Thames, New Zealand

From Open Encyclopedia

Image:NZ-Thames.png Thames is a town at the southwestern end of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the Firth of Thames close to the mouth of the Waihou River (which is also occasionally called the Thames River).

The town was initially built upon a gold rush, and its population peaked at about 18,000 in 1868. Its population is now around 6500, many of whom work in tourism and locally owned businesses servicing the local farming community.

A major employer is the Toyota New Zealand plant, which assembled CKD cars until 1998, and now refurbishes imported used cars.

The town is the seat of the Thames-Coromandel District Council.

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Education

Thames High School, built in 1880, is the oldest co-educational secondary school in the Auckland province. Random drug tests became school policy in 2001.
Other schools in Thames include Parawai, South, and Moanatairi Primary schools.

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