South Dunedin
South Dunedin | |
---|---|
Coordinates: 45°53′42″S 170°30′04″E / 45.8950°S 170.5012°E | |
Country | New Zealand |
City | Dunedin |
Established | 1876 |
Area | |
• Land | 189 ha (467 acres) |
Population (June 2023)[2] | |
• Total | 2,500 |
Mornington | Central Dunedin | Dunedin Harbourside |
Caversham |
South Dunedin
|
(Otago Harbour) |
Forbury | St Kilda | Musselburgh |
South Dunedin is a major inner city suburb of the New Zealand city of Dunedin. It is located, as its name suggests, 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) to the south of the city centre, on part of a large plain known locally simply as "The Flat". The suburb is a mix of industrial, retail, and predominantly lower-quality residential properties.
The term South Dunedin is often used in a more general sense to refer to any or all of the various suburbs occupying The Flat, including
Geography
The flat land which makes up much of Dunedin's heart is enclosed to the south and east by Otago Harbour and to the north and west by a ridge of hills. At the southern end of central Dunedin, these hills form a ridge that (prior to reclamation) came close to the line of the harbour. To the south of this lies a broad plain, initially swampy but now drained and expanded by reclamation. This plain is the site of South Dunedin.[3][4]
The boundaries of South Dunedin are vaguely defined. Though the area was a separate borough briefly in the late nineteenth century, the borders which delimited that borough are no longer widely used as descriptors for South Dunedin. One major exception is South Dunedin's boundary with St Kilda, which was a separate borough until far more recently. The line of Bay View Road is still seen as a border between South Dunedin and St Kilda. This notion is enhanced by the change of name of one of the suburbs' main arterial roads at this boundary, with King Edward Street becoming Prince Albert Road as it passes into St Kilda.
To the east, South Dunedin's natural limit is Otago Harbour, and to the north a ridge of hills also forms a topographical boundary. At the foot of this ridge, however, lies the small suburb of Kensington and parts of the much larger borough of Caversham. Caversham also marks a limit at the western edge of South Dunedin, though in both cases the exact boundaries are not well-defined.
Southern Endowment
Much of eastern South Dunedin is land reclaimed from Otago Harbour. This area, which lies immediately to the west of the harbour's head, is known as the Southern Endowment,
Most of the area of the southern endowment is industrial and storage, though it does contain a small park close to the wharf area and the major sports complex of
Cargill's Corner
South Dunedin contains the city's second most important retail district, centred on Cargill's Corner, named for Otago provincial founder Captain William Cargill (Hillside Road—at one time called Cargill Road—is named for his house, "Hillside", which lay some 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) to the north).[7] At this junction, two main suburban arterial routes—King Edward Street and Hillside Road—cross. A small shopping mall, South City, is located at Cargill's Corner.
Cargill's Corner had, for many years, Dunedin's only "
King Edward Street is aligned roughly north-south, linking with the southern end of Princes Street and the centre city in the north with the densely populated coastal suburb of St Kilda. Hillside Road links Andersons Bay Road, a further major suburban arterial, in the east with the suburbs of Caversham, Corstorphine and Saint Clair in the west and southwest.
Main roads
Smaller, older shops stretch south along King Edward Street and west along Hillside Road from Cargill's Corner. To the east, along Hillside Road and Anderson's Bay Road are larger supermarkets and wholesalers, notably
. Further along Anderson's Bay Road to the south and to the west on Hillside Road are numerous car sale yards and light industrial works. These extend into Caversham in the west, and across the reclaimed land which lies between Andersons Bay Road and Portsmouth Drive in the south and east. At its southern extreme, King Edward Street becomes increasingly residential, though there are also light industrial premises here.Andersons Bay Road lies roughly parallel with King Edward Street some 0.5 kilometres (0.31 mi) to the east. This route, which roughly follows the original shoreline, connects with
Portsmouth Drive, a further arterial route, lies a further 0.6 kilometres (0.37 mi) to the east along the edge of Otago Harbour, at the edge of the reclaimed Southern Endowment. This route links the centre city with Portobello Road, the long, twisting route which travels the length of Otago Peninsula's harbour coast. It is named for Dunedin's American sister city of Portsmouth, Virginia.[9]
Other important roads in South Dunedin include Timaru Street on the Southern Endowment, and several streets which cross or meet King Edward Street, linking it with Anderson's Bay Road in the east or the suburbs of Saint Clair and Forbury in the west. These include Macandrew Road, Melbourne Street, McBride Street, and Bay View Road, the latter of which forms the boundary between South Dunedin and St Kilda.
History
Prior to European settlement, much of the area of The Flat was poorly drained and marshy. Early settlement of the area took place along the hill fringes at
Chinese settlers were notable among early residents in the St Clair area, and largely through their effort the swampy land inland from the beach was drained and converted into market gardens. Much of the young city's vegetable production was centred on Chinese allotments in an area close to what is now Macandrew Road, Forbury, and there were further allotments in both Andersons Bay and Tainui.[12] The opening of a quarry in the Forbury area (which provided building materials for the young city) also increased the impetus towards development of the southern end of the city.
