Paekakariki
Encyclopedia
Paekakariki is a town in the Kapiti Coast District in the south-western North Island
of New Zealand
. It is 22 km north of Porirua
and 45 km north-east of Wellington
, the nation's capital city
.
Paekakariki's population at the 2001 New Zealand census
was 1731. This figure decreased to 1602 in the 2006 census. The town's name in Māori
means "perching place of the kakariki (green parrot)".
Paekakariki lies on a narrowing of the thin coastal plain between the Tasman Sea
and the Akatarawa Ranges (a spur of the Tararua Ranges) and was an important transportation node. To the south, State Highway 1
climbs towards Porirua; to the north the plains extend inland from the Kapiti Coast
; at Paekakariki the highway and North Island Main Trunk Railway run close together between the coast and hills.
Immediately prior to European settlement the area had a violent history, due mainly to the presence of the great Māori warrior leader Te Rauparaha
, whose pa
was on nearby Kapiti Island
. He died in 1849, the same year that a road connecting Paekakariki with Porirua was completed.
The name was spelt Paikakariki prior to 1905. Paikakariki: A Sonnett is the title of an 1867 poem by William Golder http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-GolNZS-poemGolNZS003.html.
Paekakariki's history has been intimately linked with the railway, and there is a museum at the railway station
commemorating this heritage. In 1886 the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company's line from Wellington to Longburn
was completed, and Paekakariki became an important stop on the journey. In 1908, the line was incorporated into the national network of the New Zealand Railways Department
and became part of the North Island Main Trunk linking Wellington and Auckland
, the North Island's most important line. In 1917, NZR withdrew dining cars from its passenger trains due to World War I
economic difficulties and Paekakariki became a main refreshment stop on the trip north; originally a temporary measure, the dining cars did not return for decades and Paekakariki's status remained until the 1960s.
The locomotive depot gradually declined in importance due to changing motive power, and nowadays only EM class electric multiple unit
s are stabled here. The old steam locomotive
depot is now the location of "The Engine Shed", the base of Steam Incorporated
, one of New Zealand's premier railway preservation societies. The Paekakariki Station Precinct Trust has been established to manage the station area, including the museum and Steam Incorporated's depot, and firmly establish it as a historical and tourist attraction.
A notable historic building is the former restaurant 'The 1906', currently unoccupied, pending demolition to make way for a change in the motorway.
During the Second World War Paekakariki served as a major base for US Marines fighting in the Pacific Campaign
. There were three main camps, all situated in or adjacent to present-day Queen Elizabeth Park
. At the height of the occupation there were over 20, 000 Americans stationed in the region, significantly outnumbering locals. The camps were used for training purposes, as well as rest and recreation for those returning from the Pacific combat zone. Paekakariki's steep surrounding hills proved suitable terrain for marching and mortar practice, whilst its beaches were used to stage amphibian invasions. They were the scene of an unfortunate tragedy in June 1943 when a landing craft was swamped by a wave during a nighttime training exercise. Nine men drowned in the heavy surf according to official figures; local rumor put the toll higher. The incident was never reported at the time due to wartime censorship provisions.
While the American base in Paekakariki was only in existence for a few years it had an important and lingering impact on the region. Several local place names remain as reminders of this wartime presence. Tarawa
Street, for example, commemorates one of the bloodiest battles of the Pacific War which locally-based marines fought in directly after the camps were abandoned in October 1943.
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
of 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...
. It is 22 km north of Porirua
Porirua
Porirua is a city in the Wellington Region of New Zealand, immediately north of the city of Wellington, with their central business districts 20 km apart. A large proportion of the population commutes to Wellington, so it may be considered a satellite city. It almost completely surrounds...
and 45 km north-east of Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
, the nation's capital city
Capital City
Capital City was a television show produced by Euston Films which focused on the lives of investment bankers in London living and working on the corporate trading floor for the fictional international bank Shane-Longman....
.
Paekakariki's population at the 2001 New Zealand census
New Zealand Census of Population and Dwellings
The New Zealand government department Statistics New Zealand conducts a census of population and dwellings every five years. The census scheduled for 2011 was cancelled due to circumstances surrounding the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, however, and legislation introduced to hold the next...
was 1731. This figure decreased to 1602 in the 2006 census. The town's name in Māori
Maori language
Māori or te reo Māori , commonly te reo , is the language of the indigenous population of New Zealand, the Māori. It has the status of an official language in New Zealand...
means "perching place of the kakariki (green parrot)".
Paekakariki lies on a narrowing of the thin coastal plain between the Tasman Sea
Tasman Sea
The Tasman Sea is the large body of water between Australia and New Zealand, approximately across. It extends 2,800 km from north to south. It is a south-western segment of the South Pacific Ocean. The sea was named after the Dutch explorer Abel Janszoon Tasman, the first recorded European...
and the Akatarawa Ranges (a spur of the Tararua Ranges) and was an important transportation node. To the south, State Highway 1
State Highway 1 (New Zealand)
State Highway 1 is the longest and most significant road in the New Zealand roading network, running the length of both main islands. It appears on road maps as SH 1 and on road signs as a white number 1 on a red shield, but it has the official designations SH 1N in the North Island, SH 1S in the...
climbs towards Porirua; to the north the plains extend inland from the Kapiti Coast
Kapiti Coast
The Kapiti Coast is the name of the section of the coast of the south-western North Island of New Zealand that is north of Wellington and opposite Kapiti Island. It falls under the jurisdiction of the Wellington Regional Council...
; at Paekakariki the highway and North Island Main Trunk Railway run close together between the coast and hills.
