Wairoa (city)
| Wairoa | ||
| Geographical location | ||
|
||
| Coordinates | 39 ° 2 ′ S , 177 ° 25 ′ E | |
| Region ISO | NZ-HKB | |
| Country |
 New Zealand
|
|
| region | Hawke's Bay | |
| District | Wairoa District | |
| Administrative headquarters | Headquarters of the administration for the Wairoa District | |
| Residents | 4th 050 (2013) | |
| height | 2 m | |
| Post Code | 4108 | |
| Telephone code | +64 (0) 6 | |
| UN / LOCODE | NZ WE | |
| Photography of the place | ||
 Marine Parade , Wairoa Main Street |
||
Wairoa is a city in the Wairoa District of Hawke's Bay region on the North Island of New Zealand . The city is the seat of the Wairoa District Council .
Origin of name
According to the Māori language, Wairoa means "long river", which means the Wairoa River , on which the city lies and where it took its name.
geography
The city is located around 68 km northeast of Napier in the northern half of Hawke Bay directly at the mouth of the Wairoa River in the Pacific Ocean . The city, divided in half by the river, is surrounded by a hilly landscape up to 200 m high.
history
Settlement history
Wairoa was originally a Māori settlement. For the ancestors who arrived at the mouth of the Wairoa River by Takitimu canoe, the river was the basis for food and the river mouth was ultimately their settlement area. In the course of the European settlement of the area, a trading post was established in Wairoa in 1839 . The first missionary came in 1841 and three years later it became a permanent mission station. The first European farmers to take over the land raised sheep and cultivated flax .
In 1864 just under 12,000 hectares , including the part on which the city is located today, was bought by the government and sold to settlers from 1866 onwards. But at the same time the Hauhau movement also got influence in the area around Wairoa and so in order to be able to fight the extremist movement, Wairoa was expanded into a colonial military base. After fighting in the upper area of the Wairoa River and in the area around Lake Waikaremoana , the Māori land was confiscated by the government, although many of the Māori of Wairoa fought on the side of the English .
In 1865, the Riverside Hotel was built on the site where the first ferry service began in 1876. A crossing for a shilling took half an hour back then. The hotel was later called the Ferry Hotel and is still there. The settlement under British control was initially called Clyde after the land was bought up , but renamed Wairoa again in 1909 when the settlement was granted city rights .
The lack of suitable transport routes limited the development of the region and the city. Difficult navigation from the sea into the river and the lack of suitable roads were the main causes. Agriculture , forestry and milk production developed in and around Wairoa . In 1903, a dairy began operating, processing up to 600 gallons of milk a day . In 1916 a factory was added which froze lamb, sheep and beef for transport and provided an income for an average of 200 employees.
1931 earthquake
Of the Hawke's Bay earthquake of 1931 was Wairoa also affected. The destruction was not comparable to that in Napier and Hastings , where the entire city was reduced to rubble and rubble. But the earthquake on February 3, which was 7.8 M S strong and occurred over weeks with hundreds of aftershocks, claimed two lives in the city and destroyed the only and most important bridge over the Wairoa River that connected the two halves of the city . It took two years to replace the bridge built in 1888, especially since another earthquake also damaged the replacement structure in 1932. In 1988 the newly built bridge was also destroyed, this time by Cyclone Bora, which flooded large parts of the North Island and turned the rivers into torrential rivers, including the Wairoa River . The current bridge also took almost two years to build and was officially inaugurated in February 1990 by Queen Elizabeth II on her visit to New Zealand.
population
At the 2013 census, the town had 4050 inhabitants, 5.2% less than at the 2006 census.
economy
The southern part of the city, with the residential area, the shops and the social and cultural facilities, is the actual center of the city, while the northern part on the other side of the river is more industrial and characterized by small businesses. Apart from a sawmill and the meat processing company AFFCO , which took over the already existing factory in Wairoa in 1990, there are no more industrial companies worth mentioning in the city today.
Infrastructure
Road traffic
The New Zealand State Highway 2 runs through Wairoa , 98 km by road to Gisborne in the northeast and 118 km to Napier at the southwest end of Hawke Bay . Another important traffic connection is the New Zealand State Highway 38 towards Rotorua . The 222 km long connection to the northwest, however, between Lake Waikaremoana and Murupara does not meet the requirements of a state highway , since the section consists partly of an unsealed route .
Rail transport
The existing railway connection between Gisborne and Napier is used exclusively for the transport of goods and also leads via Wairoa .
Shipping
Although Wairoa lies with the mouth of the Wairoa River directly on the Pacific Ocean, the estuary does not allow shipping. Therefore, there is no port. The city also has no pier or ramp for small boats.
Air traffic
About 2 km northwest of the city center, Wairoa has a small airport with a 914 m long asphalt runway. Small planes and helicopters can take off from it. The airport is also the base of the local Wairoa Aero Club .
tourism
Today, the city tries to present itself as a hub and starting point for tourists and focuses on tourist destinations such as Te Urewera National Park , Lake Waikaremoana , the Mahia Peninsula and the town of Morere with its hot spring. The city itself, apart from a lighthouse (see below), a well and clearly structured museum, which is housed in the former bank building of the Commercial Bank of Australia from 1911, and a charming landscape all around, does not have much to offer tourists.
Attractions
Astonishment arises when travelers following State Highway 2 from the north want to drive over the Wairoa Bridge into the city and see a lighthouse on the riverbank that is in operation from the evening hours . The lighthouse, which served on Portland Island from 1877 to 1958 and was then replaced by an automated beacon, came to the city in 1961, was restored and has since become something of a symbol of the city.
Personalities
- James Carroll (1857–1926), politician of Irish Maori descent
- George Nepia (1905–1986), rugby union player
- Dudley Storey (1939-2017), rower
- Greg Somerville (born 1977), rugby union player
See also
literature
- Helga Neubauer: Wairoa . In: The New Zealand Book . 1st edition. NZ Visitor Publications , Nelson 2003, ISBN 1-877339-00-8 , pp. 366-368 .
- City History Data Collection and Permanent Exhibition, Wairoa Museum, Wairoa, New Zealand.
- Wairoa Township River Walkway , Wairoa District Council flyer.
Web links
- Kerryn Pollock : Hawke's Bay places - Wairoa . In: Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Ministry for Culture & Heritage , August 13, 2009, accessed October 24, 2017 .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b 2013 Census QuickStats about a place : Wairoa . Statistics New Zealand , accessed October 24, 2017 .
- ^ Neubauer: Wairoa . In: The New Zealand Book . 2003, p. 367 .
- ↑ a b c Topo250 maps . Land Information New Zealand , accessed October 24, 2017 .
- ^ Wairoa District Council (Ed.): Wairoa Heritage Trails . Wairoa 2010 (English, sign on the river in the city).
- ↑ Airport Papa Rererangi . Wairoa District Council , accessed October 24, 2017 .