Howick, New Zealand
Encyclopedia
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, forming part of what is sometimes called East Auckland
East Auckland
East Auckland is an area of Auckland, New Zealand characterised in the popular mind as a socio-economically mixed urban area with a relatively large multi-cultural population. The name East Auckland is not an official placename but is in popular use by New Zealanders. It is also used in the names...
. Due to the relatively numerous remaining heritage buildings and other historical remnants from its early European settlement past, it has been called "perhaps Auckland's most historically conscious place".
Maori origins
The local iwiIwi
In New Zealand society, iwi form the largest everyday social units in Māori culture. The word iwi means "'peoples' or 'nations'. In "the work of European writers which treat iwi and hapū as parts of a hierarchical structure", it has been used to mean "tribe" , or confederation of tribes,...
(Māori tribe) was the Ngai Tai
Ngai Tai
Ngāi Tai is a Māori tribal group in the area around Tōrere in the East Coast area of the North Island, New Zealand, and also at Clevedon near Auckland....
people of Tainui
Tainui
Tainui is a tribal waka confederation of New Zealand Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapoto, Ngāti Raukawa and Waikato...
descent. They had lived there for over 1,000 years with pa
Pa (Maori)
The word pā can refer to any Māori village or settlement, but in traditional use it referred to hillforts fortified with palisades and defensive terraces and also to fortified villages. They first came into being about 1450. They are located mainly in the North Island north of lake Taupo...
(fortified villages) at Ohuia Rangi (Pigeon Mountain), Te Waiarohia (Musick Point
Musick Point
Musick Point is the headland of the peninsula that forms the eastern shore of the Tamaki River in Bucklands Beach, a suburb of Manukau City in New Zealand. In 1942 Musick Point was named after Ed Musick, a famous aviator,who visited NZ in 1937., although the headland is also known as Te Waiarohia,...
) and Tuwakamana (Cockle Bay
Cockle Bay, New Zealand
Cockle Bay is an eastern suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. According to the 2001 census, Cockle Bay has a population of 4,431. The suburb is in the Howick ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland city and currently under governance of the Auckland Council....
).
Fencible settlement
The Howick, PakurangaPakuranga
Pakuranga is an eastern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. Pakuranga covers a series of low ridges and previously swampy flats, now drained, that lie between the Pakuranga Creek and Tamaki River, two estuarial arms of the Hauraki Gulf...
, and Whitford areas were part of the Fairburn claim. William Thomas Fairburn, with his wife and family, established a Church Missionary
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
Society Mission Station at Maraetai
Maraetai
Maraetai is one of the towns which make up Manukau city and is the easternmost suburb of greater Auckland in New Zealand.The closest town Beachlands lies approximately 4km to the West. Its name is Māori meaning "marae by the sea"...
in 1836. The local Māori insisted they buy the 40,000 acres (162 km²) between the Tamaki
Tamaki River
The Tamaki River is, despite its name, mostly an estuarial arm and harbour of the Hauraki Gulf, within the city of Auckland in New Zealand. It extends south for 15 kilometres from its mouth between the Auckland suburb of Saint Heliers and the long thin peninsula of Bucklands Beach, which reaches...
and Wairoa Rivers to prevent attack by the Ngapuhi
Ngapuhi
Ngāpuhi is a Māori iwi located in the Northland region of New Zealand, and centred in the Hokianga, the Bay of Islands and Whāngārei.Ngāpuhi has the largest affiliation of any New Zealand iwi, with 122,214 people registered , and formed from 150 hapu, with 55 marae.-Foundations:The founding...
and Waikato
Waikato
The Waikato Region is a local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato, Hauraki, Coromandel Peninsula, the northern King Country, much of the Taupo District, and parts of Rotorua District...
tribes. As an act of Christian peacemaking, Fairburn reluctantly bought the land with his life savings.
In 1840, following the Treaty of Waitangi
Treaty of Waitangi
The Treaty of Waitangi is a treaty first signed on 6 February 1840 by representatives of the British Crown and various Māori chiefs from the North Island of New Zealand....
, the Government took 36,000 acres (146 km²) which it used for the Fencible settlements of Otahuhu and Howick and sold most of the remaining land to settlers, as well as paying Māori and returning most of the Wairoa Valley to them.
Howick itself is named after Henry George Grey, 3rd Earl Grey as Viscount Howick
Earl Grey
Earl Grey is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1806 for General Charles Grey, 1st Baron Grey. He had already been created Baron Grey, of Howick in the County of Northumberland, in 1801, and was made Viscount Howick, in the County of Northumberland, at the same time as...
