City at the Centre: A history of Palmerston North [Hardcover]

Once a small town sited at Te Papaioea, a clearing in the bush that cloaked the Manawatu Plains, Palmerston North has always had big-city aspirations. Critical to its growth was the railway that runs through it, farming and education. Originally settled by Rangitane, today Palmerston North is home to people from many parts of the world. Why they chose to come to the city, and what they did when they got there, is the subject of this richly illustrated and engaging history.

Once a small town sited at Te Papaioea, a clearing in the bush that cloaked the Manawatu Plains, Palmerston North has always had big-city aspirations.?

Dr Geoff Watson is a senior lecturer in the School of Humanities, Massey University. His research focus is sports history. He is the principal author ofSeasons of Honour: A Centennial History of New Zealand Hockey19022002(2002) andSporting Foundations of New Zealand Indians: A Fifty-year History of the New Zealand Indian Sports Association(2012). He is co-author ofSport and the New Zealanders: A History(2018),Sport Development in Action: Plan, Programme, Practice(2019) andLegends in Black: New Zealand Rugby Greats on Why We Win(2014). He teaches a paper in sports history at Massey University and takes an interest in most sports. He has been extensively involved in sport at grass-roots level, including coaching Massey University hockey teams and participating in long-distance running.

Kerry Taylor is head of the School of Humanities and director of the W. H. Oliver Humanities Research Academy at Massey University. His work has been mainly on the history of the left and political dissent, and the history of material culture in New Zealand. His works includeCulture and the Labour Movement(edited with John Martin),On the Left: Essays on Socialism in New Zealand(edited with Pat Moloney), andTe Hao Nui The Great Catch: Object Stories from Te Manawa(edited with Fiona McKelã7