Waimate North is a small settlement in Northland, New Zealand. It is situated between

Kerikeri Kerikeri () is the largest town in Northland, New Zealand. It is a tourist destination north of Auckland and north of the northern region's largest city, Whangarei. It is sometimes called the Cradle of the Nation, as it was the site of th ...

and

Lake Ōmāpere Lake Ōmāpere is the largest lake in the Northland Region of New Zealand. It is located to the North of Kaikohe. The lake sits within the Kaikohe-Bay of Islands volcanic field. The lake was formed when an ancient lava flow blocked a valley, formi ...

, west of the

Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for its ...

. It was one of the earliest centres of European settlement and features the second-oldest surviving European building in New Zealand, at Te Waimate Mission.

History

Pre-European history

Okuratope Pā was situated here and was the home to chief Te Hotete (father of

Hongi Hika Hongi Hika ( – 6 March 1828) was a New Zealand Māori rangatira (chief) and war leader of the iwi of Ngāpuhi. He was a pivotal figure in the early years of regular European contact and settlement in New Zealand. As one of the first Māori l ...

) of the Ngai Tawake

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 ...

in the late 18th-early 19th centuries. A major disturbance took place here in 1800, when an attacking Ngare Raumati war party from

Rāwhiti Rāwhiti or Te Rāwhiti is a small beachfront town about 27km from Russell, New Zealand, Russell in the Bay of Islands of New Zealand. Most of the land in the area is owned by Māori people, Māori. There are two marae — Kaingahoa and Te Rāwhi ...

murdered and ate chief Te Maoi's wife, Te Auparo as well as their daughter, Te Karehu. This led to revenge attacks, which lasted over two decades; and resulted in the comprehensive defeat of the Ngare Raumati and the conquest of their lands by

Ngāpuhi Ngāpuhi (or Ngā Puhi) is a Māori iwi associated with the Northland region of New Zealand and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands, and Whangārei. According to the 2018 New Zealand census, the estimated population of Ngāpuhi is 165, ...

(including Te Maoi and Te Auparo's three chiefly sons; Te Wharerahi, Rewa, and

Moka Te Kainga-mataa Moka Kainga-mataa e Kaingamataa/Te Kaingamata/Te Kainga-mata/Te Kainga-mataa'' (1790s–1860s) was a Māori rangatira (chief) of the Ngā Puhi iwi from Northland in New Zealand. He was distinguished in war and an intelligent participant in the ...

European settlement

Te Waimate Mission was the fourth mission station established in New Zealand, and the first settlement inland from the

. The members of the

Church Missionary Society The Church Mission Society (CMS), formerly known as the Church Missionary Society, is a British mission society working with the Christians around the world. Founded in 1799, CMS has attracted over nine thousand men and women to serve as mission ...

(CMS) appointed to establish the mission were the Rev.

William Yate William Yate (3 November 1802 – 26 July 1877) was one of the earliest New Zealand missionaries and writers who worked for the Church Mission Society. He was born in Bridgnorth, Shropshire, England in 1802. He joined the Church Missionary Soci ...

and lay members Richard Davis,

George Clarke George Clarke (7 May 1661 – 22 October 1736), of All Souls, Oxford, was an English architect, print collector and Tory politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1702 and 1736. Life The son of Sir William Clarke ...

and James Hamlin. The first European wedding in New Zealand was conducted on 11 October 1831 at the St. John the Baptist Church, when

William Gilbert Puckey William Gilbert Puckey (5 May 1805 – 27 March 1878), born in Penryn, England, was a missionary in New Zealand. He accompanied his parents to New Zealand at the age of 14. He became widely regarded as one of the best interpreters of Māori i ...

(26), son of a Missionary carpenter, William Puckey, married Matilda Elizabeth Davis (17), second daughter of the Missionary Rev. Richard Davis. During the

Flagstaff War The Flagstaff War, also known as Heke's War, Hōne Heke's Rebellion and the Northern War, was fought between 11 March 1845 and 11 January 1846 in and around the Bay of Islands, New Zealand. The conflict is best remembered for the actions of Hō ...

(1845-1846) casualties of the

Battle of Ōhaeawai The Battle of Ōhaeawai, part of the Flagstaff War, was fought in July 1845 at Ōhaeawai in Northland, New Zealand. The battle was between British forces and their allies from the local Ngāpuhi tribe of Māori on one side, and other Ngāpuhi, le ...

were buried in the church yard of Church of St John the Baptist, including Captain Grant of the 58th Regiment and Lieutenant

George Phillpotts Lieutenant George Phillpotts (1814 – 1 July 1845) was an officer of the Royal Navy. He was born in Durham, England, Durham, England in or about 1814. Career George Phillpotts entered the Royal Navy on 5 September 1827, advanced to mate t ...

of HMS ''Hazard''. The mission station was used as the headquarters for the British army, after which the mission lost support among Māori. The mission station gradually fell into disrepair and the buildings were subsequently put up for sale. Today the only remnant on the site is the house originally occupied by George Clarke, which is preserved by

Heritage New Zealand Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...

as a museum.

Modern history

The existing St. John the Baptist Church at Waimate North was built in 1870 and 1871. Waimate North Christian School closed in 2005.

Marae

The local Tauwhara Marae and Te Rangiawhiowhio meeting house is a traditional meeting ground for the

of Ngāi Tāwake,

Ngāti Hineira Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori roughly means "people" or "nation", and is often translated as "tribe", or "a confederation of tribes". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, an ...

, Ngāti Rēhia, Ngāti Tawake ki te Tuawhenua and Whānautara. In October 2020, the Government committed $500,000 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 the marae, creating 29 jobs.

Demographics

Waimate North is in an SA1 statistical area which covers and includes an area north of

Ōhaeawai Ōhaeawai is a small village at the junction of State Highway 1 and State Highway 12 in the Far North District of New Zealand, some from Auckland. The town of Kaikohe is to the west, and the Bay of Islands is a short drive to the east. The N ...

and south of the Waitangi River. The SA1 area is part of the larger Ōhaeawai-Waimate North statistical area. The SA1 statistical area had a population of 213 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 39 people (22.4%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 42 people (24.6%) 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 78 households, comprising 105 males and 105 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.0 males per female. The median age was 51.0 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 30 people (14.1%) aged under 15 years, 33 (15.5%) aged 15 to 29, 99 (46.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 54 (25.4%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 80.3% European/Pākehā, 31.0% Māori, 1.4% Pacific peoples, 1.4% Asian, and 1.4% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 47.9% had no religion, 40.8% were Christian, 4.2% had Māori religious beliefs, 1.4% were Buddhist and 1.4% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 39 (21.3%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 33 (18.0%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $29,600, compared with $31,800 nationally. 24 people (13.1%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 93 (50.8%) people were employed full-time, 30 (16.4%) were part-time, and 6 (3.3%) were unemployed.

References

{{Far North District Far North District Populated places in the Northland Region