More Info →Centennial Book of Views around Palmerston North, 1870s-1970s

This promotional booklet was printed by the Palmerston North Public Relations Organisation to mark the city's centennial. The back reads, "Palmerston North, New Zealand: One hundred years old! Not a great age for a city by world standards but still worthy of note, especially when one considers that native forest and swamp covered much of the city area in 1870. Today, an increasing number of fine buildings and facilities marks the progress of New Zealand's premier provincial city and the manufactured beauty of the urban scene echoes the meaning of the Maori name for the sylvan glade where it all began - Papaiōea - "How beautiful it is." Geographically the city is at the heart of the North Island transportation system and this factor together with the fertile Manawatu plains has fostered a wide range of industries. Education too, owes much to the land as Massey University began as an agricultural college. Today the university teaches all Arts and Sciences and many Technologies. The campus covers nearly one hundred acres and houses New Zealand's only veterinary school. To mark the Centenary, this folder shows the city scene of yesteryear as well as the City of the Seventies."