, who was Secretary for the Colonies in the British Parliament and was responsible for the Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps
Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps
The Royal New Zealand Fencible Corps was formed in 1846,following the conclusion of the northern war against Hone Heke. The Governor, George Grey, had requested military forces for the defence of the early settlers in New Zealand, instead of supplying regular military forces the English Parliament...
immigration scheme. The suburb was therefore established in 1847 as a fencible
Fencibles
The Fencibles were army regiments raised in the United Kingdom and in the colonies for defence against the threat of invasion during the American War of Independence and French Revolutionary Wars in the late 18th century...
settlement, where soldiers where given land with the implied understanding that in wartime, they would be raised as units to defend it (however, the eventual fighting a decade later used professional soldiers instead). A relatively large amount of the early features from this time have been retained. 'Fencible' is derived from the word 'Defencible', meaning capable of defence.
The Māori welcomed the Fencibles to Howick and recognised the advantages of co-operation and trade. Māori labourers built the Fencibles cottages under Royal Engineers
Royal Engineers
The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually just called the Royal Engineers , and commonly known as the Sappers, is one of the corps of the British Army....
supervision - though it was also noted that initially, the Europeans had to live in reed huts, having been falsely promised that houses would already been available for them and their families. There were about 250 Fencibles in Howick.
Howick's links to Auckland’s pioneering and Fencible past has influenced its development and is also evident in the names of many streets. Others are significantly named for British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
military heroes or battles.
Bleakhouse (as in Bleakhouse Rd) was the name given to a Fencible officer’s house built in Bleakhouse Rd for Surgeon-Captain John Bacot
John Bacot
John Thomas Watson Bacot was a New Zealand politician. He was a member of New Zealand's 1st Parliament, representing the Pensioner Settlements from 1853 to 1855, when he was defeated....
who became a magistrate in Howick. Later, in the hands of the Macleans family it became the heart of the social scene in the 1850s and ’60s. The house was burnt down in 1910 but gave its name to the street.
Other roads such as Bacot, Bell, Fencible Drive, Montressor Place and Sale St, plus many others, also have Fencible links, eg Sir Robert Sale was one of the ships which brought the Fencibles to Auckland in the 19th century. Montressor Place was named for Captain Charles Henry Montressor-Smith who arrived in Howick with the First Battalion
Battalion
A battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
of Fencibles in 1847. He later moved to a property in neighbouring Pakuranga
Pakuranga
Pakuranga is an eastern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. Pakuranga covers a series of low ridges and previously swampy flats, now drained, that lie between the Pakuranga Creek and Tamaki River, two estuarial arms of the Hauraki Gulf...
, where his house, known as Bell House, still stands at the end of Bell Rd next to the Howick Historical Village
Howick Historical Village
Howick Historical Village is a re-creation of a New Zealand colonial village using houses and cottages saved from the surrounding Auckland suburb of Howick. It is good for field trips for schools....
.
Moore St was named after General Sir John Moore
John Moore (British soldier)
Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore, KB was a British soldier and General. He is best known for his military training reforms and for his death at the Battle of Corunna, in which his force was defeated but gained a tactical advantage over a French army under Marshal Soult during the Peninsular...
, a British military hero, who lived from 1761-1809. General Moore fought against Napoleon alongside Sir David Baird for whom Baird St was named and he (Moore) died at Corunna
Battle of Corunna
The Battle of Corunna refers to a battle of the Peninsular War. On January 16, 1809, a French army under Marshal Soult attacked the British under Sir John Moore...
during the Peninsular War
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War was a war between France and the allied powers of Spain, the United Kingdom, and Portugal for control of the Iberian Peninsula during the Napoleonic Wars. The war began when French and Spanish armies crossed Spain and invaded Portugal in 1807. Then, in 1808, France turned on its...
whilst serving under the Duke of Wellington. At Corunna
A Coruña
A Coruña or La Coruña is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. It is the second-largest city in the autonomous community and seventeenth overall in the country...
he was attended by Dr J. Bacot, father of the Howick Fencible doctor, who lived in Bleakhouse.
Moore St was part of the original Fencible village and was sub-divided into one acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
(4,000 m²) allotments down to Rodney St. People will, no doubt, recognise that Wellington and Nelson Sts spring from the most famous of British war heroes, Lord Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson
Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronté, KB was a flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was noted for his inspirational leadership and superb grasp of strategy and unconventional tactics, which resulted in a number of...
and the Duke of Wellington
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
and that Selwyn St takes its name from the first Bishop of New Zealand, George Augustus Selwyn
George Augustus Selwyn
George Augustus Selwyn was the first Anglican Bishop of New Zealand. He was Bishop of New Zealand from 1841 to 1858. His diocese was then subdivided and Selwyn was Primate of New Zealand from 1858 to 1868. He was Bishop of Lichfield from 1868 to 1878...
