Maxwell: The man behind a town s name
16 Feb, 2021 04:00 PM
6 minutes to read
The district named after George Maxwell is on course to be renamed Pakaraka. Photo / File
Whanganui Chronicle
By: Dave Scoullar
In Whanganui District Council discussions George Maxwell has been described as probably not the nicest guy. Whether he was or not it s indisputable that he played a prominent part in an infamous event. Just over 150 years later the district named after him is on course to revert to its earlier name of Pakaraka.
So who was Maxwell and how did it come to this? He was born in Alloa, Scotland, and arrived as a young boy in Wellington in March 1852 on the Agra with his parents John and Catherine Maxwell.