History
Te Rauparaha
Te Rauparaha was a Māori rangatira and war leader of the Ngāti Toa tribe who took a leading part in the Musket Wars. He was influential in the original sale of conquered Rangitane land to the New Zealand Company and was a participant in the Wairau Incident in Marlborough...
, whose 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...
was on nearby Kapiti Island
Kapiti Island
-External links:* , Department of Conservation* * , Nature Coast Enterprise *...
. He died in 1849, the same year that a road connecting Paekakariki with Porirua was completed.
The name was spelt Paikakariki prior to 1905. Paikakariki: A Sonnett is the title of an 1867 poem by William Golder http://www.nzetc.org/tm/scholarly/tei-GolNZS-poemGolNZS003.html.
Paekakariki's history has been intimately linked with the railway, and there is a museum at the railway station
Paekakariki Railway Station
Paekakariki Railway Station in Paekakariki on the Kapiti Coast, New Zealand is an intermediate station on the Kapiti Line for Metlink's electric multiple unit commuter trains from Wellington. Paekakariki was the terminal station of the commuter service from 1940 to 1983, when the service was...
commemorating this heritage. In 1886 the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company's line from Wellington to Longburn
Longburn
Longburn is a rural settlement just outside of Palmerston North in the Manawatu-Wanganui area of New Zealand. Made up of large dairy processing plants Longburn is often mistaken to be a small township and not seen as a large satellite town of Palmerston North...
was completed, and Paekakariki became an important stop on the journey. In 1908, the line was incorporated into the national network of the New Zealand Railways Department
New Zealand Railways Department
The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...
and became part of the North Island Main Trunk linking Wellington and Auckland
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...
, the North Island's most important line. In 1917, NZR withdrew dining cars from its passenger trains due to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
economic difficulties and Paekakariki became a main refreshment stop on the trip north; originally a temporary measure, the dining cars did not return for decades and Paekakariki's status remained until the 1960s.
The locomotive depot gradually declined in importance due to changing motive power, and nowadays only EM class electric multiple unit
Electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
s are stabled here. The old steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
depot is now the location of "The Engine Shed", the base of Steam Incorporated
Steam Incorporated
Steam Incorporated, often abbreviated to Steam Inc., is a railway heritage and preservation society based at the Paekakariki Railway Station, Paekakariki at the southern end of the Kapiti Coast, approximately 50 minutes north of Wellington on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island. Unlike...
, one of New Zealand's premier railway preservation societies. The Paekakariki Station Precinct Trust has been established to manage the station area, including the museum and Steam Incorporated's depot, and firmly establish it as a historical and tourist attraction.
A notable historic building is the former restaurant 'The 1906', currently unoccupied, pending demolition to make way for a change in the motorway.
During the Second World War Paekakariki served as a major base for US Marines fighting in the Pacific Campaign
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
. There were three main camps, all situated in or adjacent to present-day Queen Elizabeth Park
Queen Elizabeth Park, New Zealand
Queen Elizabeth Park is a Wellington Regional Park located on the Kapiti Coast in New Zealand. The park contains the last area of natural dunes on the Kapiti Coast. The park is steeped in history including pa sites at Whareroa Beach and Wainui Beach....
. At the height of the occupation there were over 20, 000 Americans stationed in the region, significantly outnumbering locals. The camps were used for training purposes, as well as rest and recreation for those returning from the Pacific combat zone. Paekakariki's steep surrounding hills proved suitable terrain for marching and mortar practice, whilst its beaches were used to stage amphibian invasions. They were the scene of an unfortunate tragedy in June 1943 when a landing craft was swamped by a wave during a nighttime training exercise. Nine men drowned in the heavy surf according to official figures; local rumor put the toll higher. The incident was never reported at the time due to wartime censorship provisions.
While the American base in Paekakariki was only in existence for a few years it had an important and lingering impact on the region. Several local place names remain as reminders of this wartime presence. Tarawa
Battle of Tarawa
The Battle of Tarawa, code named Operation Galvanic, was a battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II, largely fought from November 20 to November 23, 1943. It was the first American offensive in the critical central Pacific region....
Street, for example, commemorates one of the bloodiest battles of the Pacific War which locally-based marines fought in directly after the camps were abandoned in October 1943.
Trivia
- The town was immortalised as an almost mythical distant place in the song "Paekakariki Beach" by British rock group New Model ArmyNew Model Army (band)New Model Army are an English rock band, who were formed in Bradford, West Yorkshire in 1980. They have been variously classified by Allmusic as post-punk and alternative rock.-Overview:...
, written in 1999. - The town also appeared in an animated documentaryDocumentary filmDocumentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
by the Simmonds Brothers, entitled: "Paekakariki: Center of the Universe". - The New Zealand rugby player Christian CullenChristian CullenChristian Mathias Cullen is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer. He played most of his rugby at fullback for New Zealand , for the Hurricanes in the Super 12, and for Manawatu, Wellington and later Munster at first-class level. He was nicknamed the Paekakariki Express...
was named the "Paekakariki Express" for his speed. - The American writer Leon UrisLeon UrisLeon Marcus Uris was an American novelist, known for his historical fiction and the deep research that went into his novels. His two bestselling books were Exodus, published in 1958, and Trinity, in 1976.-Life:...
was stationed as a marine in Paekakariki during World War II. He drew on his experiences there when writing his first novel Battle Cry. - The famous and historic Paekakariki Hotel, the town's only pub, was demolished in 2005 to make way for an apartment building.
- Among the many musicians living in Paekakariki is Wayne MasonWayne MasonWayne Mason is a New Zealand musician born in New Plymouth in 1949. He was a founding member of 1960s pop group The Fourmyula and later formed Rockinghorse and The Warratahs before embarking on a solo career in 1994....
, who penned 'Nature', voted most popular New Zealand pop song by a national jury of peers.