Long Bay () is one of the northernmost suburbs of the North Shore, part of the contiguous

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

metropolitan area located in

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Etymology

The origin of the name Long Bay is unclear. It is either a geographical description of the long beach, or named after Alfred or Arthur Long, some of the early farmers in the area. Traditional

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 ...

names for the area include , referencing a battle in southern Long Bay, and ("The Long Beach of Kahu"), referencing the Ngāti Kahu ancestress Kahu. The shortened version of this name, , was used to describe the Ngāti Kahu settlement in the area until the 1850s, and the name is used in modern contexts.

Geography

Long Bay is a suburb of the North Shore of New Zealand, and the northernmost suburb of the North Shore along the east coast of the

Hauraki Gulf The Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has an area of 4000 km2, The suburb has two major streams: Vaughan Stream / Awaruaika Creek, and the Awaruku Creek in the south (also known as the Waikariwatoto Creek). The bay forms the eastern border of the suburb, and looks out to the Hauraki Gulf and the

Coromandel Peninsula The Coromandel Peninsula () on the North Island of New Zealand extends north from the western end of the Bay of Plenty, forming a natural barrier protecting the Hauraki Gulf and the Firth of Thames in the west from the Pacific Ocean ...

. The eastern coast is occupied by the Long Bay Regional Park, and the shoreline is in

Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve The Long Bay-Okura Marine Reserve is a protected area at Long Bay on the North Shore in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It was created by Order in Council in 1995. The shoreline of the Long Bay Regional Park and the Okura Estuary Sceni ...

, which opened in 1995. The beach is sandy and swimming is safe. It offers forest walks and scenic cliffs. This beach has low tide water. Smaller beaches to the north, such as Pohutukawa Bay, accessible except at high tide, are among Auckland's most popular

naturist Naturism is a lifestyle of practicing non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms a ...

spots; The headland at the northeast of the suburb is called Piripiri Point. The land at Long Bay is primarily made up of

Waitemata Group The Waitemata Group is an Early Miocene group (geology), geologic group that is exposed in and around the Auckland Region of New Zealand, between the Whangarei Harbour in the North and the Raglan, New Zealand, Raglan Harbour in the South. The Gr ...

sandstone, which formed during the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

approximately 16 to 22 million years ago on the seafloor. Gradually, the seafloor was uplifted due to tectonic forces. Prior to human settlement, inland Long Bay was primarily a northern broadleaf podocarp forest, dominated by

tōtara ''Podocarpus totara'' (), commonly known as the , is a species of Podocarpus, podocarp tree endemism, endemic to New Zealand. It grows throughout the North Island, South Island and rarely on Stewart Island, Stewart Island / Rakiura in lowland, ...

mataī ''Prumnopitys taxifolia'', the mataī () or black pine, is an endemic New Zealand coniferous tree that grows on the North Island and South Island. It also occurs on Stewart Island / Rakiura (47 °S) but is uncommon there. It grows up to high ...

, miro,

kauri ''Agathis'', commonly known as kauri or dammara, is a genus of evergreen coniferous trees, native to Australasia and Southeast Asia. It is one of three extant genera in the family Araucariaceae, alongside '' Wollemia'' and ''Araucaria'' (being ...

and

kahikatea ''Dacrycarpus dacrydioides'', commonly known as kahikatea (from Māori language, Māori) and white pine, is a Pinophyta, coniferous tree endemism, endemic to New Zealand. A Podocarpaceae, podocarp, it is New Zealand's tallest tree, gaining hei ...

trees.

Pōhutukawa Pōhutukawa (''Metrosideros excelsa''), also known as the New Zealand Christmas tree, or iron tree, is a coastal evergreen tree in the Myrtus, myrtle family, Myrtaceae, that produces a brilliant display of red (or occasionally orange, yellow o ...

trees were a major feature of the coastline.

History

Māori history

Māori settlement of the

Auckland Region Auckland () is one of the 16 regions of New Zealand, which takes its name from the eponymous urban areas of New Zealand, urban area. The region encompasses the Auckland, Auckland metropolitan area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands o ...

began around the 13th or 14th centuries. The North Shore was settled by

Tāmaki Māori Tāmaki Māori are Māori ''iwi'' and ''hapū'' (tribes and sub-tribes) who have a strong connection to Tāmaki Makaurau (the Auckland Region), and whose rohe was traditionally within the region. Among Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau (the M� ...

, including people descended from the ''

Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka (canoe), waka confederation of New Zealand Māori people, Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki Māori, Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapo ...

