Arrowtown is a preserved 1860s gold-rush village 20 kilometres northeast of Queenstown — founded in 1862 after gold was discovered in the Arrow River, booming to a population of 7,000 during the rush, and stabilising at its current population of 2,500 after the gold ran out in the 1880s. The historic main street (Buckingham Street) preserves over 70 heritage buildings including miner's cottages, the school, and the post office, forming one of the best-preserved 19th-century streetscapes in New Zealand.
The Chinese Settlement at the western end of the town — where 60+ Chinese miners lived in tiny stone cottages after 1860s — is preserved as an open-air museum and provides a rare memorial to the racially marginalised miners who did the labour-intensive claims that European miners had abandoned. The Lakes District Museum (in Arrowtown's old Bank of New Zealand building) tells the wider gold rush history, and the autumn colours (the town is planted with introduced deciduous trees that turn gold in April-May) make Arrowtown one of the most photographed places in New Zealand.
Verified Facts
Arrowtown was founded in 1862 after gold discovery
The town peaked at about 7,000 residents during the rush
Over 70 heritage buildings are preserved on Buckingham Street
The Chinese Settlement housed around 60 miners
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Arrowtown, New Zealand
