Kelvin Grove is a suburb of

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

on New Zealand's

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

. It is bounded on the north by the

North Island Main Trunk The North Island Main Trunk (NIMT) is the main railway line in the North Island of New Zealand, connecting the capital city Wellington with the country's largest city, Auckland. The line is long, built to the New Zealand rail gauge of and ser ...

railway,

Manawatū District Manawatū District is a territorial authority district in the Manawatū-Whanganui local government region in the North Island of New Zealand, administered by Manawatū District Council. It includes most of the area between the Manawatū River ...

and Milson, on the west by Palmerston North–Gisborne Line and Roslyn, the south by the Manawatū River, and the east by James Line and Whakarongo. It was identified as one of New Zealand's fastest growth suburbs in November 2016. The lower North Island distribution centres of

Foodstuffs Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is ingest ...

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and Woolworths New Zealand are located in Kelvin Grove. The national customer centre of

Toyota New Zealand Toyota New Zealand Limited is the importer and distributor of new Toyota and Lexus vehicles to New Zealand. It also imports used vehicles from Japan and refurbishes them at its former assembly plant in Thames. Until 1998 it also assembled a va ...

and the Radius Peppertree rest home and hospital is also located on Roberts Line. Many Kelvin Grove street name are named after New Zealand places, such as Kaimanawa, Anakiwa, Karamea, Mahia and Wairau. Local parks include Kaimanawa Park, Celaeno Park, Kelvin Grove Park, Linklater Block, Schnell Reserve, Schnell Esplanade Reserve, Robêrt Reserve, Frederick Krull Reserve, Dahlstrom Reserve, James Line Reserve and Parnell Reserve.

History

Pre-European history

The original inhabitants of the area were the local

Rangitāne Rangitāne is a Māori people, Māori iwi (tribe). Their rohe (territory) is in the Manawatū-Whanganui, Manawatū, Horowhenua, Wairarapa and Marlborough Region, Marlborough areas of New Zealand.

European settlement

The first Europeans arrived in Kelvin Grove in 1871 when Scandinavian immigrants settled in the area around present day Roberts Line-James Line and Napier Road block. This area and also that of Whakarongo, became known as the Stoney Creek Scandinavian Block. At this time the area was mainly thick forest, which had to be felled in order for settlement. This was achieved by the mid-1870s. In 1893, Kelvin Grove School was established and Kelvin Grove as an entity of its own was established. Kelvin Grove was the name of the local sawmill (which had opened in 1879). In 1901, Kelvin Grove Hall was built. In 1921, however, the hall burnt down and was not replaced until 1935. In 1939, Kelvin Grove School closed down, due to parents choosing other schools such as Milson or Terrace End.

Urban development

In 1950, part of Kelvin Grove was brought under the jurisdiction of Palmerston North City, but it was not until 1966 when houses began to appear especially in the Karamea Crescent and Mahia Place area. The mostly rural suburb has gradually expanded since then. Prior to 1996, Kelvin Grove was part of the Manawatu electorate. This electorate included parts of Palmerston North, east of Ruahine Street as well as Linton Camp, Turitea, Aokautere and Roslyn. However, due to the reformation of the electoral system from FPP to MMP, the electorate of Rangitikei's boundaries were redrawn to include Kelvin Grove. A 2007 boundary redistribution includes Kelvin Grove in the Palmerston North electorate. Several new homes were built in Kelvin Grove during the 2010s. A housing development in Kelvin Grove was one of the first to restart, following the

coronavirus lockdown Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of non-pharmaceutical interventions colloquially known as lockdowns (encompassing stay-at-home orders, curfews, quarantines, and similar societal restrictions) have been implemented in numerous countrie ...

in 2020.

Demographics

Kelvin Grove covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Kelvin Grove had a population of 7,203 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 435 people (6.4%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 2,403 people (50.1%) 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 2,424 households, comprising 3,528 males and 3,678 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.96 males per female, with 1,704 people (23.7%) aged under 15 years, 1,362 (18.9%) aged 15 to 29, 3,246 (45.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 897 (12.5%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 76.9% European/

Pākehā Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non-Māori New Ze ...

, 15.6%

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 ...

, 4.1% Pacific peoples, 13.9%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, and 3.4% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 19.8, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 46.4% had no religion, 39.4% were

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, 1.0% had Māori religious beliefs, 2.0% were

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

, 1.0% were

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

, 1.9% were

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and 2.4% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 1,221 (22.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 978 (17.8%) people had no formal qualifications. 996 people (18.1%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 3,051 (55.5%) people were employed full-time, 792 (14.4%) were part-time, and 204 (3.7%) were unemployed.

Cemetery

Kelvin Grove Cemetery is Palmerston North's main cemetery, performing about 180 burials and 400 cremations each year. It was opened in 1927 to replace the old

Terrace End Cemetery Terrace End Cemetery is the oldest cemetery in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Almost 10,000 people have been buried in the cemetery since Rangitāne gifted the land to the fledgling Palmerston North settlement in 1875. Plots are now closed, but ...

on Napier Road, the crematorium and chapel were added in 1954, and a modern gas-fired cremator was installed in 2003. The cemetery allows flower garden tributes, unlike other cemeteries in the region. In 2018, a group of four roosters and three chickens were trapped at the cemetery and sent to slaughter, several years after they had been dumped there. he Palmerston North branch of the

Returned Services' Association The Royal New Zealand Returned and Services' Association, best known simply as the RSA, is one of the largest voluntary welfare organisations in New Zealand and one of the oldest ex-service organisations in the world. Wounded soldiers returning ...

and soldiers from the Linton Military Camp reached an agreement with

Palmerston North City Council Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

in 2019 to clean the headstones of 1000 veterans buried at the cemetery. The association had to also seek permission from the veterans' families. Bronze plaques, bronze flower holders and a sundial were stolen from the cemetery in February 2020.

Education

Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Manawatu is a co-educational Māori language immersion state primary school, with a roll of as of . Cornerstone Christian School is a co-educational state-integrated Christian school for Year 1 to 11 students, with a roll of . There is also a kindergarten in the suburb.

References

{{Palmerston North City Suburbs of Palmerston North Populated places in Manawatū-Whanganui