Karori is a
suburb
A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...
located at the western edge of the urban area of
Wellington
Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, 4 km from the city centre
and is one of New Zealand's most populous suburbs,
with a population of in
History
Origins
The name ''Karori'' used to be ''Kaharore'' and is from
te reo Māori. It comes from the Māori phrase 'te kaha o ngā rore' meaning 'the place of many bird snares'.
Originally forested, Māori used the Karori area for hunting. It also had tracks crossing it that led to
Māori pā on the west coast.
No
Māori
Māori or Maori can refer to:
Relating to the Māori people
* Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group
* Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand
* Māori culture
* Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...
lived in the area when the first European
settler
A settler is a person who has human migration, migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area.
A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a ...
s came to Karori in the 1840s, having bought the land from the
New Zealand Company
The New Zealand Company, chartered in the United Kingdom, was a company that existed in the first half of the 19th century on a business model focused on the systematic colonisation of New Zealand. The company was formed to carry out the principl ...
. The first settler in Karori, John Yule of Glasgow,
cleared 20 acres of forest on his section with his younger brother Moses and advertised its sale in December 1841.
By 1845, ten 100-acre sections were being taken up and sub-divided, and Karori recorded 215 inhabitants – 109 of them under the age of 14 years.
In 1845 a group of armed police from Wellington constructed a small fortified post that became known as "The Stockade" in response to fears of attacks from nearby Māori insurgents. While there were no attacks, the stockade was used for a church service and to grind grain.
The stockade was located on Mr Chapman's land, about halfway along what is now Marsden Avenue.
The first mental hospital in Wellington was built in 1854.
By 1871 it had 23 inmates and was run by untrained staff, which resulted in the first matron and her husband being dismissed in 1872 because of cruelty.
In 1873 the asylum moved from Karori to the site of present-day
Government House in central Wellington.
Karori School took over the asylum site in 1875.
Frederick Mackie in his book ''Traveller under concern'' described Karori in the 1850s:
:''"The walk was highly romantic. The road is cut out of the sides of steep hills covered with forest. The ever-winding road, the steep declivities, the forest above and below you, and the continual murmur of streams concealed in the depths below were very pleasing, as every few yards a new scene and fresh objects were brought to view. In one spot I obtained a view of the harbour, which today was like a bright glassy lake, and beyond it were the lofty ranges of the snow-clad Rimutaka and Tararuas, partly glistening in the sun and partly shrouded in cloud."''
Karori gold rush
Karori experienced a gold rush when the valley of the Upper Kaiwharawhara Stream became subject to intensive gold-mining activity between 1869 and 1873. This activity eventually led to the building of the lower Karori Dam (now part of
Zealandia
Zealandia (pronounced ), also known as (Māori) or Tasmantis, is an almost entirely submerged mass of continental crust that subsided after breaking away from Gondwanaland 83–79 million years ago.Gurnis, M., Hall, C.E., and Lavier, L.L., ...
) in 1873.
At the height of the rush, about 200 men worked the claims, driving shafts and drives up to 500 feet in length into the hills.
Growth and subdivision
In 1888 a syndicate purchased section 34, which was the closest to town (running from present day Ponsonby Road to Cooper Street). The new owners prepared the land for sale by building roads and naming them after the members of the syndicate and their families, and by running a marketing campaign, including providing free buses from Manners Street and writing poems:
''In far-famed New Zealand, the evergreen free land''
''Most favoured and beautiful Queen of the wave,''
''Where the sun ever smiling, bad weather beguiling,''
''Brightly shines on the face of the honest and brave.''
''Tho' for Europe's bold races there are plenty of places''
''Adapted as homes for the great and the small,''
''Yet, for onward progressing and bountiful blessing''
''There is one whose position is far before all.''
''So haste where kind Nature's arrayed in her glory,''
''To pleasant, romantic, suburban Karori.''
