Woodlands, New Zealand

Woodlands is a locality in the Southland Region of New Zealand's South Island on the banks of the Waihopai River. [Land Information New Zealand, [http://www.linz.govt.nz/apps/placenames/index.html?p=4623 "Place Name Detail: Woodlands"] , "Geographic Placenames Database", accessed 17 November 2007.] It is northeast of Invercargill between Dacre and Longbush. Other nearby settlements are Rakahouka to the northwest and Rimu and Waituna to the south.

Demographics

Woodlands' population at the time of the 2001 New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings was 279, comprising 144 males and 135 females. This represented a decline of 6.1% or 18 people since the 1996 census. [Statistics New Zealand, [http://www2.stats.govt.nz/domino/external/web/commprofiles.nsf/htmldocs/Woodlands+Community+Profile "Woodlands Community Profile"] , accessed 17 November 2007.]

Transport

The town is located on State Highway 1 and the Main South Line portion of the South Island Main Trunk Railway. The railway has been freight-only since the cancellation of the Southerner passenger express on 10 February 2002. During the construction of the Main South Line, Woodlands was briefly a railway terminus. The first section of the line out of Invercargill was opened to Woodlands on 11 February 1874. On 7 June 1875, the next section beyond Woodlands was opened to Mataura via Edendale. ["New Zealand Railway and Tramway Atlas", fourth edition, edited by John Yonge (Essex: Quail Map Company, 1993), 30.]

War memorial

A number of Woodlands residents fought overseas in World War I. A memorial to those who died stands in the town. [Jock Phillips and Chris Maclean, [http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/?q=node/2112 "Woodlands War Memorial"] , "New Zealand History Online", accessed 17 November 2007.]

References