South Dunedin became a borough in 1876, and by the turn of the twentieth century was a thriving industrial and residential town, as can be seen from its description in the 1905 Cyclopedia of New Zealand:[13]
"The Forbury public school, St. Patrick Catholic school, and a convent and orphanage are situated in the borough, which contains, also, the Dunedin City Corporation gasworks, a rope and twine factory, a fruit preserving factory, a box factory, and furniture workshops. There are Presbyterian, Wesleyan, Baptist, and Roman Catholic churches, and Salvation Army barracks; and members of the Church of Christ hold services in the Town Hall. The Borough Council has an endowment of 155 acres on the harbour front, which is leased, in small sections, to ratepayers who desire to build in that quarter. The Town Hall was built in 1902, at a cost of £2,118, and contains a spacious council-room, offices, and strong room. The hall is much used for lectures, dances, and other forms of entertainment, and is centrally situated on the Hillside road, the main business thoroughfare of the borough. There are four licensed hotels in the district, also a volunteer Fire Brigade and station, maintained at a cost of about £60 a year. The streets are well formed, and lighted with twenty-five gas lamps, and the footpaths are asphalted and kept in good order."
The borough amalgamated with Dunedin City in 1905, a year after its neighbour, Caversham.[14]
During the 1923 New Zealand Storm, South Dunedin along with Caversham and St Kilda experienced heavy rain and extensive flooding.[15]
In June 2015, South Dunedin experienced heavy flooding after a low weather system brought heavy rain to the coastal Otago region. Flood damage was exacerbated by the area's high water table and the breakdown of the Portobello pumping station. 1,200 homes and businesses were damaged by flood damage, with total flood damage reaching $138,000,000.[16][17]
Mayors of South Dunedin Borough
The following is a complete list of the mayors of South Dunedin Borough, from its inception in 1876, until its merger with Dunedin City in 1905:[18][19]
Name | Term | |
---|---|---|
1 | Nicholas Moloney | 1876–1877 |
2 | Gabriel Hodges | 1877–1879 |
(1) | Nicholas Maloney | 1879–1880 |
3 | George McBride | 1880–1882 |
4 | Joseph Osmond | 1882–1883 |
5 | William Wardrop | 1883–1887 |
6 | Michael Sullivan | 1887–1890 |
(5) | William Wardrop | 1890–1892 |
7 | Henry Henderson | 1892–1893 |
8 | Ephraim Osborne | 1893–1894 |
(5) | William Wardrop | 1894–1895 |
9 | Charlie Fisher | 1895–1898 |
10 | Thomas Fiddis | 1898–1901 |
11 | Andrew Todd | 1901–1902 |
12 | John Chetwin | 1902–1904 |
13 | John Shacklock | 1904–1905 |
Demographics
South Dunedin comprises two statistical areas: Hillside-Portsmouth Drive, which contains the industrial and warehousing areas; and Bathgate Park, which contains the residential and commercial areas.
Hillside-Portsmouth Drive
Hillside-Portsmouth Drive covers 1.36 km2 (0.53 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 110 as of June 2023,[2] with a population density of 81 people per km2.
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
2006 | 105 | — |
2013 | 75 | −4.69% |
2018 | 99 | +5.71% |
Source: [20] |
Hillside-Portsmouth Drive had a population of 99 at the
Ethnicities were 66.7% European/Pākehā, 15.2% Māori, 9.1% Pasifika, 18.2% Asian, and 3.0% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 27.3, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 60.6% had no religion, 24.2% were Christian, 6.1% were Hindu, 6.1% were Muslim and 3.0% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 6 (6.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 21 (23.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $22,600, compared with $31,800 nationally. 3 people (3.3%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 42 (46.7%) people were employed full-time, 12 (13.3%) were part-time, and 9 (10.0%) were unemployed.[20]
Bathgate Park
Bathgate Park statistical area, which was renamed South Dunedin for the 2023 Census, covers 0.53 km2 (0.20 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 2,390 as of June 2023,[2] with a population density of 4,509 people per km2.
