About Wanganui

This page describes the geography of the Wanganui District and links to information about its history and tangata whenua.

Geography

Wanganui District, the territorial authority in which the Safer Whanganui project is focussed, is situated on the south-western coast of the North Island and is centred on the Whanganui River, with Wanganui city at the river mouth. With its south-western boundary consisting of Tasman Sea coastline, the district has four territorial authority neighbours: Ruapehu District to the north, Rangitikei District to the east, and South Taranaki and Stratford Districts to the west.

History

Refer to Te Ara New Zealand Encyclopaedia for historical information about Wanganui, including:

• Maori and colonial history
• Development of Wanganui township and the wider region.

Tangata whenua of the Whanganui River

The Whanganui River Report (Wai 167) is found on the Waitangi Tribunal website under the geographical area, North Island West. This report provides a full account of the tangata whenua of the Whanganui River, Atihau-a-Paparangi. See the Waitangi Tribunal website for summary and full versions of the Whanganui River Report.

Statistical profile

These documents provide a full statistical profile of the Wanganui District.

General population, economic, employment, housing and education statistics (PDF, 214KB)

General health and crime statistics (PDF, 138KB)

Statistics about the Maori population of Wanganui (PDF, 162KB)