New Zealand - Nelson - A view of Tahuna Beach - Circa 1950 - J. W. Jones photographer - Real Photo Postcard Format #336947 Nelson - Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay. - It is the oldest city in the South Island and the second-oldest settled city in New Zealand. - Nelson was named in honour of the Admiral Horatio Nelson who defeated both the French and Spanish fleets at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. - Nelson's Māori name, Whakatū, means 'build', 'raise', or 'establish'. - In an article to The Colonist newspaper on 16 July 1867, Francis Stevens described Nelson as "The Naples of the Southern Hemisphere". Today, Nelson has the nicknames of "Sunny Nelson" due to its high sunshine hours per year or the "Top of the South" because of its geographic location.