Vinegar Hill, New Zealand
Encyclopedia
Rangitikei River
The Rangitikei River is one of New Zealand's longest rivers, 185 kilometers long.Its headwaters are to the southeast of Lake Taupo in the Kaimanawa Ranges. It flows from the Central Plateau south past Taihape, Mangaweka, Hunterville, Marton, and Bulls, to the South Taranaki Bight at Tangimoana, 40...
in New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It is notable due to hosting an annual LGBT celebration.
Location
Vinegar Hill is a camping ground on the banks of the Rangitikei RiverRangitikei River
The Rangitikei River is one of New Zealand's longest rivers, 185 kilometers long.Its headwaters are to the southeast of Lake Taupo in the Kaimanawa Ranges. It flows from the Central Plateau south past Taihape, Mangaweka, Hunterville, Marton, and Bulls, to the South Taranaki Bight at Tangimoana, 40...
within the Putai Ngahere Reserve, and is located on State Highway 54, about 5 km north of Hunterville
Hunterville, New Zealand
Hunterville is a small community on State Highway 1, in the Rangitikei district of the North Island of New Zealand. It is located half way between Taupo and Wellington and has a population of 507....
in the Manawatu-Wanganui
Manawatu-Wanganui
Manawatu-Wanganui is a region in the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand, around the cities of Palmerston North and Whanganui. It is administered by the Horizons Regional Council.-Administration:...
region of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, on State Highway 1..
Etymology
There is a misconception over how this Vinegar Hill was named. Some think that it is named after the Battle of Vinegar HillBattle of Vinegar Hill
The Battle of Vinegar Hill was an engagement during the Irish Rebellion of 1798 on 21 June 1798 when over 15,000 British soldiers launched an attack on Vinegar Hill outside Enniscorthy, County Wexford, the largest camp and headquarters of the Wexford United Irish rebels...
in Ireland. However, the name was derived from a source closer than that; the Manawatu District Council information sheets on the campsite state that it was named after an incident in early colonial times - a bullock cart carrying barrels of vinegar overturned after the bullocks slipped on the muddy track on the hillside, covering the hillside in vinegar from the broken barrels.
History
Since the 1980s, Vinegar Hill has been a popular camping spot for Gay and LesbianLGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
people and their families over Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
and the New Year holiday period in the height of summer. The first "Queen" of the camp was appointed in 1985, for the 1986 camp; the initial names engraved on the trophy presented each year are the drag names of the people appointed to the role of Queen. The Queen is appointed every year by all the former Queens who are present on the 31st of December.