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Featherston
Country	New Zealand
Region	Wellington
Territorial authority	South Wairarapa District
Ward	Featherston
Founded	1856
Named for	Isaac Featherston
Population
- Total	2,340
Time zone	NZST (UTC+12)
- Summer (DST)	NZDT (UTC+13)
Postcode	5710
Area code(s)	06

Featherston is a town in the south of the Wellington Region region of New Zealand. It lies in the Wairarapa, just north of the Rimutaka Tunnel, in the South Wairarapa District. The population was 2,340 in the 2006 Census.

The town is on the eastern side of the Rimutaka Range close to the northern shore of Lake Wairarapa. It is 37 km south-west of Masterton and 63 km north-east of Wellington.

Contents 1 History 2 Recreation and Sport 3 Education 4 References 5 External links

[edit] History

The Featherston Military Training Camp was a major training camp in World War I. In World War II it became the Featherston prisoner of war camp. The town gained notoriety in 1943 when 122 Japanese Prisoners of War in the camp were shot (48 dead, 74 wounded), after guards believed they were about to be attacked by the prisoners.

On 9 September 2003, Stephen Williams murdered his 6 year old step daughter and dumped her body in the marshlands near Lake Onoke.^[1] He subsequently pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison with a minimum non parole period of 15 years.^[2] This was extended to 17 years after appeal from the Crown. Williams is eligible for parole from September 2020^[3]

[edit] Recreation and Sport

Featherston houses the world's only surviving Fell locomotive engine in the Fell Engine Museum. A popular local walking track leads to the summit of One Tree Hill (not to be confused with the One Tree Hill in Auckland).

Featherston has a rugby union football club and an indoor sports complex.

[edit] Education

There are two primary schools within Featherston; St. Teresa's School and Featherston School. Kahutara Primary and South Featherston School are nearby. Featherston once had a secondary school (Featherston District High School) that closed in the mid 1960s.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Featherston County Website

Coordinates: 41°7′S 175°19′E / 41.117°S 175.317°E / -41.117; 175.317

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