Today in History
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Historic NZ events in February
Feb
1981 Trevor Chappell bowls underarm
Trans-Tasman sporting relations reached breaking point at the Melbourne Cricket Ground when Australian captain Greg Chappell ordered his brother Trevor to bowl the final delivery of a limited-overs cricket international against New Zealand underarm more...
1842 First NZ Company settlers arrive in Nelson
The Fifeshire arrived in Nelson with immigrants for the New Zealand Company's latest venture, which followed the settlement of Wellington, Whanganui and New Plymouth. more...
Feb
1974 ‘The greatest middle distance race of all time’
In an amazing Commonwealth Games 1500-m final, New Zealand’s John Walker broke the world record yet finished second. Tanzanian Filbert Bayi won in a new world record time of 3 minutes 32.16 seconds. more...
Feb
1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake strikes
New Zealand's deadliest earthquake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale, destroys much of central Napier and Hastings, with the loss of more than 250 lives. more...
Links
- New Zealand disasters timeline
- Hawke's Bay earthquake images
- Hawke's Bay's big shake - roadside stories
- The 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake (Te Ara)
- Hawke's Bay earthquake (Hastings District Council)
- New Zealand disasters: Napier earthquake (Chch City Libraries)
- Hawke's Bay earthquake (1966 encyclopaedia)
- Hawke's Bay disaster film (Archives NZ)
1868 Killer storm sweeps the country
It was a Sunday afternoon when the storm swept across the country, beginning with little more than a steady drizzle. By the time it had ended the next morning, at least 25 people had been killed. more...
Feb
1975 First woman to swim Cook Strait
American Lynne Cox became the first woman to swim across Cook Strait, battling heavy seas and strong winds during her 12-hour crossing. more...
1985 USS Buchanan refused entry to NZ
The New Zealand Labour government refused the USS Buchanan entry on the grounds that the United States would neither confirm nor deny that the ship had nuclear capability. more...
Feb
1911 First controlled powered flight in New Zealand
Pioneering aviator Vivian Walsh made the first controlled powered flight in New Zealand. He flew the Manurewa more than 350 m at a height of 20 m, watched by a small group of spectators at Glencora Park in Papakura, South Auckland. more...
1867 Opening of railway from Invercargill to Bluff
The 27-km line between Invercargill and Bluff was the third public railway in New Zealand, but Southland's railway ambitions helped drive the province towards bankruptcy. more...
Feb
1840 The Treaty of Waitangi is signed
More than 40 Maori chiefs, led by Ngapuhi's Hone Heke Pokai, signed the Treaty of Waitangi in the Bay of Islands. more...
1947 Liner Wanganella refloated after 18 days on Barrett Reef
The liner, carrying 400 passengers, struck Barrett Reef in Wellington Harbour on 19 January. Only an unusually long spell of fine weather - dubbed 'Wanganella weather' by locals - saved it from becoming a total wreck. more...
Feb
1863 Sinking of HMS Orpheus - NZ's worst shipwreck
The Royal Navy steam corvette HMS Orpheus was wrecked on the treacherous Manukau Harbour bar. Of the 259 men on board, 189 lost their lives in New Zealand's worst maritime disaster. more...
Feb
1931 First fatalities on a scheduled air service in NZ
All three people on board a Dominion Airline Desoutter were killed in a crash near Wairoa. The airline had helped maintain contact between the areas ravaged by the recent Hawke's Bay earthquake and the rest of New Zealand. more...
Feb
1900 Wanganui Opera House opened
Opened by Premier Richard Seddon, this large wooden building has been one of Whanganui's finest entertainment venues for more than 100 years more...
1770 Cook completes circumnavigation of North Island
The Endeavour's arrival at Cape Turnagain confirmed that the North Island was indeed an island, and not part of a fabled great southern continent. more...
Feb
1967 End of free school milk
The school milk scheme was begun in 1937 as part of the first Labour government's strategy to improve child health. more...
Feb
1864 Charles Heaphy recommended for VC
Recommended for a Victoria Cross after rescuing a soldier while under fire in 1864, Heaphy was eventually awarded the VC in 1867 - the only one awarded to a member of New Zealand's colonial forces. more...
Feb
1909 SS Penguin wrecked in Cook Strait
The Picton-Wellington ferry SS Penguin struck rocks in Cook Strait and sank in heavy seas off a rugged, isolated coast. Only 30 of the 102 people on board survived. more...
Feb
1869 Killings at Pukearuhe
A Ngati Maniapoto war party sacked the redoubt at Pukearuhe (White Cliffs), northern Taranaki, killing a number of military settlers. Later that day, the missionary John Whiteley also fell victim. more...
Feb
1915 Maori soldiers sail to war
Imperial policy was initially against 'native peoples' fighting in a war among Europeans. In February 1915, though, a 500-strong Native Contingent left Wellington for Egypt.
more...