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
2006 | 2,358 | — |
2013 | 2,310 | −0.29% |
2018 | 2,439 | +1.09% |
Source: [21] |
Bathgate Park had a population of 2,439 at the
Ethnicities were 78.8% European/Pākehā, 12.8% Māori, 6.6% Pasifika, 8.7% Asian, and 2.2% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 17.5, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 47.2% had no religion, 38.5% were Christian, 0.7% had Māori religious beliefs, 1.4% were Hindu, 0.7% were Muslim, 0.9% were Buddhist and 2.8% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 237 (11.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 705 (33.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $21,400, compared with $31,800 nationally. 69 people (3.3%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 687 (32.5%) people were employed full-time, 270 (12.8%) were part-time, and 90 (4.3%) were unemployed.[21]
Landmarks
The industrial heart of South Dunedin is the
The city's former main sports complex, Carisbrook, is located close to the border of South Dunedin in Caversham. Another former stadium, the Caledonian Ground, stood on ground now largely occupied by The Warehouse retail store. It was relocated in 2000 to Logan Park in Dunedin North.[25] The junction of Andersons Bay Road and Hillside Road, located nearby, is still sometimes referred to as "Caledonian Corner".
This corner is also the former site of the country's longest-serving gasworks, which operated from 1863 to 1987, and a small industrial museum, the Dunedin Gasworks Museum, is located on the southern part of its site on Braemar Street. Opened to the public in 2001, this museum is one of only three known preserved gasworks museums in the world.[26] The museum features five steam pumping engines which were used in the gasworks, and an older engine imported from Scotland in 1868.[27] Three of the buildings within the Gasworks complex have NZHPT classifications: the skeleton of the 1879 gasometer,[28] the exhauster and boiler house,[29] and the fitting shop[30] (all Category I).
There are several notable churches in South Dunedin,
Former landmarks
Other than the Hillside workshops and the gasworks, South Dunedin has several links with Dunedin's industrial heritage. Notable among these was the factory of
Another former landmark in South Dunedin was the
References
- ^ a b c "ArcGIS Web Application". statsnz.maps.arcgis.com. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
- ^ a b c "Population estimate tables - NZ.Stat". Statistics New Zealand. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
- ^ Mitchell, Charlie (28 November 2019). "Down Under: The community most-exposed to sea-level rise is also one of the poorest". Stuff. Archived from the original on 27 June 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ Goldsmith, Michael; Hornblow, Sharon (July 2016). The Natural Hazards of South Dunedin (PDF) (Report). Otago Regional Council. pp. 6–9. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 October 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
- ^ a b Herd and Griffiths (1980), p. 113
- ^ Hamel (2008), p. 1.12
- ^ Herd and Griffiths (1980), p. 40
- ^ Morris, Chris (10 September 2011). "DCC staff consider cost of Barnes Dance conversion". Otago Daily Times. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
- ^ Herd and Griffiths (1980), p. 95
- ^ Reed (1975), p. 128
- ^ Newton (2003), pp. 13–16
- ^ Newton (2003) pp. 42–44
- ^ "The Cyclopedia of New Zealand (Otago and Southland Provincial Districts)", New Zealand Electronic Text Collection. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
- ^ "Mergers enlarge city boundaries", Dunedin City Council website. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
- ^ "April 1923 New Zealand Storm ( 1923-04-18 )". National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research. 2018. Archived from the original on 25 January 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
- ^ Mitchell, Charlie (28 November 2019). "Down Under: The community most-exposed to sea-level rise is also one of the poorest". Stuff. Archived from the original on 27 June 2021. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
- ^ "Dunedin council concedes flood fault". Radio New Zealand. 21 June 2016. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
- ^ "South Dunedin". Cyclopedia of New Zealand: Otago & Southland provincial districts. Christchurch: Cyclopedia Company. 1905. pp. 406–408. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
- ^ "Untitled". Evening Star. 5 April 1905. p. 4. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
- ^ a b "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Hillside-Portsmouth Drive (354300). 2018 Census place summary: Hillside-Portsmouth Drive
- ^ a b "Statistical area 1 dataset for 2018 Census". Statistics New Zealand. March 2020. Bathgate Park (354700). 2018 Census place summary: Bathgate Park
- ^ Mayfair theatre website
- ^ Edgar Centre website
- ^ "King Edward Picture Theatre (Former)". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
- ^ The Caversham Project. "Leisure: Sports for All". 25 July 2003. Retrieved 4 May 2009.
- ^ Dunedin Gasworks Museum Archived 14 October 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Dunedin City Council Gasworks Museum page
- ^ "Dunedin Gasworks gasholder of 1879". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Dunedin Gasworks fitting shop". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
- ^ Croot (1999), pp. 196–206
- ^ "St. Michael's Antiochian Orthodox Church". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
- ^ "St. Patrick's Basilica". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 17 February 2013.
- ^ "Up, up and away", Otago Daily Times, 5 May 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2012.
- Bibliography
- Croot, Charles (1999) Dunedin Churches Past and Present. Dunedin: Otago Settlers' Association.
- Hamel, Antony, (2008) Dunedin Tracks and Trails. Dunedin: Silver Peaks Press. ISBN 978-0-473-13772-4
- Herd, Joyce, and ISBN 0-86868-030-3
- Newton, Barbara A., (2003) Our St. Clair: A resident's history. Dunedin: Kenmore Productions.
- ISBN 0-589-00933-8.