Karori Borough, 1891–1920
Karori was a part of
Hutt County
Hutt County was one of the former counties of New Zealand. It occupied the south-western corner of the North Island, extending south from the Waikanae River and lying to the west of the summits of the Rimutaka Ranges. The county's name arises ...
from the county's establishment in 1877 to 1891 when Karori was declared a separate
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
In the Middle Ag ...
following a petition in favour of forming a borough with 123 signatories. A counter-petition garnered 41 signatories.
List of mayors of Karori Borough
Amalgamation with Wellington, 1920
Both Wellington and Karori expanded towards each other, the two urban areas becoming gradually connected, aided by the construction of the Karori tunnel in 1901,
and the Borough of Karori amalgamated with the City of Wellington in 1920.
Demographics
Karori, comprising the statistical areas of Karori East, Karori North, Karori Park and Karori South, covers .
It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km
2.
Karori had a population of 15,234 at the
2018 New Zealand census
Eighteen or 18 may refer to:
* 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19
* one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018
Film, television and entertainment
* ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...
, an increase of 555 people (3.8%) since the
2013 census, and an increase of 1,230 people (8.8%) since the
2006 census
6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number.
In mathematics
Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...
. There were 5,361 households. There were 7,479 males and 7,755 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.96 males per female, with 3,114 people (20.4%) aged under 15 years, 2,937 (19.3%) aged 15 to 29, 7,272 (47.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,911 (12.5%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 76.0% European/Pākehā, 5.7% Māori, 3.4% Pacific peoples, 19.5% Asian, and 3.9% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).
The proportion of people born overseas was 35.2%, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people objected to giving their religion, 52.9% had no religion, 33.9% were Christian, 2.7% were Hindu, 1.2% were Muslim, 1.7% were Buddhist and 2.7% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 6,231 (51.4%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 717 (5.9%) people had no formal qualifications. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 6,549 (54.0%) people were employed full-time, 1,797 (14.8%) were part-time, and 501 (4.1%) were unemployed.
Sports teams
Waterside Karori
Waterside Karori AFC is an association football club in Karori, a suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. They currently play in the Capital Football (New Zealand), Capital Football Central League (New Zealand), Central League.
History
Waterside Ka ...
association football club founded when Karori Swifts and Waterside (a club based in
Kaiwharawhara
Kaiwharawhara is an urban seaside suburb of Wellington in New Zealand's North Island. It is located north of the centre of the city on the western shore of Wellington Harbour, where the Kaiwharawhara Stream reaches the sea from its headwaters ...
) merged.
*Karori United Tennis Club based in Karori.
*Karori Amateur Athletics Club
*Karori Cricket Club
*Karori Netball Club
*Karori Bowling Club
Karori Historical Society
Karori Historical Society is one of many historical societies of Aotearoa New Zealand, membership application is open to all residents and citizens of New Zealand. The activities include publishing books about the history of Karori and there are many titles listed on their website for example ''Karori and its People'' and ''Karori Streets 1841–1991.'' The book ''Karori Streets'' was updated in 2019 and is about the European settlement of the suburb. Original authors are Will Chapman and historian Katherine (Kitty) Wood who was born in 1912. Judith Burch is the president of Karori historical society and co-author of the book, ''Karori and its People.''
The other author is Jan Heynes, also the vice president of the society. Heynes has family connections in Karori from in the early 1900s through the
Kirkcaldie family.
Notable people
*
Katherine Mansfield
Kathleen Mansfield Murry (née Beauchamp; 14 October 1888 – 9 January 1923) was a New Zealand writer, essayist and journalist, widely considered one of the most influential and important authors of the modernist movement. Her works are celebra ...
(1888–1923), novelist
*
George Friend
George Andrew Jordan Friend (born 19 October 1987) is an English professional footballer who plays as a defender for club Birmingham City.
In the 2012–13 season, Friend won Middlesbrough players' player of the season award. The following s ...
(1835–1898), parliamentary official
*
Duncan Oughton
Duncan Oughton (born 14 June 1977 in Karori) is a retired New Zealand association football player. Oughton played professionally in the United States for Major League Soccer club Columbus Crew and represented New Zealand internationally. He wa ...
