Wyndham, New Zealand facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Wyndham Mokoreta (Māori)
Town
Balaclava Street, Wyndham
Country	New Zealand
Region	Southland region
Territorial authorities of New Zealand	Southland District
Ward	Waihopai-Toetoe Ward
Community board	Waihopai-Toetoe Community
Electorates	Invercargill Te Tai Tonga (Māori)
Area
• Total	2.95 km2 (1.14 sq mi)
Population  (June 2023)
• Total	590
• Density	200.0/km2 (518/sq mi)

Wyndham is a small town in the South Island of New Zealand. It is located in the Southland region. The town is about 45 kilometers (28 miles) east of Invercargill and 25 kilometers (15 miles) south of Gore. Its original Māori name is Mokoreta, which means 'clear' or 'sweet water'.

The name 'Wyndham' was first used in 1857. A man named John Anderson used it for his farm areas, calling them Upper Windham Station and Lower Windham Station. The spelling soon changed to 'Wyndham'. The Mokoreta River also became known as the Wyndham River. The town was then named in 1869 after this nearby river. The river itself was indirectly named after General Sir Charles Ash Windham. He was a soldier who fought in the Crimean War. Because of this, the streets in Wyndham are named after events, places, battles, and people from that war. The town was first planned out in 1869 and officially became a town district in 1882.

Wyndham is located on the east side of the Mataura River. It sits between the Mimihau Stream to the north and the Wyndham (Mokoreta) River to the south. The town is now protected by a special wall called a stopbank. Wyndham acts as a service center for the farms and areas around it. It has a shopping center, a library, and a hotel. It used to have a museum, but it is now closed due to earthquake damage. For 80 years, a railway line connected Wyndham to the main train network. For 40 of those years, the line even went further past Wyndham to Glenham.

The town has a good area for sports and fun activities. You can find a golf course, a race course, a rugby field, a softball field, a bowling green, and courts for tennis and netball. There is also a camping ground. If you like fishing, you can easily walk to places where you can catch brown trout.

Wyndham used to host street races as part of the Burt Munro Challenge. This was a big event for motorcycle fans. In the past, Wyndham also had factories. A dairy factory opened in 1885, and a flax milling factory, called The Field-Gibson Flax Milling Company, started in 1903. Both of these factories have now closed down.

Who Lives in Wyndham?

Wyndham is considered a rural settlement by Statistics New Zealand. It covers an area of about 2.95 square kilometers. It is part of a larger area called the Wyndham-Catlins statistical area.

At the 2018 New Zealand census, Wyndham had 579 people living there. This was an increase of 27 people (4.9%) since the 2013 census. It was also an increase of 51 people (9.7%) since the 2006 census. There were 234 homes in the town. Out of the 579 people, 297 were males and 279 were females. This means there were about 1.06 males for every female.

About 102 people (17.6%) were under 15 years old. There were 84 people (14.5%) aged 15 to 29. The largest group, 261 people (45.1%), were aged 30 to 64. And 123 people (21.2%) were 65 years or older.

Most people in Wyndham were of European/Pākehā background (86.0%). About 19.2% were Māori, 3.1% were Pasifika, and 1.6% were Asian. Some people identified with more than one ethnic group.

When asked about their religion, many people (46.6%) said they had no religion. About 38.3% were Christian. A small number had Māori religious beliefs (0.5%), were Hindu (0.5%), or Buddhist (1.0%). About 2.1% had other religions.

For people aged 15 and older, 42 (8.8%) had a university degree or higher. About 147 (30.8%) had no formal school qualifications. Around 48 people (10.1%) earned over $70,000 a year. This is lower than the national average of 17.2%. When it came to jobs, 222 people (46.5%) worked full-time. Another 78 people (16.4%) worked part-time, and 15 people (3.1%) were looking for work.

Schools in Wyndham

Wyndham has two main schools: a primary school and a secondary school.

Wyndham Primary School

Wyndham Primary School teaches students from their first year (Year 0) up to Year 6. It currently has 130 students. The very first school in Wyndham was a private one, which opened in 1875. A public school then started in 1877. The school building used today opened in 1885.

Menzies College

Right next to the primary school is Menzies College. This is Wyndham's secondary school. It has 372 students, from Year 7 to Year 13. In the 1950s, a fire damaged the school. Then, in 1993, a large part of the junior school building was destroyed by another fire. Rooms 3 to 6 and the Form 7 common room were all lost.

Menzies College started as a secondary department of Wyndham School in 1924. It was called Wyndham District High School back then. It officially became Menzies College in 1971.

See also

In Spanish: Wyndham (Nueva Zelanda) para niños