Waharoa

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.[5] 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.[6]

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.[6][7]

St Davids Church, Waharoa

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.[8]

A new butter factory was built in 1921.[9] Another industry was the flax mill.[10] St Davids Presbyterian Church was dedicated on Sunday 18 October 1925. Meeting halls were built in 1916[5] and 1954.[11]

Waharoa had a station opposite Pitt St[12] on the Kinleith Branch from 8 March 1886.[13] It was rebuilt in 1923,[14] had a verandah added in 1924[15] and closed to passengers on 12 November 1968 and to freight on 29 March 1981.[13]

In 2013 77.1% of the population was Māori.[19]

The statistical area of Waharoa-Peria, which at 74 square kilometres is larger than the settlement, had a population of 1,521 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 258 people (20.4%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 207 people (15.8%) since the 2006 census. There were 471 households. There were 771 males and 747 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.03 males per female. The median age was 35.9 years, with 360 people (23.7%) aged under 15 years, 309 (20.3%) aged 15 to 29, 702 (46.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 150 (9.9%) aged 65 or older.

Ethnicities were 67.7% European/Pākehā, 36.3% Māori, 2.6% Pacific peoples, 4.1% Asian, and 1.0% other ethnicities (totals add to more than 100% since people could identify with multiple ethnicities).

The proportion of people born overseas was 11.0%, compared with 27.1% nationally.

Although some people objected to giving their religion, 50.1% had no religion, 37.1% were Christian, 1.4% were Hindu, 0.2% were Muslim, 0.2% were Buddhist and 2.4% had other religions.

Of those at least 15 years old, 141 (12.1%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 297 (25.6%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $35,200. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 642 (55.3%) people were employed full-time, 192 (16.5%) were part-time, and 84 (7.2%) were unemployed.[1]