: football player
*
George Hudson (entomologist)
George Vernon Hudson FRSNZ (20 April 1867 – 5 April 1946) was a British-born New Zealand entomologist credited with proposing the modern daylight saving time. He was awarded the Hector Memorial Medal in 1923.
Biography
Born in London, Brit ...
*
Tom Young (trade unionist)
William Thomas Young (27 April 1870 – 20 September 1953) was a New Zealand seaman and trade unionist.
Biography
Young was born in Karori, Wellington, New Zealand in 1870. He married Margaret Anne Craig in 1906.
He stood in the as an indepen ...
*
Harold Beauchamp
Sir Harold Beauchamp (15 November 1858 – 5 October 1938) was a New Zealand businessman and later two times chairman of the Bank of New Zealand. He is remembered as the father of author Katherine Mansfield.
Australian by birth he was brought ...
: chairman of the Bank of New Zealand, father to Katherine Mansfield
*
Daisy Platts-Mills
Daisy Elizabeth Platts-Mills (1868–1956) was a New Zealand doctor and community leader. She was the first woman doctor in private practice and served on numerous community organisations, particularly those concerned with the health and welf ...
: doctor and community leader
*
Colin McLeod (engineer)
Norman Colin McLeod (5 August 1921 – 6 April 2018) was a New Zealand civil engineer, who served as the Commissioner of Works between 1973 and 1981.
Early life and education
McLeod was born in Auckland on 5 August 1921, the son of Norman Joh ...
*
Samuel Duncan Parnell
Samuel Duncan Parnell (19 February 1810 – 17 December 1890) was an early New Zealand settler often credited with the establishment of the eight-hour day in New Zealand.
Early years
He was born in London, England, on 19 February 1810, one of ni ...
: activist
*
Diana Mason (doctor)
Diana Manby Mason (née Shaw; 29 July 1922 – 5 June 2007) was a prominent New Zealand medical doctor and obstetrician also active in the anti-abortion movement during the 1970s.
Early life
Mason was born in 1922 the daughter of Frieda Charl ...
*
Bryan Waddle
Bryan Alexander Waddle (born 1948) is a veteran New Zealand-born sports broadcaster, sometimes called "The voice of New Zealand cricket".
He grew up in Karori and went to school at Wellington College (New Zealand), Wellington College. His fat ...
: sports broadcaster
*
E. Mervyn Taylor
Ernest Mervyn Taylor (1906–1964) was a notable New Zealand engraver, commercial artist and publisher. He was born in Auckland, New Zealand in 1906 but primarily lived and worked in Wellington, New Zealand until his sudden death at the age of ...
: artist
Facilities
Parks and reserves
Zealandia
Zealandia (pronounced ), also known as (Māori) or Tasmantis, is an almost entirely submerged mass of continental crust that subsided after breaking away from Gondwanaland 83–79 million years ago.Gurnis, M., Hall, C.E., and Lavier, L.L., ...
(formerly called the Karori Wildlife Sanctuary) is an enclosed restoration project focusing on the flora and fauna that inhabited the valley before human settlement.
Karori Park, on Karori Road features a football and cricket sports ground, all-weather track, changing rooms and play area.
Ben Burn Park, on Campbell Street features a football and cricket sports ground, changing rooms, athletics, play area and artificial cricket surfaces.
Wrights Hill Reserve in southern Karori features mountain bike and walking tracks and the historic
Wrights Hill Fortress
Wrights Hill Fortress is a counter bombardment coastal artillery battery in the Karori suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. It was built between 1942 and 1944 and is predominantly underground, with numerous tunnels linking the war shelters, gun emp ...
with a network of tunnels and gun emplacements overlooking the valley.
Makara Peak Mountain Bike Park
''Makara'' ( sa, मकर, translit=Makara) is a legendary sea-creature in Hindu mythology. In Hindu astrology, Makara is equivalent to the Zodiac sign Capricorn (astrology), Capricorn.
