Bulls, New Zealand
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Bulls () is a town in the
Rangitikei District The Rangitikei District is a territorial authority district located primarily in the Manawatū-Whanganui region in the North Island of New Zealand, although a small part, the town of Ngamahanga (13.63% by land area), lies in the Hawke's Bay ...
of New Zealand. It is in a fertile farming area at the junction of State Highways 1 and 3, northwest of
Palmerston North Palmerston North (; , colloquially known as Palmerston or Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatū Plains, the city is near the north bank of the Manaw ...
. According to a
Statistics New Zealand Statistics New Zealand (), branded as Stats NZ, is the public service department of New Zealand charged with the collection of statistics related to the economy, population and society of New Zealand. To this end, Stats NZ produces New Zealand c ...
estimate, Bulls has a population of inhabitants. Recent marketing makes puns with the name, for example, "New Zealand gets its milk from Bulls" or the sign for the local police station "Const-a-bull".


Etymology

There are two recorded Māori toponyms for the area – Te Ara Taumaihi and Ō-hine-puhiawe. The origins of Te Ara Taumaihi have yet to be explicitly explored. Ō-hine-puhiawe, a land block where Parewahawaha marae is situated, acts as a synecdoche to refer to the current town area. The modern town name is named after James Bull who owned the first general store there. The town was originally called Bull Town, but this was changed to Clifton and then renamed back to Bulls at the urging of Sir William Fox.


History and culture

The eastern end of the State Highway 1 bridge over the
Rangitikei River Rangitikei may refer to the following in New Zealand: * Rangitīkei River, one of country's longest rivers * Rangitikei District, a district council in the Manawatu-Wanganui Region * Rangitīkei (New Zealand electorate), a current general electorate ...
south-east of the town collapsed suddenly in 1973 while being crossed by a bus. No-one was killed and the collapsed part was rebuilt. The former Lake Alice Psychiatric hospital is 7 km (4 mi) north of Bulls, the hospital closed in 1999. Lake Alice was a large contributor to the Bulls and Marton economy. Bulls is covered by the
Whanganui Chronicle ''The Whanganui Chronicle'' is New Zealand's oldest newspaper. Based in Whanganui, it celebrated 160 years of publishing in September 2016. It is the main daily paper for the Whanganui, Ruapehu and Rangitīkei regions, including the towns of Pat ...
, a daily paper part of the NZ Herald network that serves the Whanganui, Ruapehu and Rangitīkei regions. Slasher film X was partially filmed in Bulls, namely the interior shots of the farmhouse which were filmed inside the Bulls town hall.


Marae

The local Parewahawaha Marae is a traditional meeting ground for the
Ngāti Raukawa Ngāti Raukawa is a Māori iwi (tribe) with traditional bases in the Waikato, Taupō and Manawatū/ Horowhenua regions of New Zealand. In 2006, 29,418 Māori registered their affiliation with Ngāti Raukawa. History Early history Ngāti ...
hapū of Ngāti Parewahawaha. It is on land known as Ōhinepuhiawe. The marae features the Parewahawaha meeting house, a whare tūpana opened on 15 April 1967 by Maori Queen Te Atairangikaahu. At the time it was opened, Te Rangi Pumamao was the rangatira at Parewahawaha. He had finished construction of the house, as previous builders had died. In October 2020, the Government committed $1,248,067 from the
Provincial Growth Fund Shane Geoffrey Jones (born 3 September 1959) is a New Zealand politician and a member of the New Zealand House of Representatives for the New Zealand First party. Jones' political career began 2005 New Zealand general election, in 2005 as a l ...
to upgrade the marae and five others, creating 69 jobs.


Demographics

Bulls covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Bulls had a population of 2,055 at the
2023 New Zealand census The 2023 New Zealand census, which took place on 7 March 2023, was the thirty-fifth national census in New Zealand. It implemented measures that aimed to increase the Census' effectiveness in response to the issues faced with the 2018 census, i ...
, an increase of 120 people (6.0%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 465 people (25.5%) since the 2013 census. There were 879 households, while the median age was 32.8 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally), with 462 people (22.5%) aged under 15 years, 444 (21.6%) aged 15 to 29, 873 (42.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 275 (13.4%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 79.7% European/
Pākehā ''Pākehā'' (or ''Pakeha''; ; ) is a Māori language, Māori-language word used in English, particularly in New Zealand. It generally means a non-Polynesians, Polynesian New Zealanders, New Zealander or more specifically a European New Zeala ...
, 28.3%
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 Co ...
, 7.2% Pacific peoples, 3.9% Asian, and 2.3% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 15, compared with 28.8% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 6.15% had no religion, 25.0% were
Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
, 1.9% had
Māori religious beliefs 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 Co ...
, 0.7% were
Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...
, 0.6% were
Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...
, 0.4% were
Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
and 1.8% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 169 (8.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 427 (20.8%) people had no formal qualifications. The median household income was $88,000, compared with $97,000 nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1171 (57%) people were employed full-time, 189 (9.2%) were part-time, and 74 (3.6%) were unemployed.


