Mercer is a village in the

Waikato District Council Waikato District Council ( mi, Te Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Waikato) is the territorial authority for the Waikato District of New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of ...

area of the

Waikato Waikato () is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsul ...

region of the North Island of New Zealand. It is 70 km north of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

and 58 km south of

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

, on the east bank of the

Waikato River The Waikato River is the longest river in New Zealand, running for through the North Island. It rises on the eastern slopes of Mount Ruapehu, joining the Tongariro River system and flowing through Lake Taupō, New Zealand's largest lake. It th ...

, 2 km south of its confluence with the Mangatāwhiri River. Prior to the creation of the Auckland supercity in 2010, Mercer was in

Franklin District Franklin District was a New Zealand territorial authority that lay between the Auckland metropolitan area and the Waikato Plains. As a formal territory it was abolished on 31 October 2010 and divided between Auckland Council in the Auckland Re ...

, part of the Auckland Region.

History

The first attack in the

invasion of the Waikato The Invasion of the Waikato became the largest and most important campaign of the 19th-century New Zealand Wars. Hostilities took place in the North Island of New Zealand between the military forces of the colonial government and a federatio ...

took place on 17 July 1863, when about 15 Māori defenders were killed at Koheroa (a kilometre north – se
1:50,000 map
. The village was named after Captain Henry Mercer, who was killed at

Rangiriri Rangiriri is a rural community in the Waikato District and Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located on the Waikato River near Lake Waikare in the Waikato District. State Highway 1 now bypasses Rangiriri. Rangiriri was the s ...

in November 1863. The navy river gun-boat

Pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and de ...

was wrecked on the Manukau bar in 1866 and one of the gun turrets forms part of the war memorial. 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 se ...

railway opened to Mercer station on 20 May 1875. A

crash Crash or CRASH may refer to: Common meanings * Collision, an impact between two or more objects * Crash (computing), a condition where a program ceases to respond * Cardiac arrest, a medical condition in which the heart stops beating * Couch su ...

in 1940 killed the driver and fireman. Until 1958 many trains stopped for refreshments. The station closed in 1986. The beached hulls of steamers operated until 1976 by

Caesar Roose ] Caesar Roose (1886–1967) was a New Zealand ship owner and operator, flax and timber miller, businessman, entrepreneur, community leader and philanthropist. He was born in Mercer, Waikato, Mercer, Waikato, New Zealand in 1886. Family life ...

can be seen on the west bank of the river just south of Mercer.W. Stevenson & Sons Ltd
bought the remains of the Roose sand dredging business in the mid 1980s and, after dredging ended in 1997, redeveloped of its yard with a petrol station and a food court.

Bridge

In 1965 Roose offered $100,000 towards the $343,000 bridge to replace the Mercer ferry. The long single span concrete Caesar Roose Bridge was opened on 18 November 1972 by Roose's daughter, Jeanette Thomas, with the Minister of Works, Percy Allen.

Demographics

Mercer is in an SA1 statistical area which covers . The SA1 area is part of the larger Pōkeno Rural statistical area. Mercer had a population of 123 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 9 people (7.9%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 18 people (17.1%) 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 45 households, comprising 66 males and 57 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.16 males per female. The median age was 41.3 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 24 people (19.5%) aged under 15 years, 21 (17.1%) aged 15 to 29, 66 (53.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 12 (9.8%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 63.4% 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 Z ...

, 41.5%

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 ...

, and 4.9% Pacific peoples. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 51.2% had no religion, 24.4% were Christian, 4.9% had Māori religious beliefs, and 2.4% were Muslim. Of those at least 15 years old, 12 (12.1%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 27 (27.3%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $29,100, compared with $31,800 nationally. 15 people (15.2%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 51 (51.5%) people were employed full-time, 12 (12.1%) were part-time, and 9 (9.1%) were unemployed.

Education

Te Paina School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 8 students, with a roll of as of The school was founded in 1876 as Mercer School, and changed its name to Te Paina in 1921.

Former residents

* Allan Marshall (1851–1915), river captain *

Te Puea Hērangi Te Puea Hērangi (9 November 1883 – 12 October 1952), known by the name Princess Te Puea, was a Māori leader from New Zealand's Waikato region. Her mother, Tiahuia, was the elder sister of King Mahuta. Early life She was born at Whatiwhati ...

(1883–1952), Māori leader *

(1886–1967), ship owner and operator

References

External links

Google Street View of Caesar Roose Bridge

Waikato river levels

Waikato water pollution

1943 map of electricity lines, showing businesses, etc
{{Waikato District Waikato District Populated places in Waikato 1863 establishments in New Zealand Populated places on the Waikato River