Makara appears as the vahana (vehicle) of the river godd ...
in southern Karori has over 40 km of mountain bike and walking tracks built by the mountain biking community and is recognised as a world-class area dedicated to mountain biking.
Karori pool
Karori pool is a modern indoor swimming complex with a 25-meter heated pool, learners' pool, toddlers' pool, spa pool and a 30-meter hydro-slide. The pool was originally an outdoor facility first opened in 1936. The pool was converted to an indoor pool in 2001 and additional work in 2010 added the hydro-slide.
The pool is home to the Karori Pirates swimming club.
Shopping
The centre of Karori contains a basic shopping mall with two supermarkets, a Council-operated library (containing a café), a recreation centre and other amenities.
Library
Karori Library opened in the 1840s, operating out of the community hall at the site of the present day library on Karori Road. In November 2005, the current two-level library and café were opened. The architects were Warren and Mahoney and the building received critical acclaim receiving this review in Architecture New Zealand: "The Karori library is a box of light that shines brightly in an overcast suburb. The relationship to the street is a model for all those who design for the outer city."
Community garden
The Karori Community Garden was founded in 2015 by Paul Stevenson. It is located at 21 Beauchamp Street, behind the Beauchamp Street Chapel.
Churches and cemeteries
Karori Cemetery
Karori Cemetery is New Zealand's second largest cemetery, located in the Wellington suburb of Karori.
History
Karori Cemetery opened in 1891 to address overcrowding at Bolton Street Cemetery.
In 1909, it received New Zealand's first cremato ...
is the second-largest in New Zealand.
Opened in 1891, it replaced the
cemetery at Bolton Street as the main burial ground for the inhabitants of Wellington. It covers 100 acres / 40 hectares. The Small Chapel contains excellent stained glass windows designed by
Wilhelmina Geddes
Wilhelmina Geddes ''HRUA'' (25 May 1887 – 10 August 1955) was an Irish stained glass artist who was an important figure within the Irish Arts and Crafts movement and also the twentieth century British stained glass revival. Notable works includ ...
. The cemetery contains the
war graves
War is an intense armed conflict between State (polity), states, governments, Society, societies, or paramilitary groups such as Mercenary, mercenaries, Insurgency, insurgents, and militias. It is generally characterized by extreme violenc ...
of 267 Commonwealth service personnel of World War I and 123 of World War II, in separate plots for each war, the plots being linked by the Wellington Provincial Memorial (in the form of a marble archway) which commemorates 65 World War I and 20 World War II military personnel from the Wellington Military District who died abroad and have no known grave (most were buried at sea). Karori Cemetery "closed" in 1965 for the establishment of new burial plots, but interments in established graves continue.
Futuna Chapel
Futuna Chapel is a building in Wellington, New Zealand designed by the architect John Scott.
Built by the brothers of the Society of Mary, the chapel is named after the Pacific Island of Futuna on which the missionary Peter Chanel, to whom ...
, built in 1961 by the Society of Mary, was awarded New Zealand Institute of Architects Gold medal for best building in 1968.
The chapel was
deconsecrated
Deconsecration, also called secularization, is the act of removing a religious blessing from something that had been previously consecrated by a minister or priest of that religion. The practice is usually performed on churches or synagogues to b ...
in 2000 and was sold to a property developer who planned to clear the section for residential development.
The building was saved when it was listed as a heritage building and is being restored by a Charitable Trust.
