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Waitara River
The source of the Waitara River lies in the very steep hill country to the east of Mount Taranaki/Egmont, near Tahora. After proceeding in a southwesterly direction toward Central Taranaki, the river abruptly turns to flow in a northwesterly direction to the Tasman Sea: meeting it at the coastal town of Waitara. The river once had a dock in Waitara, where export meat from the town's Thos. Borthwick & Sons freezing-works was loaded onto ships. However, this trade was subsequently conducted from New Plymouth's Port Taranaki until the works closed in 1995. The Waitara is the first mud-bottomed river to the north of Cape Egmont. It is prone to flooding, and there are stop banks (levees) to the west of the river (upstream from the bridge) and on both sides downstream. The historic Bertrand Road suspension bridge, (one of only a few such road bridges in New Zealand) is several kilometres from State Highway 3 (just up from the town). New Zealand Wars In December 1860 durin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bertrand Road Suspension Bridge
The Bertrand Road suspension bridge crosses the Waitara River, linking Huirangi, near Lepperton and Tikorangi in north Taranaki, New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count .... The original bridge was built in 1897, and rebuilt in 1927 (using an adapted form of the original design). The original idea for the bridge was proposed by a Waitara councillor, Levi Sarten, as crossing the river to Tikorangi was proving treacherous, and road access to the area was poor. The bridge was subsequently built across the river in 1897, with a length of 210 feet, a width of 9 feet and at a cost of £695. In the 1920s, the bridge was damaged by flooding, and was dismantled to build another crossing, using wood and steelwork from its predecessor. The second crossing opened in 1927, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Institute Of Water And Atmospheric Research
The National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research or NIWA ( mi, Taihoro Nukurangi), is a Crown Research Institute of New Zealand. Established in 1992, NIWA conducts research across a broad range of disciplines in the environmental sciences. It also maintains nationally and, in some cases, internationally important environmental monitoring networks, databases, and collections. , NIWA had 697 staff spread across 14 sites in New Zealand and one in Perth, Australia. Its head office is in Auckland, with regional offices in Hamilton, Wellington, Christchurch, Nelson, and Lauder (Central Otago). It also has small field teams, focused mostly on hydrology, stationed in Bream Bay, Lake Tekapo, Rotorua, Napier, Whanganui, Greymouth, Alexandra, and Dunedin. NIWA maintains a fleet of about 30 vessels for freshwater, marine, and atmospheric research. Mission statement "NIWA's mission is to conduct leading environmental science to enable the sustainable management of natural res ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously awarded by countries of the Commonwealth of Nations, most of which have established their own honours systems and no longer recommend British honours. It may be awarded to a person of any military rank in any service and to civilians under military command. No civilian has received the award since 1879. Since the first awards were presented by Queen Victoria in 1857, two-thirds of all awards have been personally presented by the British monarch. The investitures are usually held at Buckingham Palace. The VC was introduced on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to honour acts of valour during the Crimean War. Since then, the medal has been awarded 1,358 times to 1,355 individual recipients. Only 15 medals, of which 11 to members of the Britis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Lucas (VC)
John Lucas VC (1826 – 4 March 1892) was a British Army soldier and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He was the first member of the 40th Foot to be awarded the VC. Early life Lucas as born in Clashganny, Bagenalstown, County Carlow in 1826. Victoria Cross Lucas was approximately 35 years old, and a colour sergeant in the 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot (later part of the South Lancashire Regiment – The Prince of Wales's Volunteers) of the British Army: The action was part of the First Taranaki War during the New Zealand Wars. This campaign started over a disputed land sale at Waitara. In December 1860 British forces under Major General Thomas Simson Pratt carried out sapping operations against a major Māori defensive line called Te Arei ("The barrier") on the west side of the Waitara River and inland from Waitara, which was barring the way to the h ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand Wars
The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the Māori Wars, while Māori language names for the conflicts included ("the great New Zealand wars") and ("the white man's anger"). Historian James Belich popularised the name "New Zealand Wars" in the 1980s, although according to Vincent O'Malley, the term was first used by historian James Cowan in the 1920s. Though the wars were initially localised conflicts triggered by tensions over disputed land purchases, they escalated dramatically from 1860 as the government became convinced it was facing united Māori resistance to further land sales and a refusal to acknowledge Crown sovereignty. The colonial government summoned thousands of British troops to mount major campaigns to overpower the Kīngitanga (Māori King) movement and also con ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
First Taranaki War
