(Originally known as Blacks where the pub is still called Blacks Hotel) – Today, Ophir is a peaceful town close to the Manuherikia River, 26 km from Alexandra just off SH 85 to Ranfurly. It’s rich history comes from its many original stone buildings which include the restored Post and Telegraph Office built 1886, the 1895 Courthouse, the 1870s Police Station and some cottages dating back to the 1870s. The 1880 suspension bridge anchored in solid schist rock makes for a most spectacular entrance. The Rev. Alexandra Don, a prominent Presbyterian priest ministering to the Chinese miners in the late 1890s and early 1900s, retired here to his bungalow in 1926.

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