about the museum
The original winding house for the cable car system now houses the Cable Car Museum and has been classified by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust as having ‘historical and cultural heritage significance’.
The winding house was built in 1902 to accommodate the steam engine and winding gear and to serve as a maintenance depot for the grip cars. Over the years the building has been altered to accommodate changes in the pulley system, most dramatically in 1933 when electricity replaced steam as the force driving the winding gear.
Beneath the floor of the entrance is the original winding machinery in full working order. Also downstairs, in the modern extension, is the fully conserved and restored Grip Car 3.
Volunteers undertook six years of time-consuming and detailed restoration of the red grip cable car and trailer. You can climb aboard this grip car and let your imagination carry you back to the 1900s.
The Winding House c1970 was a candidate for demolition when the new system was implemented
The Winding House (c2007) restored to it's original glory