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Westport, New Zealand
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Westport is a town in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located on the northern bank and at the mouth of the Buller River, close by the prominent headland of Cape Foulwind. It is connected via State Highway 6 with Greymouth 100 kilometres to the south, and with Nelson in the northeast, via the Buller Gorge.
The town is thought to have been named for Westport in Connacht, Ireland, although the choice of name was no doubt also guided by the town's location.
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Encyclopedia
Westport is a town in the West Coast region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is located on the northern bank and at the mouth of the Buller River, close by the prominent headland of Cape Foulwind. It is connected via State Highway 6 with Greymouth 100 kilometres to the south, and with Nelson in the northeast, via the Buller Gorge.
The town is thought to have been named for Westport in Connacht, Ireland, although the choice of name was no doubt also guided by the town's location. The population of the Westport urban area was 3,900 in the 2006 Census, an increase of 117 from 2001. Including the surrounding areas of Orowaiti and the Buller River Inlet, the 2006 population was 4,515. The Buller District Council gives a 2007 population of about 5,000.
History
There is evidence that Maori settlers lived in the Buller (Kawatiri) area from very early on. Legends actually place the first visit as early as 950 AD via the waka Tahiriangi with its chief Ngahue. The settlers appeared to live mostly coastal lives, though they explored the mountains for pounamu (jade or 'greenstone'), which they then traded with other iwi.
The first white settlers came to Westport in 1861 as gold miners, and the first European vessel known to have entered the river was the sealing schooner Three Brothers in 1884. The 1880s saw many exploratory parties of geologists and surveyors combing the area for the presence of valuable resources and taking the measure of the land. Amongst them were Charles Heaphy, William Fox and Thomas Brunner. While gold brought initial interest to the area, and for example, led to large areas of the coastal areas (covered by sediment from the river) being dredged for the valuable mineral, the area soon became much more famous for coal mining, still a dominant concern in the region today. The first railway of the area was being built as early as 1874, extending from Westport up to 18 km to the coal fields, most of them located to the north of the town. The first section of railway from Westport to Fairdown via Sergeants Hill opened on 31 December 1875; this line ultimately reached Seddonville in 1895 and was known as the Seddonville Branch. From this beginning, an isolated network of branch lines was developed and it was not linked to the national network until the completion of the Stillwater - Westport Line through the Buller Gorge in 1942.
Geography
Climate
The Westport climate is strongly influenced by the high amount precipitation from the Tasman Sea, with all months except February being rather wet on average. While colder than the more northern parts of New Zealand, average temperature changes over the year are not extreme.
Economy
Economic activity is based around fishing, coal mining and dairy farming. Historically, gold mining was a major industry, and coal mining was much more extensive than today (especially in terms of employment numbers). However, the region still is home to New Zealand's largest opencast mining operation in Stockton. Some native forest logging occurred in the area until cessation around 1999. The Holcim company has a large cement plant in the southwest near the city.
Tourism has some famous destinations in this area, such as the Oparara Basin Arches, and Cape Foulwind with its large fur seal colony. Rafting and Jet Boating in the Buller Gorge are also popular. Many South Island visitors do however pass by this quieter area, opting instead to go to Abel Tasman National Park, to Hanmer Springs or, if they do visit the west coast, to Greymouth and the Fox- and Franz Josef glaciers further south. Westport is also a base for trips to Karamea. The 'Coaltown Museum' in Westport illustrates the history of the Buller District.
Facilities
The city used to have one cinema / theatre, the St James Theatre, able to seat 424 patrons for film screenings, theatre productions or other activities. After being found structurally unsound, the theatre had to be demolished. A new venue is planned.
The Holcim company manages the day-to-day operations of Westport's port, using it to ship their cement product to market, for example to the Port of Onehunga in Auckland. There is also a small airport, served once daily by Air New Zealand from Wellington, and on Monday to Friday by Air West Coast (2007 data).
Education
Buller High School is a secondary (years 9-15) school with a roll of 345. The school celebrated its 75th reunion in 1997 but also claims to have been operating for over 100 years, due to its connection to earlier secondary schooling in the district.
Westport North School and Westport South School are full primary (years 1-8) schools with rolls of 303 and 176, respectively. The schools were founded in 1942 and 1941
St Canice's School is a full primary (years 1-8) school with a roll of 169. It is a state integrated Catholic school and has operated since at least 1882.
All these schools are coeducational. All have a decile rating of 4, except Buller High School, which has a decile of 3.
External links
- (official town website, Tourism New Zealand)
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