Balclutha, New Zealand established a ferry service across the Clutha in 1857; as a result the town was initially called Clutha Ferry. The Māori name for the area is Iwikatea, literally "Bleached bones" (a local Māori tribal battle in 1750 left the decomposing bodies of the defeated, their bones whitened in the sun). The Clutha River flows through the town. It is the largest river in New Zealand by volume of water, and the country's second longest after the Waikato. It provides the town with various recreational facilities, including fishing (brown trout), water skiing and power boating. The most prominent structure in the
New York State Route 264 homes near the northern town line. Here, NY 264 connects to Godfrey Road, a local highway leading southeast to CR 54 in the hamlet of Pennellville. The route climbs a hill as it crosses into the town of Palermo and the hamlet of Suttons Corner, located at the junction of NY 264 and NY 49. From Suttons Corner, the route heads generally north-northeastward across along another sparsely populated stretch to a junction with NY 3 south of the hamlet of Palermo. NY 264 ends here while NY 3 continues north on NY 264's right-of-way toward Palermo. The north–south highway between