Caversham, New Zealand

Suburb in Dunedin, New Zealand

Caversham
Suburb
South Road, Caversham, looking west towards the start of the Caversham Valley
Coordinates: 45°54′S 170°29′E / 45.900°S 170.483°E / -45.900; 170.483
Country	New Zealand
City	Dunedin
Established	1850s
Area [1]
• Land	71 ha (175 acres)
Population  (June 2024)[2]
• Total	2,230

Balaclava	Maryhill	Mornington
Lookout Point	Caversham	Kensington
Calton Hill	Forbury, Kew	South Dunedin

Caversham /ˈkævərʃəm/ is one of the older suburbs (neighbourhoods) of the city of Dunedin, in New Zealand's South Island. It is sited at the western edge of the city's central plain at the mouth of the steep Caversham Valley, which rises to the saddle of Lookout Point. Major road and rail routes south lie nearby; the South Island Main Trunk railway runs through the suburb, and a bypass skirts its main retail area, connecting Dunedin's one-way street system with the Dunedin Southern Motorway. The suburb is linked by several bus routes to its neighbouring suburbs and central Dunedin.

The suburb was founded by wealthy pioneer William Henry Valpy, and its name reflects his family connections with the town of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. Caversham grew rapidly during the Otago gold rush of the 1860s because of its location on routes south to the Otago hinterland. By the end of the 19th century, Caversham was heavily industrialised, and its population included many skilled or semi-skilled tradespeople. This, combined with the community's strong Protestant roots, led to the area's generally left-leaning political stance. Caversham's early history has been the subject of the Caversham Project, a major historical and archaeological study by the University of Otago. Caversham was a separate borough until 1904, when it was amalgamated with Dunedin city. At a national level, it is part of the Taieri electorate.

Caversham is now predominantly residential, with some industrial premises in the east (notably the Hillside Railway Workshops) and a retail district centred on South Road and Hillside Road. Residents are generally of low socio-economic status. Caversham's notable buildings include the heritage listed Lisburn House and several prominent church buildings. Another landmark is the suburb's war memorial, which is the main gate of Caversham School, the suburb's primary school. Caversham also contains a special-needs school. The nearest secondary schools operate in St Clair, 1 kilometre (0.62 mi) to the south.

Caversham has strong sporting connections, and is the location of Carisbrook, until 2011 one of Dunedin's main sports venues. The suburb is home to the Southern Rugby Football Club, and gives its name to Caversham Football Club. Several notable sportspeople have associations with Caversham, among them Test cricketer Clarrie Grimmett and father and son rugby union administrators "Old Vic" and "Young Vic" Cavanagh. Other notable people with Caversham connections include politician Thomas Kay Sidey, architect Edmund Anscombe, and surveyor John Turnbull Thomson.