'' migratory canoe and ancestors of figures such as Taikehu and Peretū. Many of the early Tāmaki Māori people of the North Shore identified as

Ngā Oho Ngā Oho, also known as Ngā Ohomatakamokamo-o-Ohomairangi, is the name of a historical iwi (tribe) of Māori who settled in the Auckland Region. In the 17th century, Ngā Oho and two other tribes of shared heritage, Ngā Riki and Ngā Iwi, form ...

. While the poor soils of the

East Coast Bays East Coast Bays is an urban area along the east coast of the North Shore, New Zealand, North Shore in New Zealand. First established as independent borough during the 1950s, East Coast Bays became contiguous with the Auckland urban area and wa ...

area was a barrier to agriculture and settlement, Long Bay was one of the three most densely settled areas of the North Shore, and the area features extensive archaeological sites. Long Bay was a focal point for transport in the wider area, with many (overland paths) connecting Long Bay to Ōkura over the cliffs, and to

Oteha Oteha is an Auckland suburb, which is under local governance of Auckland Council. The area is defined by Oteha Valley Road on the north, East Coast Road on the east, Spencer Road on the south, and the Auckland Northern Motorway on the west. D ...

and the Lukas Creek in Albany to the south-west. The warrior Maki migrated from the

Kāwhia Harbour Kawhia Harbour () is one of three large natural inlets in the Tasman Sea coast of the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located to the south of Raglan Harbour, Ruapuke and Aotea Harbour, 40 kilometres southwest of Hamilton. ...

to his ancestral home in the

, likely sometime in the 17th century. Maki conquered and unified many the Tāmaki Māori tribes as

Te Kawerau ā Maki Te Kawerau ā Maki, Te Kawerau a Maki, or Te Kawerau-a-Maki is a Māori ''iwi'' (tribe) of the Auckland Region of New Zealand. Predominantly based in West Auckland (Hikurangi also known as Waitākere), it had 251 registered adult members as of J ...

, including those of the North Shore. A major conflict between Maki and Ngā Oho occurred in southern Long Bay called , which became a name his

Ngāti Manuhiri Ngāti Manuhiri is a Māori iwi of the Mahurangi Peninsula area of New Zealand. They have an interest in the region from the Ōkura River in the south to Mangawhai in the north, and extending out to Great Barrier Island. They are descended from ...

descendants used for the area. After Maki's death, his sons settled different areas of his lands, creating new

hapū In Māori language, 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 ...

. His sons Manuhiri and Maraeariki settled the North Shore and

Hibiscus Coast The Hibiscus Coast is a populated area on a stretch of the Hauraki Gulf coast in New Zealand's Auckland Region. It has a population of making it the List of New Zealand urban areas by population, 10th most populous urban area in New Zealand, ...

. Maraeariki's daughter Kahu succeeded him, and she is both the namesake of the North Shore, ("The Greater Lands of Kahu"), and the beach and bay of Long Bay, ("The Long Beach of Kahu"). Many of the iwi of the North Shore, including

, Ngāti Maraeariki, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Poataniwha,

Ngāi Tai Ki Tāmaki Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki is a Māori people, Māori tribe that is based in the area around Clevedon, New Zealand, Clevedon, part of the Auckland region (''Tāmaki'' in the Māori language). It is one of the twelve members of the Hauraki Collective ...

and

Ngāti Whātua Ngāti Whātua is a Māori iwi (tribe) of the lower Northland Peninsula of New Zealand's North Island. It comprises a confederation of four hapū (subtribes) interconnected both by ancestry and by association over time: Te Uri-o-Hau, Te Roroa ...

, can trace their lineage to Kahu. From the conquest until the early 19th century, Ngāti Kahu and Ngāti Poataniwha, two

who descend from Kahu, lived at Long Bay. A defensive headland

pā The word pā (; often spelled pa in English) can refer to any Māori people, Māori village or defensive settlement, but often refers to hillforts – fortified settlements with palisades and defensive :wikt:terrace, terraces – and also to fo ...

was constructed at Te Piripiri (Pipiri Point), and a

kāinga A kāinga ( southern Māori: ''kaika'' or ''kaik'') is the traditional form of village habitation of pre-European Māori in New Zealand. It was unfortified or only lightly fortified, and over time became less important than the well-fortified ...

was settled at Te Awaruaika (the shores of Awaruaika, or Vaughans' Stream). By the 18th century, the

Marutūāhu __NOTOC__ Marutūāhu (also spelled, Marutūahu or Marutuahu) is a confederation of Māori ''iwi'' (tribes) in the Hauraki region (the Hauraki Gulf, Coromandel Peninsula and Hauraki Plains) of New Zealand. The confederation comprises the tribes ...