![St Teresa’s Church](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/St_Teresa%E2%80%99s_Church.jpg)
Other churches in Karori include:
* Karori Anglican Church
* Karori Baptist Church
* Catholic Church St Theresa
* St Anselm's Union Church
* St Ninian's Uniting
* St Mary's Anglican Church
Public transport
![Big_red_bus_01](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/81/Big_red_bus_01.jpg)
Until 31 October 2017, the full length of Karori Road was served by the Karori Park trolley bus route, which replaced the former tram service in 1954. For many years vehicles on this route ran as Route 12 to Courtenay Place, but are now designated as Route 2 and through-routed via the city - alternating between Miramar and Seatoun as destinations. The weekday seven-minute service is the most-frequent of all Wellington routes. Other routes serving the suburb are Route 18e which runs through Kelburn to Miramar via Massey University; Route 21 which runs up Beauchamp St and down Birdwood St, to and from Courtenay Place; peak-time Route 37 which runs the 21 route to The Terrace, then via Bowen St and Featherston St to Brandon St; peak-time Route 33 from Karori South to and from Brandon St and peak-time Route 34 which runs from Karori West to and from Brandon St - with an hourly service from Karori South just to and from Karori Mall during the day.
Electric buses were introduced on Route 2 in August 2021.
Education
School enrolment zone
Karori is within the enrolment zones for
Wellington College Wellington College may refer to:
*Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England
** Wellington College International Shanghai
** Wellington College International Tianjin
*Wellington College, Wellington, New Z ...
,
Wellington Girls' College
Wellington Girls' College was founded in 1883 in Wellington, New Zealand. At that time it was called Wellington Girls' High School. Wellington Girls' College is a year 9 to 13 state secondary school, located in Thorndon in central Wellington.
H ...
,
Wellington High School,
St Oran's College, Karori West Normal School, and Karori Normal School.
Wellington Teachers' Training College
Stage one of purpose built faculties to hold the
Wellington Teachers' Training College
Wellington College of Education (formerly Wellington Teachers' Training College) was established in 1888 with the purpose of educating teachers in New Zealand. It became the Faculty of Education of Victoria University of Wellington, formed from th ...
were complete in 1969 on the site 26-40 Donald Street. It has a rich history with many notable New Zealanders attended and teaching there. Other names include the Wellington College of Education. This campus was the home of
Victoria University of Wellington
Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand.
The university is well know ...
Faculty of Education briefly with some controversy until 2016 when the Faculty moved to the Kelburn campus. Construction of a retirement village on the site is underway in 2020 with the company Ryman purchasing the site in 2017.
Secondary school
Samuel Marsden Collegiate School
Samuel Marsden Collegiate School is a private composite girls school located in the Wellington suburb of Karori in New Zealand. It has a socio-economic decile of 10 - on a scale from 1 to 10, 1 reflecting the lowest socioeconomic communities - ...
is a composite private Anglican girls' school on Karori Road in Marsden Village. It offers classes from new entrants to Year 13. In 2014 it had a roll of 502.
Public primary schools
Karori Normal School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,
with a roll of as of .
It was founded in 1857 and is the second-largest full primary school in New Zealand. It has an artificial turf, two playgrounds, 35 classrooms in approximately four buildings, a concrete field, and a grass field.
The author
Katherine Mansfield
Kathleen Mansfield Murry (née Beauchamp; 14 October 1888 – 9 January 1923) was a New Zealand writer, essayist and journalist, widely considered one of the most influential and important authors of the modernist movement. Her works are celebra ...
attended the school from 1895 to 1898 and there is a memorial to her at the school on a concrete field called the Katherine Mansfield field, located in front of a tree she wrote about in one of her stories.
Karori West Normal School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students,
with a roll of .
Christian schools
Samuel Marsden Collegiate School Karori is an Anglican girls' school for Year 1 to 13 students,
founded in 1878.
It has a roll of as of .
St Teresa's School is a co-educational state-integrated Catholic school for Year 1 to 8 students,
with a roll of as of .
Preschools
There are a number of preschool education providers in Karori, including:
* Karori Playcentre
* Marsden Preschool
* Karori Kindercare
* Donald Street Preschool
* Karori Kids Preschool
* Karori Childcare Centre
* Karori Plunket Creche
* St Mary's Early Childhood Education Centre
* Sunshine Kindergarten
* Kiwi Kids Preschool
References
{{Authority control
Suburbs of Wellington City