Township 21 km south of Taihape and 63 km north-east of Bulls. First called Three Log Whare, it was established in the mid-1890s in anticipation of the arrival of the main trunk railway, which reached it in 1902. A local horse, Wotan, won the Melbourne Cup in 1936. State Highway 1 bypassed the main street from the late 1970s. Many buildings stand empty, but Mangaweka still has a school, library, hotel, and business enterprises catering for adventure tourists. A DC3 plane operates as a tearoom.
Meaning of place name
Manga: stream; weka: woodhen.