iwi

Ngāti Paoa Iwi () are the largest social units in New Zealand Māori society. In Māori, roughly means or , and is often translated as "tribe". The word is both singular and plural in the Māori language, and is typically pluralised as such in English. ...

had expanded their influence to include the islands of the

Hauraki Gulf The Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has an area of 4000 km2, After periods of conflict, peace had been reached by the 1790s. The earliest contact with Europeans began in the late 18th century, which caused many Tāmaki Māori to die of , respiratory diseases. During the early 1820s, most Māori of the North Shore fled for the

Waikato The Waikato () is a region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipā District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton City, as well as Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the nort ...

or Northland due to the threat of war parties during the

Musket Wars The Musket Wars were a series of as many as 3,000 battles and raids fought throughout New Zealand (including the Chatham Islands) among Māori people, Māori between 1806 and 1845, after Māori first obtained muskets and then engaged in an inte ...

. Most people had returned by the 1830s, and remained at Te Oneroa until the 1850s.

European settlement

The first Europeans to visit the area were in the 1830s, when timber merchants and

kauri gum Kauri gum is resin from kauri trees (''Agathis australis''), which historically had several important industrial uses. It can also be used to make crafts such as jewellery. Kauri forests once covered much of the North Island of New Zealand, bef ...

diggers harvested resources from Long Bay. In 1841, the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

purchased the Mahurangi and Omaha blocks; an area that spanned from

Takapuna Takapuna is a suburb located on the North Shore, New Zealand, North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. The suburb is an isthmus between Shoal Bay, New Zealand, Shoal Bay, arm of the Waitematā Harbour, and the Hauraki Gulf. Lake Pupuke, a volca ...

Te Ārai Te Ārai is a small community on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand, near the northern end of the Auckland Region (specifically within the former Rodney District). Mangawhai lies to the north, and Tomarata to the south. The ...

. The purchase involved some iwi with customary interests in the area, such as Ngāti Paoa, other Marutūāhu iwi and Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki, but not others, such as Te Kawerau ā Maki or Ngāti Rango. The Crown spent until 1873 rectifying this sale, by making further deals with stakeholders. The first European settlers arrived in the 1850s, including Alexander Pannil and Joshua Alias, who worked to clear the bush for farming. In 1860, Captain Charles Cholmondeley-Smith and his family leased land at Long Bay for a sheep farm, but left after three years as the venture was unsuccessful. In 1862, the Vaughan family purchased 600 acres of farmland at Long Bay, where they ran a sheep and cattle farm for 100 years. The historic

Vaughan Homestead Vaughan Woods & Historic Homestead is a non-profit nature preserve and historic house museum in Hallowell, Maine. The trails of Vaughan Woods are open to the public daily from dawn to dusk. They may be accessed via two designated trailhead an ...

was constructed in 1863. In 1929 Tom Vaughan, opened a campground for holidaymakers at the southern end of the beach, near the Awaruku Creek. After the death of their mother Margaret Vaughan in 1935, the Vaughan sons Bert and Tom split the property into two east and west sections and farmed these separately. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, a gun emplacement was built on the coast north of the park in case to defend against invasion by Japanese forces. The area was sparsely populated in the first half of the 20th century, with only five cottages in Long Bay existing in 1942. After the construction of the

Auckland Harbour Bridge The Auckland Harbour Bridge is an eight-lane motorway bridge over Waitematā Harbour in Auckland, New Zealand. It joins Saint Marys Bay, New Zealand, St Marys Bay on the Auckland city side with Northcote, Auckland, Northcote on the North Shore, ...

in 1959, the population of the area began to gradually increase. In 1965 the Vaughan family sold the eastern section of their farm to the

Auckland Regional Council The Auckland Regional Council (ARC) was the regional council (one of the former local government authorities) of the Auckland Region. Its predecessor the Auckland Regional Authority (ARA) was formed in 1963 and became the ARC in 1989. The ARC ...

, who developed Long Bay Regional Park in the early 1970s as one of the first regional parks in Auckland. Long Bay College was established in 1975, when the surrounding area was still predominantly rural farmland. In the 1990s zoning changes at Long Bay enabled significantly more housing to be constructed. Areas of farmland above Long Bay Regional Park were protected from development by an Environment Court ruling in July 2008. Due to changes in the Auckland Council's Unitary Plan, major housing developments were constructed at Long Bay in the late 2010s.

Local government

The first local government in the area was the Lake District, which was established in 1866, followed by the Weiti Highway Board in 1867. From 1876 the area was administered by the

Waitemata County The Waitemata County, historically also known as Waitamata County, was one of the counties of New Zealand in the North Island. Established in 1876, the county covered West Auckland, New Zealand, West Auckland, Rodney (local board area), Rodney a ...

