Waharoa


Waharoa is a rural community in the Waikato region of New Zealand's North Island. It is located 7 km north of Matamata, and is part of the Matamata-Piako District. It is located at the railway junction of the Kinleith Branch railway with the East Coast Main Trunk Railway. State Highway 27 runs through the town, serviced by several shops, cafes and a petrol station.
Matamata Airport is just over north of Waharoa.
To the north of Waharoa is the community of Tamihana, where the Raungaiti marae is located. Nearby the marae is the Matamata Airport and remnants of the original Matamata pā. To the east lie the communities of Wardville and Turanga-o-moana, to the west the community of Walton, and to the south is the town of Matamata.

History

Early history

Prior to colonisation, the area surrounding and including present-day Waharoa was held by Ngāti Hauā. In 1830, the Ngāti Hauā chief Te Waharoa established the Matamata pā a few kilometers north of the current settlement.
Reverend Alfred Nesbit Brown first visited the area in 1833, and founded the nearby Matamata Mission Station in 1835. A year later, it was abandoned due to a war breaking out between Ngāti Hauā and neighbouring tribes. In 1841, a Catholic mission was started nearby, but by 1844 had moved to Rangiaowhia.
Land in the surrounding area began to be purchased by Josiah Firth from Te Waharoa's son, Wiremu Tamihana, in 1865. Firth gradually converted the land to freehold sections. It began to be called the Matamata estate, a portion of which forms the present-day settlement of Waharoa.

Establishment

The township of Waharoa was built in 1886 around the new railway station, Waharoa Station. Firth established a church, school, dairy factory and ¼ acre-sections.
A new butter factory was built in 1921. Another industry was the flax mill. St Davids Presbyterian Church was dedicated on Sunday 18 October 1925. Meeting halls were built in 1916 and 1954.

Railway station

Waharoa had a station opposite Pitt St on the Kinleith Branch from 8 March 1886. It was rebuilt in 1923, had a verandah added in 1924 and closed to passengers on 12 November 1968 and to freight on 29 March 1981.

Community

The community of Waharoa is very close - most people are of a single iwi: Ngāti Hauā.
The local Raungaiti Marae is affiliated with the Ngāti Hauā hapū of Ngāti Rangi Tawhaki and Ngāti Te Oro, and with the iwi of Waikato Tainui. It includes Te Oro meeting house.

Demographics

In 2013 77.1% of the population was Māori.

Education

Te Kura o Waharoa is township's state primary school, teaching Year 1 to 6 students in the Māori language. It opened in 1887, with the current buildings dating from 1949, 1957, 1965 and 1967. It has a roll of as of.
Wairere School is a co-educational state primary school located in the Wardville area north-west of Waharoa. with a roll of as of.