Government and politics


Local government

As part of the
Rangitikei District The Rangitikei District is a territorial authority district located primarily in the Manawatū-Whanganui region in the North Island of New Zealand, although a small part, the town of Ngamahanga (13.63% by land area), lies in the Hawke's Bay ...
, the current
Mayor of Rangitikei The mayor of Rangitikei is the head of the Rangitikei District Council in New Zealand. The role was created in 1989 with the formation of the Rangitikei District as part of the 1989 local government reforms. The current mayor since 2013 Rangitike ...
since
2013 2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years). 2013 was designated as: *International Year of Water Cooperation *International Year of Quinoa Events January * January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
is Andy Watson. Bulls is the main town in the Southern ward of the Rangitikei District Council, which elects two of the eleven district councillors.


National government

Bulls, like the rest of the Rangitikei District, is located in the general electorate of Rangitīkei and the
Māori electorate 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 Co ...
of
Te Tai Hauāuru Te Tai Hauāuru () is a New Zealand parliamentary Māori electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives, that was first formed for the . The electorate was represented by Tariana Turia from to 2014, f ...
. Rangitīkei is a safe National Party seat since the 1938 election except for 1978–1984 when it was held by
Bruce Beetham Bruce Craig Beetham (16 February 1936 – 3 May 1997) was an academic and politician from New Zealand, whose career spanned the 1970s and early 1980s. A lecturer at Hamilton's University of Waikato and at the Hamilton Teachers' Training Colle ...
of the Social Credit Party. Since
2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
it has been held by Suze Redmayne Te Tai Hauāuru is a more unstable seat, having been held by three different parties since
1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
, i.e.
New Zealand First New Zealand First (), commonly abbreviated to NZ First or NZF, is a political party in New Zealand, founded and led by Winston Peters, who has served three times as Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand, deputy prime minister. The party has form ...
,
Te Pāti Māori (), also known as the Māori Party, is a left-wing political party in New Zealand advocating Māori people, Māori rights. With the exception of a handful of New Zealand electorates#Electorates in the 53rd Parliament, general electorates, co ...
and the Labour Party. Since
2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
it has been held by
Debbie Ngarewa-Packer Debbie Anne Ngarewa-Packer is a New Zealand politician, iwi leader and activist. She is a Member of Parliament and co-leader of Te Pāti Māori alongside Rawiri Waititi, and is the chief executive of the Ngāti Ruanui iwi. Ngarewa-Packer st ...
of Te Pāti Māori.


Military presence

Many Air Force personnel from RNZAF Base Ohakea live in Bulls. In recent years several defence houses have been sold to civilian buyers which has seen a steady decline of servicemen from the area, but a moderate presence remains nonetheless. In 2017 it was announced that the
Republic of Singapore Air Force The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is the aerial service branch of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) responsible for controlling and defending the airspace of the country, and providing air support to the Army and Navy. It was establis ...
is looking at establishing a permanent
F-15 The McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle is an American twin-engine, all-weather fighter aircraft designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part of Boeing). Following reviews of proposals, the United States Air Force (USAF) selected McDonnell Douglas's des ...
fighter jet training base at Ohakea with an estimated presence of 500 Singaporean personnel. Ohakea and surrounding areas such as Bulls and Feilding would see a significant increase in military families and personnel to the area. In December 2018 it was announced that this would no longer go ahead. In 2018 the incumbent government announced the purchase of four
Boeing P-8 Poseidon The Boeing P-8 Poseidon is an American maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft developed and produced by Boeing Defense, Space & Security. It was developed for the United States Navy as a derivative of the civilian Boeing 737 Next Generati ...
aircraft for maritime surveillance. This announcement came with the news that the current
New Zealand Defence Force The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; , "Line of Defence of New Zealand") is the three-branched military of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the national security of New Zealand and its realm, promoting its interests, ...
unit responsible for maritime surveillance, No. 5 Squadron RNZAF, would be required to move to RNZAF Base Ohakea. This move would see a further increase in the number of service personnel living in the area. RNZAF took delivery of these aircraft in 2023.


Education

Bulls has two co-educational state primary schools for Year 1–8 students. Bulls School was established in 1867 and is the oldest school in the Rangitikei District; it has a roll of as of . Clifton School, which opened more recently on the southern end of the township, has a roll of 159. The nearest state secondary school (year 9–13) is Rangitikei College, away in Marton.


Climate


Sister city

The town's
sister city A sister city or a twin town relationship is a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties. While there are early examples of inte ...
is
Cowes Cowes () is an England, English port, seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked b ...
, England.


Notable people

*
Chris Amon Christopher Arthur Amon (; 20 July 1943 – 3 August 2016) was a New Zealand racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers to never win a Formula One Grands Prix, ...
, former
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
driver between 1963–1976 * Travis Banks, professional wrestler * Ormond Wilson, politician * Victoria Ransom, entrepreneur


References


External links


Unforgetabull
{{Authority control Populated places in Manawatū-Whanganui Rangitikei District Populated places on the Rangitīkei River