.
Then there are streets such as Granger Rd named for John Granger, manager of the brick works, which once stood at Little Bucklands Beachnear the rock outcrop where the Bucklands Beach Centre board clubrooms now stands, before moving to Whitford
Whitford, New Zealand
Whitford is a suburb southeast of central Auckland, in Manukau City, New Zealand. There are multiple versions of how the town was named. It may be named after Richard Whitford, a man who operated a flax mill on the Waikopua near Housons Creek and was the postman...
; or Litten Rd named after a former farmer and landowner.
To the north of Picton Street, the main street of Howick, is Stockade Hill. In 1863 a field work was constructed on what is now called Stockade Hill, for the purpose of defending Auckland from hostile Māoris who might advance overland from the south, or by canoes from the Firth of Thames
Firth of Thames
The Firth of Thames is a large bay located in the north of the North Island of New Zealand. It is the firth of the rivers Waihou and Piako, the former of which was formerly named the Thames River, and the town of Thames lies on its southeastern coast....
. The ditches of the stockade can still be seen today. In the centre is a war memorial were services are held each ANZAC Day
ANZAC Day
Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who fought at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all...
. The top of Stockade Hill provides uninterrupted views in all directions.
Growth into town
Settlement in Howick centred around the domain, and the village developed as a service centre for the prosperous farming community. Later the centre of Howick shifted to Picton Street which is now the centre. It later became popular as a retirement and seaside holiday location.In 1865 Howick became a road board district; in 1922 it was created an independent town district; and on 1 February 1952 it was constituted a borough with Elections for Mayor and Council being held on 22 March 1952.
The 1930s saw the construction of a concrete all weather road running all the way from Howick through Pakuranga
Pakuranga
Pakuranga is an eastern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. Pakuranga covers a series of low ridges and previously swampy flats, now drained, that lie between the Pakuranga Creek and Tamaki River, two estuarial arms of the Hauraki Gulf...
to Panmure
Panmure, New Zealand
Panmure is a south-eastern suburb of Auckland City, in the North Island of New Zealand. It is located 11 kilometres southeast of the city centre, close to the western banks of the Tamaki River and the northern shore of the Panmure Basin...
. This allowed the rapid passage of people and goods to and from Auckland. This concrete road can still be seen, in parts, on the highway between Howick and Pakuranga.
Enveloped by suburbia
From the late 1940s to the 1970s the Howick area experienced rapid growth, when in 1947, at it's centenary, it had still been a town of only 1,500. Up until the 1980s Howick was surrounded on all sides by farmland, but as Auckland grew and new subdivisions were created Howick has been consumed by the urban sprawl.Not all growth was welcome the expandtion of BP Howick on the corner of Nelson Street and Ridge Rd was opposed by a committee of local residents. Lead by Victor Hunter and his wife Eileen, This small group of objections lead to the local council taking rate payer opinion to the fore before the merger with Manukua city.
In 1990 the re-organisation of local body government in New Zealand saw Howick become a ward within Manukau
Manukau
Manukau City was a large territorial authority in Auckland, New Zealand. The city was sometimes referred to as South Auckland, but this term did not possess official recognition and did not encompass areas like East Auckland, which was previously within the official boundaries of Manukau City...
City, with its Borough Council being replaced by a Community Board and Councillor representation. A move that was not popular with the local inhabitants of Howick, fearing the loss of identity and having to subsidise the poorer areas of Manukau City. As the Howick Borough Council was to all intents and purposes debt-free at the time, and looking forward to a solid future.
Today Howick is one of the more affluent seaside suburbs of Manukau City. It has some of the oldest buildings in the Auckland area as well as the second-oldest Church in New Zealand (All Saints Church
All Saints Church (Howick)
All Saints’ Church in Howick is the second-oldest church in New Zealand and the oldest building in Manukau. It can be found on the corner of Cook Street and Selwyn Road in the suburb of Howick, New Zealand....
).
In July 2008 Howick Village Radio was established on 88.1 FM and is broadcast over most of the eastern suburb.
Howick Electorate
Prior to the introduction of MMP in 1996, Howick had its own seat in Parliament. In the 1996 election, due to the need to decrease the number of general electorates in order to ensure a sufficient number of seats were available for list MPs, the population centres formerly in the Howick seat were merged into the former separate seat of PakurangaPakuranga (New Zealand electorate)
rightPakuranga is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate.It is currently held by Maurice Williamson MP, a member of the National Party.-Population centres:Pakuranga is one of sixty-three general electorates used in New Zealand general elections...
