Ophir, New Zealand
Ophir was originally known as Blacks, when gold was discovered in Central Otago in 1863. Ophir's population grew to over 1000 as it became the commercial and social centre of the district. It was renamed Ophir at this time which was where King Solomon obtained the gold to sheath the Temple in Jerusalem, and is thus the place name of the legendary "King Solomon's Goldmines".
When the Otago Central Railway was constructed in 1906, it was routed through Omakau. This had a positive effect for Omakau, which thrived, but a negative effect on Ophir which saw a considerable loss in population.
Today, with a current population of around 50, the town is also known for the many original buildings still surviving including the restored Post and Telegraph Office, the 1895 Courthouse, and the 1870s Police Station. The Post Office is a schist and stone masonry structure built in 1886, and registered by Heritage New Zealand as a Category I Historic Place (List number 341, 22 November 1984).
New Zealand's second-lowest official temperature of -21.6 °C was recorded at Ophir on 3 July 1995, even though it is not located at a high elevation.
Demographics
Ophir is considered by Statistics New Zealand to be a part of the Omakau rural settlement, which is itself part of the much larger Manuherikia-Ida Valleys statistical area.
Climate
| Climate data for Ophir, elevation 305 m (1,001 ft), (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1924–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 35.2 (95.4) |
35.1 (95.2) |
31.6 (88.9) |
26.8 (80.2) |
24.5 (76.1) |
20.3 (68.5) |
18.0 (64.4) |
22.3 (72.1) |
25.4 (77.7) |
27.7 (81.9) |
31.0 (87.8) |
34.4 (93.9) |
35.2 (95.4) |
| Mean maximum °C (°F) | 30.6 (87.1) |
30.1 (86.2) |
27.7 (81.9) |
23.3 (73.9) |
19.8 (67.6) |
16.2 (61.2) |
15.3 (59.5) |
17.4 (63.3) |
20.7 (69.3) |
23.9 (75.0) |
26.4 (79.5) |
28.8 (83.8) |
31.8 (89.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 23.6 (74.5) |
23.5 (74.3) |
21.0 (69.8) |
16.8 (62.2) |
12.8 (55.0) |
8.5 (47.3) |
8.1 (46.6) |
11.4 (52.5) |
14.8 (58.6) |
17.1 (62.8) |
19.3 (66.7) |
21.8 (71.2) |
16.6 (61.8) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 15.8 (60.4) |
15.4 (59.7) |
12.9 (55.2) |
9.2 (48.6) |
6.2 (43.2) |
2.8 (37.0) |
2.1 (35.8) |
4.6 (40.3) |
7.5 (45.5) |
9.7 (49.5) |
11.8 (53.2) |
14.4 (57.9) |
9.4 (48.9) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 8.1 (46.6) |
7.4 (45.3) |
4.8 (40.6) |
1.7 (35.1) |
−0.3 (31.5) |
−2.9 (26.8) |
−3.8 (25.2) |
−2.2 (28.0) |
0.2 (32.4) |
2.2 (36.0) |
4.3 (39.7) |
7.1 (44.8) |
2.2 (36.0) |
| Mean minimum °C (°F) | 0.4 (32.7) |
0.4 (32.7) |
−2.1 (28.2) |
−5.0 (23.0) |
−6.9 (19.6) |
−8.7 (16.3) |
−9.0 (15.8) |
−7.6 (18.3) |
−5.9 (21.4) |
−4.4 (24.1) |
−2.7 (27.1) |
0.0 (32.0) |
−9.8 (14.4) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −2.6 (27.3) |
−2.1 (28.2) |
−5.6 (21.9) |
−8.0 (17.6) |
−14.5 (5.9) |
−16.5 (2.3) |
−21.6 (−6.9) |
−12.8 (9.0) |
−10.6 (12.9) |
−6.9 (19.6) |
−5.7 (21.7) |
−4.1 (24.6) |
−21.6 (−6.9) |
| Average rainfall mm (inches) | 47.8 (1.88) |
42.3 (1.67) |
32.7 (1.29) |
35.7 (1.41) |
37.8 (1.49) |
33.7 (1.33) |
19.1 (0.75) |
17.5 (0.69) |
21.1 (0.83) |
36.1 (1.42) |
41.4 (1.63) |
48.5 (1.91) |
413.7 (16.3) |
| Source: NIWA | |||||||||||||
References
- ^ "Otago places". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
- ^ "Ophir Post Office". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
- ^ "NZ's temperature record hits new low - minus 25.6degC". The New Zealand Herald. 12 July 2011.
- ^ "Summary of New Zealand Climate Extremes". National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA). January 2004.
- ^ 2018 Census place summary: Manuherikia-Ida Valleys
- ^ "CliFlo – National Climate Database : Ophir 2". NIWA. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
- ^ "CliFlo -The National Climate Database (Agent number: 5544)". NIWA. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
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