The First Taranaki War (also known as the North Taranaki War) was an armed conflict over land ownership and sovereignty that took place between Māori people, Māori and the New Zealand government in the Taranaki district of New Zealand's North Island from March 1860 to March 1861. The war was sparked by a dispute between the government and Māori landowners over the sale of a property at Waitara, New Zealand, Waitara, but spread throughout the region. It was fought by more than 3,500 imperial troops brought in from Australia, as well as volunteer soldiers and militia, against Māori forces that fluctuated between a few hundred and about 1,500. Total losses among the imperial, volunteer and militia troops are estimated to have been 238, while Māori casualties totalled about 200, although the proportion of Māori casualties was higher. The war ended in a ceasefire, with neither side explicitly accepting the peace terms of the other. Although there were claims by the British that ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Zealand State Highway 3
State Highway 3 (SH 3) is one of New Zealand's eight national state highways. It serves the west coast of the country's North Island and forms a link between State Highway 1 and State Highway 2. Distances are measured from north to south. For most of its length SH 3 is a two-lane single carriageway, with at-grade intersections and property accesses, both in rural and urban areas. History A Mokau – Awakino horse track was widened to a dray track about 1897. It was then possible for a horse and buggy to cover the – now 162 km – from New Plymouth to Te Kuiti in 17½ hours. The first car to traverse the route from Auckland to New Plymouth seems to have been an 8 hp Cadillac in 1905, though Otorohanga to Te Kuiti was by train and, between Awakino and Mokau, a horse assisted on the beach. A 1910 Te Kuiti meeting called for metalling of the road to Awakino. Mount Messenger Tunnel opened in 1916 and its single lane was enlarged about 1983. £3,000 (2016 equi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Levees
A levee (), dike (American English), dyke (Commonwealth English), embankment, floodbank, or stop bank is a structure that is usually earthen and that often runs parallel to the course of a river in its floodplain or along low-lying coastlines. The purpose of a levee is to keep the course of rivers from changing and to protect against flooding of the area adjoining the river or coast. Levees can be naturally occurring ridge structures that form next to the bank of a river, or be an artificially constructed fill or wall that regulates water levels. Ancient civilizations in the Indus Valley, ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and China all built levees. Today, levees can be found around the world, and failures of levees due to erosion or other causes can be major disasters. Etymology Speakers of American English (notably in the Midwest and Deep South) use the word ''levee'', from the French word (from the feminine past participle of the French verb , 'to raise'). It originated i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mount Taranaki/Egmont
Mount Taranaki (), also known as Mount Egmont, is a dormant stratovolcano in the Taranaki region on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. It is the second highest point in the North Island, after Mount Ruapehu. The mountain has a secondary cone, Fanthams Peak ( mi, Panitahi), , on its south side. Name The name ''Taranaki'' comes from the Māori language. The Māori word means mountain peak, and is thought to come from , meaning "shining", a reference to the snow-clad winter nature of the upper slopes. It was also named and by iwi who lived in the region in "ancient times". Captain Cook named it Mount Egmont on 11 January 1770 after John Perceval, 2nd Earl of Egmont, a former First Lord of the Admiralty who had supported the concept of an oceanic search for ''Terra Australis Incognita''. Cook described it as "of a prodigious height and its top cover'd with everlasting snow," surrounded by a "flat country ... which afforded a very good aspect, being clothed with wood ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cape Egmont
Cape Egmont, splitting Northern and Southern Taranaki Bights, is the westernmost point of Taranaki, on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. It is located close to the volcanic cone of Mount Taranaki or Mount Egmont. It was named ''Kaap Pieter Boreel'' by Dutch explorer Abel Tasman in 1642, but renamed ''Cape Egmont'' by British explorer James Cook in 1769. (Note: Tasman did not sight Mount Taranaki, due to bad visibility, but Cook did, and after naming the mountain Mount Egmont, bestowed the same name on the promontory, which became the enduring name). Ironically, the cape retained a Dutch name, as Cook named the mountain and cape after the Earl of Egmont, who claimed descent of the Dutch House of Egmond. In July 1862, Kapoaiaia near Cape Egmont was the site of a hui between 600 members of Taranaki, Ngāti Ruanui, Ngā Rauru and Whanganui Māori iwi, discussing the First Taranaki War (1860–1861). There, it was agreed that the lands East and West of New Plymouth (T ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Port Taranaki
Port Taranaki is a port complex located in New Plymouth, New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count .... It is the only deep water port on the west coast of New Zealand, and is owned by the Taranaki Regional Council. The port handles a wide range of coastal and international cargoes, mostly relating to the farming, engineering and petrochemical industries. Adjacent features include the city of New Plymouth, the New Plymouth Power Station and the Sugar Loaf Islands Marine Protected Area (SLIMPA). History The port was established in 1875, and construction of the main breakwater began in 1881 with Frederic Carrington ceremoniously laying the first stone. In 2007, Port Taranaki became the first port in New Zealand to receive official recognition for its har ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