.
While making recommendations for the boundaries to apply in the 2008 general election, the Electoral Commission recently proposed to resurrect the Howick seat. The planned seat would have taken in the population centres of Howick and Botany Downs-Dannemora
Dannemora, New Zealand
Dannemora is a new residential suburb in Auckland, New Zealand. It is located in the east of the city, close to Pakuranga and Botany Downs, and in the new Howick ward, one of the thirteen administrative areas of Auckland city....
but would have had the effect of splitting Bucklands Beach
Bucklands Beach
Bucklands Beach is a suburb 13 kilometres east of Auckland's CBD in New Zealand. The suburb is in the Howick ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland City, and under authority of the Auckland Council.-Maori:...
and Highland Park
Highland Park, New Zealand
Highland Park is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, located between Howick and Pakuranga. It mainly consists of the Highland Park Shopping centre and the Highland Park Home Centre .Those who live in Highland Park often refer to themselves as living in "Howick", "Bucklands Beach" or "Pakuranga" and...
across two electorates. Due to this, and the planned move to incorporate Panmure
Panmure
Panmure may refer to:Places*Panmure, New Zealand, a suburb of Auckland*Panmure , a former New Zealand Parliamentary electorate*Panmure, Victoria, Australia*Panmure Island, Prince Edward Island, Canada...
, Point England and Glen Innes
Glen Innes
Glen Innes may refer to:* Glen Innes, New South Wales, a town in Australia* Glen Innes, New Zealand, a suburb of Auckland...
into the neighbouring Pakuranga
Pakuranga (New Zealand electorate)
rightPakuranga is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate.It is currently held by Maurice Williamson MP, a member of the National Party.-Population centres:Pakuranga is one of sixty-three general electorates used in New Zealand general elections...
seat, the Commission received a significant number of objections from Pakuranga
Pakuranga (New Zealand electorate)
rightPakuranga is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate.It is currently held by Maurice Williamson MP, a member of the National Party.-Population centres:Pakuranga is one of sixty-three general electorates used in New Zealand general elections...
residents. The Commission eventually adopted the recommendation of Objector N17/30 in keeping the Howick suburb in Pakuranga
Pakuranga (New Zealand electorate)
rightPakuranga is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate.It is currently held by Maurice Williamson MP, a member of the National Party.-Population centres:Pakuranga is one of sixty-three general electorates used in New Zealand general elections...
and renaming the new seat Botany
Botany Downs, New Zealand
Botany Downs is a suburb of Auckland City, New Zealand.This residential area was previously part of the East Tamaki area. According to the 2006 census, Botany Downs has a population of 4830, having grown 2.7% since 2001. It has one of the country's biggest shopping malls - Botany Town Centre -...
, with a corresponding shift in centre of gravity to the new suburb of Flat Bush
Flat Bush
Flat Bush is a developing suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. Located near Manukau Heights, it is governed by the Auckland Council, which has planned for the area to undergo substantial development since buying 290 hectares there in 1996...
.
http://www.elections.org.nz/mapping/final_report/scheduleb.html http://www.elections.org.nz/mapping/?electorate=botany.
Mayors of Howick
- 1952-1953 W E LaRoche
- 1953-1963 Sir William Stevenson
- 1963-1974
- 1974-1989 Morrin Cooper
Association football
Howick is home to Fencibles UnitedFencibles United
Fencibles United AFC is a semi-professional association football club and one of the largest soccer clubs in New Zealand. They compete in the Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Division 2.The club is based in Howick/Pakuranga, Auckland...
who compete in the Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Division 2
Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Division 2
The Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Division 2 is a New Zealand Association football semi-professional status league competition that is run by the Auckland Football Federation and includes soccer clubs located in the northern part of the North Island, New Zealand. It is open to clubs from the Northland,...
.
Primary and Intermediate
- Howick Primary School is a state, coeducational contributiing primary school (years 1-6) with a roll of 337 and a decile ratingSocio-Economic DecileDecile, Socio-Economic Decile or Socio-Economic Decile Band is a widely used measure in education in New Zealand used to target funding and support to more needy schools....
of 8. - Mellons Bay School is a state, coeducational contributing primary school (years 1-6), founded in 1960. It has a decile rating of 10 (the highest) and a roll of 497.
- Star of the Sea School is a coeducational contributing primary school (years 1-6) integrated with the state system. It has a roll of 575 and a decile rating of 9.
- Howick Intermediate is a state coeducational intermediate school (years 7-8) with a roll of 493 and a decile rating of 5.