Timaru

Timaru is a major port city in south Canterbury, New Zealand, located 160 kilometres south of Christchurch and about 200 kilometres north of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific coast of the South Island. The territorial authority district of about 30,000 people in and around the former Timaru City includes a prosperous agricultural hinterland with links to smaller rural communities such as Pleasant Point, Temuka, and Geraldine. The town of Waimate is about 40 kilometres to the south on the road to Oamaru and Dunedin.

Caroline Bay beach is a popular recreational area located close to Timaru's city centre, just to the north of the substantial port facilities. Beyond Caroline Bay, the industrial suburb of Washdyke is at a major junction with State Highway 8, the main route into the Mackenzie Country. This provides a road link to Fairlie, Lake Tekapo, Mount Cook and Queenstown.

Timaru has been constructed on rolling hills created from the lava flows of the extinct Mt Horrible volcano, which last erupted many thousands of years ago. The result is that most of the main streets are undulating, a clear contrast with the flat landscape of the Canterbury Plain to the north. This volcanic rock is used for the construction of local "bluestone" buildings.

The origin of the name 'Timaru' is disputed . Some believe that it derives from Maori Te Maru, which can mean a 'place of shelter'. However, other authorities allege that Timaru originates from a literal translation of the combination of ti, a cabbage tree and maru, meaning 'shady'.

Maori canoes seem to have employed the site of Timaru as a place to rest on long journeys up and down the eastern coastline for many years before the arrival of the first Europeans in the 19th century. The area includes over 500 sites with traces of Maori rock art, particularly in the rock overhangs and caves of the Opuha and Opihi river valleys, to the west of modern day Timaru. Archaeologists have suggested that Maori tribes were permanently settled in the district before 1400AD. During the 17th century the resident Ngati Mamoe were driven southwards into Fiordland by an invasion of the Ngati Tahu, who came from the northern part of the South Island.

European settlement began with the construction of a whaling station in the late 1830s by the Weller brothers of Sydney at Patiti Point, close to the present town centre. A supply ship, The Caroline, provided the name for a local bay. Later a sheep station, known as The Levels, was created on land purchased by the Rhodes brothers. Few lived in Timaru until 1859 when the ship Strathallan arrived from England, carrying a party of 120 immigrants. Persistent land disputes arose between the brothers and local government officials with the result that two townships were established in the port area, Government Town and Rhodestown. These eventually merged into a single community in 1868. Given this division, until recently none of the main north-south streets lined up. Stafford Street, which became the main thoroughfare, was formed along the early bullock wagon trail.

Following the loss of a number of vessels of the coast, work started on the redevelopment of the artificial port in 1877, which eventually caused sand washed south down the Pacific shoreline to build up against the northern mole. This was the beginning of the extensive land reclamation around the Caroline Bay district, an area which is still growing today.

In recent years attempts have been made to promote local tourism and provide services for recreational visitors. The Visitor Information Centre, centrally located in the old Landing Services Building, next to the Railway Station, offers high quality advice and guidance about the South Canterbury district. the knowledgeable staff provide an efficient booking service for transport and visitor accommodation.

The South Canterbury Museum is the main museum for the region, containing exhibits relating to physical geography and the environment, fossil remains, Maori rock art, the early settlement of the district, local maritime history, scrimshaw, the E P Seally natural history collection, and information about Richard Pearse, a local inventor and his attempts at manned flight in the first years of the 20th century.

The Aigantighe (a Scots Gaelic word pronounced "egg and tie") Art Gallery in Wai-iti Road is the South Island’s third largest art museum and one of the best art galleries in the country. It holds a collection of New Zealand, Pacific, Asian and European art works from the sixteenth century to the present day and includes a sculpture garden. The gallery was founded in 1956 and is housed in a homestead built in 1908.

Timaru is graced with a number of open spaces, public gardens and parks. The Trevor Griffiths Rose Garden at Caroline Bay Park is an attractive new feature of the Timaru Plaza development. The parkland of the Bay Area contains a mini golf course, an ice skating rink, a maze and staging for musical events. It is home to the annual Summer Carnival that takes place over the Christmas and New Year holiday period. In addition, to the south of the city centre there is the extensive Timaru Botanic Gardens, first laid out in 1864, with a notable collection of roses and native tree ferns. To the west is the well maintained Centennial Park Reserve,opened in 1940, that includes a tranquil 3.5 km walkway following the wooded valley of the Otipua Creek.

The DB Mainland Brewery in Sheffield Street offers tours and tasting sessions.

Timaru has a number of high quality cafes, wine bars and restaurants, mostly located in the Bay Area and around Stafford Street.