Masterton is a town (and local government district) in the Wellington region of New Zealand. It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a geographical region that is separated from metropolitan Wellington by the Rimutaka ranges. It is 100 kilometres north-east of Wellington, 28 kilometres south of Eketahuna, and stands on the Ruamahanga River. Image File history File links Location map of Masterton, New Zealand File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Image File history File links Location map of Masterton, New Zealand File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... The Wellington region of New Zealand occupies the southern end of the North Island. ... Wairarapa (often known as The Wairarapa) is a geographical region of New Zealand. ... The Rimutaka Range (often referred to as the Rimutaka Ranges) is one of several mountain ranges in the North Island of New Zealand which form a ridge running parallel with the east coast of the island between East Cape and Wellington. ... For other uses, see Wellington (disambiguation). ... Eketahuna is a small rural service town, the most southerly in the Tararua District in the Manawatu-Wanganui region of the North Island of New Zealand. ... The Ruamahanga River system The Ruamahanga River runs through the southeastern North Island of New Zealand. ...

Masterton is a thriving community with a 2001 population of 22,617^[1]. It therefore did not quite qualify to be a city by 1989 when the minimum population requirement for that status was lifted from 20,000 to 50,000. A commuter rail link allows many residents easy access to work in the cities of Wellington, Lower Hutt and Upper Hutt. 2001 (MMI) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... For other uses, see Wellington (disambiguation). ... Lower Hutt is a city in the lower North Island of the country of New Zealand. ... Upper Hutt is New Zealands smallest city by population, the second largest by land area and is located in the Wellington region of New Zealand. ...

Named after pioneer Joseph Masters, it was first settled by Europeans on 21 May 1854. It gained borough status in 1877. May 21 is the 141st day of the year (142nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1854 (MDCCCLIV) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... 1877 (MDCCCLXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Local industries involve service industries for the surrounding farming community. The town is the headquarters of the annual Golden Shears sheep-shearing competition. Medium fine Merino shearing Lismore, Victoria Sheep shearing, typically just called shearing, is the process by which the woolen fleece of a sheep is removed. ...

Education

Following the reform of schools in 2004, the Masterton district contains has 12 primary schools (Douglas Park, Fernridge, Hadlow, Lakeview, Mauriceville, Masterton Primary, Opaki, Solway, St Patricks, Tinui, Wainuiouru, Whareama), one intermediate school (Masterton Intermediate), and 6 secondary schools (Chanel, Makoura, Rathkeale, Solway, St Matthews, Wairarapa).

Masterton has its own polytechnic, run by UCOL.

Communications

Telephone

Masterton's telephone exchange opened 1897 with 53 subscribers. In 1919, Masterton was the first town in New Zealand to have a completely automatic telephone exchange.

Before the 1991 to 1993 changes, the area code for Masterton was 059. Today, the area code is 06, and numbers begin with 370, 372, 377, 378, 379, and 946.

Internet

There are currently two Wireless Internet Service in Masterton Providers based in Masterton, providing high speed broadband access to the towns and rural areas of the Wairarapa. WISE Net (purchased by Orcon Internet Limited in 2006, and in January 2007 Canning & Associates purchased Orcon WiseNet Wireless Network) and Canning & Associates. ADSL access is also widely available. Orcon Internet Limited, normally just Orcon, is a New Zealand Internet service provider. ... Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) is a form of DSL, a data communications technology that enables faster data transmission over copper telephone lines than a conventional modem can provide. ...

Transport

Although Masterton and the Wairarapa valley are reasonably close to Wellington, they are separated by the Rimutaka Ranges with a winding road and the Rimutaka railway tunnel. It is linked to Wellington and the Hutt Valley by the Wairarapa Connection, a regular passenger rail service, primarily operating at peak times. The Rimutaka Range (often referred to as the Rimutaka Ranges) is one of several mountain ranges in the North Island of New Zealand which form a ridge running parallel with the east coast of the island between East Cape and Wellington. ... Rimutaka Tunnel, rail tunnel through New Zealands Rimutaka Ranges between Upper Hutt, near Wellington, and Featherston. ... The Wairarapa Connection is an inter-urban locomotive hauled railway service in New Zealand that operates between Masterton in the Wairarapa region and Wellington City. ...

There has been conjectural talk of constructing a road tunnel through the ranges for decades, but this has been ruled out due to the extremely high cost. According to the latest transportation plan from the Greater Wellington Regional Council^[2], the only work planned is for upgrades to the existing Rimutaka Hill road and the addition of passing lanes between Featherston and Masterton. Featherston is a town in the south of the North Island of New Zealand, east of Wellington, just east of the Rimutaka Tunnel, in the South Wairarapa District. ...

Sister cities

Masterton enjoys Sister City relationships with Hatsukaichi City, Japan, Changchun, China and Armidale, Australia. Hatsukaichi (廿日市市; -shi) is a city located in Hiroshima, Japan. ... Armidale (population 22,000) is a university city in northwestern New South Wales, Australia, and is the administrative centre for the New England region. ...

External links

• Masterton District Council
• WISE Net
• Orcon Internet
• Canning & Associates

References

1. ^  2001 Census of Population and Dwellings: Final Counts, Wellington Region. Retrieved on September 5, 2005.
2. ^  Greater Wellington Regional Council Wairarapa Corridor Plan, December 2003. Retrieved on September 5, 2005.

Coordinates: 40°58′S, 175°39′E September 5 is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... September 5 is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically), Eckert VI projection; large version (pdf, 1. ...