1872 Te Kooti's last clash with government forces
Government forces led by Captain Preece tackled Te Kooti for the last time above the Mangaone stream, just south of Lake Waikaremoana. A few months later Te Kooti withdrew to Te Rohe Potae (the King Country). more...
Feb
1882 First shipment of frozen meat leaves NZ
The Dunedin sailed from Port Chalmers with New Zealand's first refrigerated cargo destined for Britain, pioneering the frozen meat and dairy trade that would become the cornerstone of the economy. more...
1978 New Zealand beats England in a cricket test for the first time
Chasing 137 for victory in the first test at the Basin Reserve in Wellington, England were bowled out for 64, with Richard Hadlee taking 6 for 26. more...
Feb
1770 James Cook sights Banks 'Island'
Cook sighted Banks Peninsula from the Endeavour. The following day he concluded it was an island and named this after the expedition's botanist, Joseph Banks. more...
Feb
1873 'The Russians are coming!'
The editor of the Daily Southern Cross, David Luckie, published a hoax report of a Russian invasion of Auckland by the cruiser Kaskowiski (cask of whisky). more...
Feb
1982 'Queen of Crime' Ngaio Marsh dies
Marsh, regarded as one of 'Queens of Crime' in the 1920s and 1930s, died just weeks after submitting her 32nd detective novel, Light thickens, to publishers. She was also known for her work as an artist, playwright, actor and director.
more...Links
- Fictional writing - New Zealand literature
- 31 reasons to love NZ books and writing
- Ngaio Marsh
- Ngaio Marsh funeral address
- Ngaio Marsh selected bibliography (Ngaio Marsh.org)
- Ngaio Marsh (NZ Book Council)
- Ngaio Marsh House (Historic Places Trust)
- Dame Ngaio Marsh biography (DNZB)
- Ngaio Marsh documentary (NZ On Screen)
1957 New Zealand's last hanging
Whanganui farmer Walter Bolton, aged 68, was hanged at Auckland's Mount Eden Prison after being controversially convicted of murdering his wife, Beatrice. The death penalty was abolished in 1961. more...
Feb
1938 21 drown in Kopuawhara flash flood
A sudden cloudburst sent a 5-m wall of water surging through a railway construction camp at Kopuawhara, near Mahia, drowning 21 people. more...
1883 Release of Parihaka leaders Te Whiti and Tohu
Parihaka had become the symbol of opposition to the government policy of land confiscation in the aftermath of the New Zealand Wars. Te Whiti o Rongomai and Tohu Kakahi were imprisoned without trial after the military occupation of the south Taranaki community in November 1881. more...
Feb
1954 Yvette Williams sets world long jump record
Two years after winning the long jump gold medal at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, Williams set a new world record of 20 feet 7 1/2 inches (6.29 m) at an athletics meeting in Gisborne. more...
Feb
1879 Kaitangata mining disaster
An underground explosion at Kaitangata, South Otago, killed 34 coal miners. The accident resulted in stricter control of mining. more...
Feb
2011 Christchurch earthquake kills 185
On Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12.51 p.m. Christchurch was badly damaged by a magnitude 6.3 earthquake, which killed 185 people and injured several thousand. more...
1902 Kelburn cable car opens
Wellington's iconic cable car was built to provide residents of the developing hill suburb of Kelburn with quick access to downtown Lambton Quay. more...
Feb
1940 100,000 welcome home HMS Achilles crew
The
1904 First step in creation of Fiordland National Park
940,000 ha in western Southland was permanently reserved for a national park. The 1952 National Parks Act formally created what has become New Zealand's largest national park and one of the largest in the world. more...
Feb
1902 End of the battle of Langverwacht Hill
Twenty-four New Zealanders were killed in this battle during the South African (Boer) War. A total of 234 New Zealanders died while serving in New Zealand's first overseas war. more...
1870 Last detachment of Imperial forces leaves New Zealand
The final detachment of the 18th (Royal Irish) Regiment departs from New Zealand, leaving the Armed Constabulary (formed in 1867) responsible for the colony's internal defence. more...
Feb
1943 49 killed in Featherston POW riot
Forty-eight Japanese POWs and one guard were killed in the riot. News of the incident was kept quiet until 1945 for fear of retribution against Allied prisoners in Japanese camps. more...
Feb
1844 'Pistols at dawn': deadly duel in Wellington
Two Wellington lawyers, W.V. Brewer and H. Ross, drew pistols over a legal difference in Wellington. Brewer fired into the air but was shot in the groin. He died a week later. more...
Feb
1951 Troops deployed in waterfront dispute
The government ordered the armed forces to begin handling cargo at the ports of Auckland and Wellington as the waterfront dispute escalated. more...
Feb
1945 Kiwi soldier faces firing squad
After more than a year on the run in northern Italy, New Zealand prisoner of war David Russell was recaptured and executed. His courage in the face of death earned him the George Cross. more...
Feb
1964 Opening of first road to Maungapohatu
A milling road provided the first vehicle access to the tiny Urewera settlement of Maungapōhatu – famous as the former home of the prophet Rua Kēnana more...
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