in oral history. Helen was a key person in the establishment of the Southland Oral History Project and has provided valuable ongoing advice and support.
While there, you can check out heritage activities for all ages offered at the library throughout the month.
Among the range of talks during March, there are five in the popular Stories of Southland Kōrero series.
On March 5, Lindsay Buckingham shares an update on the Southern Steam Trust's three-year project to restore the 1881 New Zealand Railways steam locomotive F150. Two days later, people can visit The Loco Shed on Inglewood Rd to see first-hand the progress being made.
Other topics are the histories of Bluff, South Invercargill and Awarua Radio Station and Czech adventurer Bohumil Pospíšil, who spent five years in the late 1920s travelling and recording his journey in notebooks and thousands of photographs, including those taken in New Zealand.
High Tea and 100 Years of Anderson House history will take place on March 22. Join Senga for a sumptuous afternoon tea where she will share some of the stories of the iconic Anderson House and Wharepuni o Anehana, the land and the family who gifted it to the people of Invercargill.
Southland historian Lloyd Esler will be taking groups on walks through the inner city and St John’s Cemetery.
An excursion to Port Craig on March 29 will help celebrate 100 years since the Port Craig School opened. The cost of $350 per person includes the flight to Port Craig. Numbers are limited and bookings are essential by March 1.
Invercargill archive staff are offering behind-the-scenes tours of the archives. This guided experience looks at how we preserve local history.
In Gore, the Mondays at Maruawai programme will offer a variety of activities around the South Seas Exhibition, Creamoata and Sgt Dan’s 111th birthday.
Lumsden’s rescued trains will be the subject of a talk on March 8. Train enthusiasts will speak about Lumsden’s train history, followed by afternoon tea at Lumsden Senior Citizens.
The Southland Steam Engine Club has an open afternoon on March 22 at Brydone. Enjoy a ride on a traction engine, watch a steam boiler in operation, sample food cooked on the coal range, and see displays. Miniature steam engines will be available for the children, and they can watch a cow being milked.
The Southern Steam Trust is restoring a 1881 New Zealand Railways steam locomotive F150.
Lloyd Esler, Cemetery Walking Tours
Some activities run throughout most of the month.
At the library, the Familiar Faces: Yesterday's Classmates, Today’s Memories display is seeking the public's help to identify students in a collection of unnamed class photos.
A photo exhibition of Old South Invercargill will be held at The Pod, South Alive, from March 6 to 31. Art and photos displayed during the month have been submitted by residents of South Invercargill in celebration of the heritage of the southern suburbs of Invercargill.
At the Hanan Gallery, which was built by Irishman James Hanan and opened in 1878 as his temple of arts and science, there is a display of his original paintings, reproductions and temple layout. Check the brochure for opening times.
At He Waka Tuia, from March 7 to May 3, there is a photographic study of the iconic Dee St Maternity Hospital “Victoria” by Nela Fletcher and Adrienne Martyn.
Heritage Month would not be possible without the generosity of our community funders, whose support is gratefully acknowledged both here and in our online media.
To find out more, visit Heritage South’s website at www.heritagesouth.nz to view the comprehensive heritage calendar, its Facebook page facebook.com/HeritageSouthNZ, and listen to the Heritage South Podcast.