Eiffelton
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Eiffelton is a lowly populated locality in the Mid-Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island.[1] It is situated on the Canterbury Plains near the Hinds River, which reaches the Pacific Ocean in nearby Longbeach. The small township of Hinds is to Eiffelton's west. Other nearby settlements include Lynnford between Eiffelton and Hinds, Willowby to the north, and Flemington and Waterton to the east. The closest town of significant size is Ashburton to the north.
Eiffelton has a town hall and formerly had a primary school. As of 2000, it merged with two other nearby schools and relocated to a site in Willowby.[2] It also had a play centre for children under primary school age, but between 2001 and 2005, the play centre also relocated to Willowby.[3]
Eiffelton's major claim to fame is that in 1978, it was the site of the discovery of an object similar to the Ashburton balls six years after the original balls were found. The balls were pieces of space debris from the failed Russian space vessel Cosmos 482.[4]
[edit] References
- ^ Land Information New Zealand, New Zealand Geographic Placenames Database - Place Name Detail: Eiffelton, accessed 20 March 2007
- ^ Department of Internal Affairs, Notice Number 6786: Merger of Schools, New Zealand Gazette, 16 September 1999, accessed 20 March 2007
- ^ Education Review Office, Education Review Report: Longbeach Playcentre, September 2005, accessed 20 March 2007
- ^ Alison Horwood, "New light on mysterious space balls", New Zealand Herald, 24 August 2002, accessed 21 March 2007