Mercer is a village in the Waikato District Council area of 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 ...

region of the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

of New Zealand. It is 70 km north of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

and 58 km south of

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 ...

, 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 authorities of 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 be ...

, part 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 ...

History

The village of Mercer is named after Captain Henry Mercer, who was killed at Rangiriri in November 1863. The navy river gun-boat Pioneer was wrecked on the Manukau bar in 1866 and one of the gun turrets forms part of the war memorial. The Mercer Road District was formed 1877. Mercer became a town district in 1914 after the Mercer Road District amalgamated with Franklin County. The Mercer Town District was abolished in 1962. 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 ser ...

railway opened to Mercer station on 20 May 1875. A crash 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 mining, sand dredging business in the mid 1980s and, after

dredging Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing d ...

ended in 1997, redeveloped of its yard with a petrol station and a

food court A food court (in Asia-Pacific also called food hall or hawker centre) is generally an indoor plaza or common area within a facility that is contiguous with the counters of multiple food Vendor, vendors and provides a common area for self-serve di ...

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 132 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 9 people (7.3%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 18 people (15.8%) since the 2013 census. There were 72 males and 60 females in 51 dwellings. The median age was 40.9 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 30 people (22.7%) aged under 15 years, 12 (9.1%) aged 15 to 29, 75 (56.8%) aged 30 to 64, and 18 (13.6%) aged 65 or older. People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 59.1% 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 ...

), 36.4% Māori, 9.1% Pasifika, and 4.5% Asian. English was spoken by 97.7%, Māori language by 4.5%, and other languages by 13.6%. No language could be spoken by 2.3% (e.g. too young to talk). The percentage of people born overseas was 18.2, compared with 28.8% nationally. Religious affiliations were 36.4%

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 ...

, 2.3%

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 ...

, and 2.3% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 54.5%, and 2.3% of people did not answer the census question. Of those at least 15 years old, 6 (5.9%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 54 (52.9%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 45 (44.1%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $43,400, compared with $41,500 nationally. 15 people (14.7%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 51 (50.0%) people were employed full-time and 12 (11.8%) were part-time.

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 2021.

Climate

Former residents

* Allan Marshall (1851–1915), river captain * Te Puea Hērangi (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