Ngātapa is a rural community in the

Gisborne District Gisborne District or the Gisborne Region (Māori: ''Te Tairāwhiti'' or ''Te Tai Rāwhiti'') is a local government area of northeastern New Zealand. It is governed by Gisborne District Council, a unitary authority (with the combined powers of ...

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 ...

. In late 1868 and early 1869 between 86 and 128 followers of

Te Kooti Te Kooti Arikirangi Te Turuki (c. 1832–1893) was a Māori leader, the founder of the Ringatū religion and guerrilla fighter. While fighting alongside government forces against the Hauhau in 1865, he was accused of spying. Exiled to the Cha ...

were executed on Ngātapa hill during the

siege of Ngatapa The siege of Ngatapa ( mi, Ngātapa) was an engagement that took place from 31 December 1868 to 5 January 1869 during Te Kooti's War in the East Coast region of New Zealand. Te Kooti's War was part of the New Zealand Wars, a series of confl ...

. The

Waitangi Tribunal The Waitangi Tribunal (Māori: ''Te Rōpū Whakamana i te Tiriti o Waitangi'') is a New Zealand permanent commission of inquiry established under the Treaty of Waitangi Act 1975. It is charged with investigating and making recommendations on cla ...

described the siege as "one of the worst abuses of law and human rights in New Zealand’s colonial history". The 150th anniversary was commemorated in Ngatapa in January 2019.

Parks

Eastwoodhill Arboretum Eastwoodhill is the national arboretum of New Zealand. It covers and is located 35 km northwest of Gisborne, in the hill country of Ngatapa. It was founded in 1910 by William Douglas Cook. Cook's life work would become the creation of a g ...

, the national

arboretum An arboretum (plural: arboreta) in a general sense is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, man ...

of New Zealand, is located in Ngātapa. It includes a walkway and cycleway.

Marae

The Ngātapa Marae is a meeting ground of the

Te Aitanga-a-Māhaki Te Aitanga-a-Mahaki is one of the three principal Māori iwi of the Tūranga district; the others being Rongowhakaata and Ngai Tamanuhiri. It is numerically the largest of the three, with 6,258 affiliated members as of 2013. The rohe (territo ...

hapū In Māori and New Zealand English, a ' ("subtribe", or "clan") functions as "the basic political unit within Māori society". A Māori person can belong to or have links to many hapū. Historically, each hapū had its own chief and normally opera ...

of Te Whānau a Kai. In October 2020, the Government committed $460,500 from the

Provincial Growth Fund Shane Geoffrey Jones (born 3 September 1959) is a New Zealand politician. He served as a New Zealand First list MP from 2017 to 2020 and was previously a Labour list MP from 2005 to 2014. Jones was a cabinet minister in the Fifth Labour Gove ...

to upgrade Pakowhai Marae, Takitimu Marae and Ngātapa Marae, creating 13 jobs.

Transport

Ngātapa is the terminus of the former

Ngatapa Branch The Ngatapa Branch was a secondary branch line railway long that for a short time formed part of the national rail network in Poverty Bay in the North Island of New Zealand. The Ngatapa branch diverged from the Moutohora branch line about fro ...

railway that closed in 1931. The locality is served by Wharekopae Road.

Education

Ngatapa School is a Year 1–8 co-educational state primary school. In 2019, it was a decile 8 school with a roll of 18. Waerenga-o-Kuri School is a Year 1–8 co-educational state primary school. In 2019, it was a decile 9 school with two teachers and a roll of 46.

References

Populated places in the Gisborne District {{Gisborne-geo-stub