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TODAY IN HISTORY
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1936, National Party founded
May
13
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24 December
24 December
1953
Tangiwai railway disaster
The worst railway disaster in New Zealand’s history occurred on Christmas Eve 1953, when the Wellington–Auckland night express plunged into the flooded Whangaehu River, just west of Tangiwai in the central North Island.
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This Week in History
13 May
1936
National Party founded
14 May
1866
Wreck of the
General Grant
15 May
1901
Early motoring offence
16 May
1846
Eight killed in attack on Boulcott Farm
17 May
1833
First British Resident comes ashore
18 May
1893
Meri Te Tai Mangakāhia addresses Kotahitanga Māori parliament
19 May
1846
Brunner, Kehu and Heaphy reach Māwhera pā