Story: Historic earthquakes

Slips at Utapu, 1861

Slips at Utapu, 1861

The explorer J. C. Crawford travelled up the Whanganui River in 1861 and recorded many landslides. In this sketch he depicts a sandstone slip behind the village at Utapu in Whanganui, noting where the hill has slipped down. There are records of earthquake-caused landslides in 1838, and there may have been further landslides from the widespread shaking of the 1855 Wairarapa earthquake.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library
Reference: E-041-042
Pencil and ink drawing by James Coutts Crawford

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Eileen McSaveney, 'Historic earthquakes - Earthquakes in Māori tradition', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/artwork/4381/slips-at-utapu-1861 (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Eileen McSaveney, published 12 Jun 2006, reviewed & revised 28 Mar 2011, updated 1 Nov 2017