Longbush is a rural community in the

Carterton District Carterton ( mi, Taratahi) is a small town in the Wellington Region of New Zealand and the seat of the Carterton District (a territorial authority or local government district). It lies in a farming area of the Wairarapa in New Zealand's North Isl ...

, Wairarapa (within the Wellington Region) of 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 located in a valley southeast of the town of Carterton, and nearby settlements include

Gladstone William Ewart Gladstone ( ; 29 December 1809 – 19 May 1898) was a British statesman and Liberal politician. In a career lasting over 60 years, he served for 12 years as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, spread over four non-conse ...

and Ponatahi to the north. Longbush was established as a settlement in 1902, under the Land For Settlements Consolidation Act 1900, at the same time as nearby Table-lands. Together Longbush and Table-lands had a combined land area of 27,000 acres. In 1904, an application for a school was approved by the Education Board, it opened in 1905. The school closed in 1968 and consolidated with nearby Gladstone School. Today the school is used as a children's play centre and occasional community hall. The Longbush area includes a valley enclosed by the Ponatahi Hills () to the west and the slopes at the southern end of the Maungaraki Range () that skirt around the back of the Windy Peak Ridge. The hill/valley area is a transitional area between the plains and the more rugged hill country to the east. The

, Central Plains and Martinborough areas wrap around the north and west sides of the Longbush area and the Hinakura, Tuturumuri, and Huangarua areas bound the eastern and southern sides. Longbush has a small resident population (<200) composed mostly of pastoral farmers ( sheep, diary, beef, pig and deer), agricultural workers, and lifestylers. The local hapū is Ngāti Hikawera, part of the Ngāti Kahungunu iwi.

Notable people

* Hamuera Tamahau Mahupuku (c.1842 – 14 January 1904), a New Zealand tribal leader, runholder, assessor, and newspaper proprietor.
Mahupuku Road, Longbush
is named after him.

Events

A small number of local annual events take place, including: * November
Wairarapa Garden Tour
that loca
Longbush Cottage
participates in. * November
Scarecrow's Big Day Out.
* Wednesday mornings: Longbush playgroup

Historical notes

* April 1908, local flax mill closes after a year of operation due to increasing labour costs * May 1908, the road from Longbush to Martinborough opened with the completion of the last bridge. * December 1908, first telephone sub-exchanges are agreed to be installed. * September 1909, a cheese factory opens, in 1915 Longbush cheese was shipped from Carterton to London.

References

Populated places in the Wellington Region Carterton District Carterton, New Zealand Wairarapa {{Wellington-geo-stub