Napier

Napier, a seaport on the east coast of North Island, New Zealand, capital of the provincial district of Hawke's Bay, 200 m. by rail N.E. of Wellington. Pop. (1906) 9454. The main portion of the town stretches along the flat shoreland of Hawke's Bay, while the suburbs extend over the hills to the north. The site consists of a picturesque peninsula known as Scinde Island. The harbour (Port Ahuriri) is sheltered by a breakwater. The cathedral church of St John (1888) for the bishopric of Waiapu, is one of the finest ecclesiastical buildings in New Zealand, imitating the Early English style in brick. An athenaeum, a small hospital, a lunatic asylum, a philosophical society and an acclimatization society are among the public institutions. The town (named after Sir Charles James Napier) is under municipal government, and returns a member to the New Zealand House of Representatives. The district is agricultural, and large quantities of wool and tinned and frozen meats are exported. 'There is railway communication with Wellington, New Plymouth, and the Wairarapa, Wanganui and Manawatu districts. Numerous old native pas or fortified villages are seen in the neighbourhood.