A devastating landslide obliterated the Ngāti Tūwharetoa village of Te Rapa on the south-west shore of Lake Taupō.
Taupō
Taupō’s urban history can be dated to the establishment of an armed constabulary post in 1868 – a time when the government sought to strengthen its lines of communication in the central North Island. It grew rapidly from the 1950s, as tourism, timber and farming expanded.
Meaning of place name
The full name was Taupō-nui-Tia derived from a volcanic cliff on the east coast of the lake. Tia was an Arawa chief.