, a large rural county north and west of the city of Auckland. In 1954, the area to the south formed the

Borough, with Long Bay remaining a part of the Waitemata County. On 1 August 1974, the Waitemata County was dissolved, and Long Bay became a rural area incorporated into

Takapuna City Takapuna is a suburb located on the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand. The suburb is an isthmus between Shoal Bay, arm of the Waitematā Harbour, and the Hauraki Gulf. Lake Pupuke, a volcanic maar and one of the oldest features of the A ...

. In 1989, Long Bay was merged into the

North Shore City North Shore City was a territorial authority unit in the Auckland Region of New Zealand that was governed by the North Shore City Council. It existed from 1989 until November 2010, when the council was incorporated into Auckland Council. It ha ...

. North Shore City was amalgamated into

Auckland Council Auckland Council () is the local government council for the Auckland Region in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority that also has the responsibilities, duties and powers of a regional council and so is a unitary authority, according to t ...

in November 2010. Within the Auckland Council, Long Bay is a part of the

Hibiscus and Bays The Hibiscus and Bays Local Board is one of the 21 local boards of the Auckland Council. It is one of two boards overseen by the council's Albany Ward (local government), Albany Ward councillors. The board consists of eight members elected at ...

local government area governed by the

Hibiscus and Bays Local Board The Hibiscus and Bays Local Board is one of the 21 local boards of the Auckland Council. It is one of two boards overseen by the council's Albany Ward councillors. The board consists of eight members elected at large. The board's area is div ...

. It is a part of the Albany ward, which elects two councillors to the Auckland Council.

Amenities

* Long Bay Regional Park, one of the most visited regional parks in Auckland. Within the park is the

, the historic home of the Vaughan family which was leased to the Torbay Historical Society in 1993, who restored the building. *

, the first urban marine reserve in New Zealand, established in 1995. *

Sir Peter Blake Marine Education and Recreation Centre Sir Peter Blake Marine Education & Recreation Centre (MERC) is a not for profit charity (Registration Number CC29903) based in Long Bay, Auckland, New Zealand. MERC offers marine-based environmental education Environmental education (EE) re ...

, a marine educational facility that was established in 1990.

Demographics

Long Bay covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Long Bay had a population of 3,141 in 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 1,776 people (130.1%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 2,958 people (1616.4%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,548 males, 1,584 females and 12 people of other genders in 933 dwellings. 3.1% of people identified as

LGBTIQ+ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The group is ...

. The median age was 36.6 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 705 people (22.4%) aged under 15 years, 588 (18.7%) aged 15 to 29, 1,557 (49.6%) aged 30 to 64, and 291 (9.3%) aged 65 or older. People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 50.6%

European European, or Europeans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe and other West ...

(

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 ...

); 3.0%

; 1.3% Pasifika; 46.2% Asian; 3.9% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 1.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 89.1%, Māori language by 0.3%, Samoan by 0.3%, and other languages by 45.8%. No language could be spoken by 2.6% (e.g. too young to talk).

New Zealand Sign Language New Zealand Sign Language or NZSL () is the main language of the deaf community in New Zealand. It became an official language of New Zealand in April 2006 under the New Zealand Sign Language Act 2006. The purpose of the act was to create rights ...

was known by 0.1%. The percentage of people born overseas was 62.0, compared with 28.8% nationally. Religious affiliations were 27.4%

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 ...

, 1.4%

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 ...

, 1.4%

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, 1.4%

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 ...

, 0.1%

New Age New Age is a range of Spirituality, spiritual or Religion, religious practices and beliefs that rapidly grew in Western world, Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclecticism, eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise d ...

, and 1.6% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 62.8%, and 4.0% of people did not answer the census question. Of those at least 15 years old, 840 (34.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 876 (36.0%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 480 (19.7%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $49,800, compared with $41,500 nationally. 627 people (25.7%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,320 (54.2%) people were employed full-time, 330 (13.5%) were part-time, and 51 (2.1%) were unemployed.

Education

Long Bay College is a secondary (years 9 - 13) school with a roll of students. The college celebrated its 25th jubilee in 2000. Long Bay School is a contributing primary (years 1 - 6) school with a roll of students. Both schools are

coeducational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

. Rolls are as of .

References

Bibliography

* * * * *

External links

Photographs of Long Bay
held in Auckland Libraries' heritage collections. {{Subject bar, auto=y, d=y Suburbs of Auckland Bays of Auckland Beaches of Auckland East Coast Bays