this information on Castlecliff was taken from NZETC written about 1897

CASTLECLIFF
... This little settlement is the marine retreat of Wanganui, from which it is five miles distant, and to which a locally owned railway has been constructed. It is in the Wanganui County and Electoral District, and is the scene of the Wanganui Freezing Company's works, there being likewise a soap and also a butter factory. The hotel and a comfortable boardinghouse provide good accommodation for those who desire a change of air and surroundings. A visit to Castlecliff, which is the entrance to the Wanganui River, is a very popular excursion for the denizens of the Borough of Wanganui. Direct steamers lie in the roadstead, and are loaded by tenders.

Castlecliff Hotel
- (Mrs. A. A. BARKER, proprietress), Castlecliff. This fine hotel, which was built in 1885, contains over twenty rooms. There is a good stable adjoining, with stalls for six horses. The hotel is close to the sea-shore, and is largely patronised by tourists and the townspeople.

The Wanganui Freezing Works
- are situated in close proximity to the Heads Wharf at Castlecliff. The Company was formed about eight years ago, and the works employ a large number of hands. The output is increasing year by year, and the Company's success has been practically assured since its inauguration. A large fellmongery business is run in connection with the works, and the manufacture of manures is another branch industry. Special facilities exist for the loading of the tenders which convey the frozen meat from the works to the Home ships, which lie in the roadstead, where there is a good anchouage.

The following poem was written about 1934 by JAMES G. TREADWLL and published in the
"New Zealand Railways Magazine'
NOCTURNE, CASTLECLIFF, WANGANUI
Hushed are the winds! Upon the sleeping sea
Descends the sable, soft-caressing night;
And yonder mountain peak gleams regally
In day's last flush of fiery sunset light.

The little wavelets run upon the sand
Faintly, reluctantly, as half afraid
Grey gulls wing homeward o'er the darkening land
To occupy their rocky palisade.

Lone evening's star, in solitude divine,
Shines like a lovely, scintillating gem,
A priceless jewel from an Eastern mine
Set in some swart Sultana's diadem.

Aloof, across the purple river mouth
Comes dipping in a stately merchantman
From San Francisco, heading for the south,
Or seeking rusty scrap-iron for Japan.

The myriad stars are kindled one by one,
The Southern Cross is in the Milky Way,
The moon peeps o'er the hills; the day is done,
And night again holds undisputed sway.

taken from NZETC written about 1937
- THE CHARM OF WANGANUI
... I took a tram ride from Castlecliff to Aramoho, a trip which measures up to most terminus to terminus journeys possible in Wellington or Auckland. As I have often said, this is one of the best methods for a quick survey of the ?make-up? of a city. Castlecliff is possibly one of the best achievements of Wanganui folk. The rough sandhills, dotted with utilitarian ?baches? have been replaced with a glorious and spacious level green, waterfront park, smart streets of good houses, and all the facilities of a modern seaside resort. Castlecliff is on its way to be the Caroline Bay of the North Island west coast ...more at link

PHOTO of beachside revellers at Castlecliff pre 1916
- taken from Encyclopedia of New Zealand