Symonds Street is a street in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

, New Zealand's most populous city. The road runs southwest and uphill from the top of

Anzac Avenue Anzac Avenue is a heritage-listed major arterial road lined with trees in the Moreton Bay Region, Queensland, Australia. It runs from Petrie to Redcliffe, with most of the route signed as state route 71. The route was formerly the main rou ...

(originally Jermyn Street), through the City Campus of

University of Auckland , mottoeng = By natural ability and hard work , established = 1883; years ago , endowment = NZD $293 million (31 December 2021) , budget = NZD $1.281 billion (31 December 2021) , chancellor = Cecilia Tarrant , vice_chancellor = Dawn ...

, over the

Northwestern Motorway The Northwestern Motorway (also known historically as the Auckland–Kumeu Motorway), part of (SH 16), is the major western route and secondary northern route out of Auckland in New Zealand. Twenty-one kilometres in length, the motorway runs f ...

and

Auckland Southern Motorway The Auckland Southern Motorway (also known as the Southern Motorway, and historically as the Auckland–Hamilton Motorway) is the major route south out of the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is part of State Highway 1. The motorway is 45 kil ...

and to the start of New North Road and Mount Eden Road.

History

The route of Symonds Street originated as a

Tāmaki Māori Tāmaki Māori are Māori ''iwi'' and ''hapū'' (tribes and sub-tribes) who have a strong connection to Tāmaki Makaurau (the Auckland Region), and whose rohe was traditionally within the region. Among Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau (the M ...

overland walking track, linking the Horotiu valley (modern-day

Auckland CBD The Auckland Central Business District (CBD), or Auckland city centre, is the geographical and economic heart of the Auckland metropolitan area. It is the area in which Auckland was established in 1840, by William Hobson. It is New Zealand's l ...

) and the

Waitematā Harbour Waitematā Harbour is the main access by sea to Auckland, New Zealand. For this reason it is often referred to as Auckland Harbour, despite the fact that it is one of two harbours adjoining the city. The harbour forms the northern and easter ...

with other populated areas of the

Tāmaki isthmus The Auckland isthmus, also known as the Tāmaki isthmus, is a narrow stretch of land on the North Island of New Zealand in the Auckland Region, and the location of the central suburbs of the city of Auckland, including the CBD. The isthmus is ...

to the south. During the early colonial era of Auckland, it was the main south-bound road. It was named after

William Cornwallis Symonds Captain William Cornwallis Symonds (1 August 1810 – 23 November 1841) was a British Army officer who was prominent in the early colonisation of New Zealand. Symonds was born at Lymington, Hampshire in 1810, the eldest son of William Sym ...

in 1842, soon after his death.

Demographics

The statistical areas of Symonds Street North West, Symonds Street West and Symonds Street East encompass the area east of Queen Street and west of

Grafton Gully Grafton Gully is a deep (about 50 m) and very wide (about 100 m) gully running northwards towards the sea through the volcanic hills of the Auckland volcanic field in New Zealand. It divides the CBD from the suburbs of Grafton and Parnell in t ...

. They do not include the part of Symonds Street which runs through the University of Auckland, or the part south of . They cover and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Symonds Street had a population of 7,758 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sh ...

, an increase of 609 people (8.5%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 3,057 people (65.0%) since the 2006 census. There were 3,147 households, comprising 3,876 males and 3,876 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.0 males per female, with 213 people (2.7%) aged under 15 years, 5,304 (68.4%) aged 15 to 29, 2,109 (27.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 135 (1.7%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 26.9% European/

Pākehā Pākehā (or Pakeha; ; ) is a Māori term for New Zealanders primarily of European descent. Pākehā is not a legal concept and has no definition under New Zealand law. The term can apply to fair-skinned persons, or to any non- Māori New ...

, 4.4%

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

, 3.0% Pacific peoples, 63.1% Asian, and 8.4% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 77.2, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 53.0% had no religion, 22.1% were

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

, 0.1% had Māori religious beliefs, 7.1% were Hindu, 7.3% were Muslim, 4.6% were

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

and 2.6% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 2,643 (35.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 273 (3.6%) people had no formal qualifications. 471 people (6.2%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 2,484 (32.9%) people were employed full-time, 1,530 (20.3%) were part-time, and 603 (8.0%) were unemployed.

Notable locations

* St Andrew's First Presbyterian Church, 2 Symonds St, 1850, oldest surviving chuch in Auckland. *Belgrave, 12 Symonds St, 1885, Two-storey Italianate house, now part of the University of Auckland. *House, 14 Symonds St, 1884, Two-storey Italianate house, now part of the University of Auckland. *House, 16 Symonds St, 1884, Two-storey Italianate house, now part of the University of Auckland. *Old Choral Hall, 5-7 Symonds St, 1872, A concert chamber and public hall, now part of the University of Auckland. * St Paul's Church, 28 Symonds St, 1895, Anglican church built on the site of the first church in Auckland. *Terrace Houses, 25-29 Symonds St, c.1897, private dwelling built by John Endean. *Aickin House, 39 Symonds St, 1920s neo-Georgian house. *

New Zealand Wars The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the ...

memorial, corner Symonds St and Wakefield St, 1920, memorial to those who fought on the British side in the 19th century wars. *Cintra Flats, 9-13 Whitaker Place, 1936, apartment complex. *Rationalist House, 64 Symonds St, purchased in 1960 by the Rationalist Association as a base and library. *Doctors Residences, 84-86 Symonds St, 1935-1937, residences of two doctors designed by the same architect. *Plummer House, 5 City Road, 1909, residence of hat manufacturer and musician Charles Plummer. *Bus Shelter and Toilets, corner Symonds St and Grafton Bridge, 1910, bus shelter and public toilets. *

Symonds Street Cemetery Symonds Street Cemetery is a historic cemetery and park in central Auckland, New Zealand. It is in 5.8 hectares of deciduous forest on the western slope of Grafton Gully, by the corner of Symonds Street and Karangahape Road, and is crossed by t ...

, 120 Symonds St, 1841, one of Auckland's oldest cemeteries. *

Grafton Bridge Grafton Bridge is a road bridge spanning Grafton Gully in Auckland, New Zealand. Built of reinforced concrete in 1910, it connects the Auckland CBD and Karangahape Road with Grafton. It spans about 97.6 metres (320 feet), rises 25.6 m ...

, 1910, largest single-span of reinforced concrete in the world at the time of construction. *St Benedict's Church, 1 St Benedicts St, 1888, Gothic church building, possibly the largest in New Zealand at the time of construction. *Stables, 32 St Benedicts St, 1883, originally part of a larger complex hosting at least 30

Clydesdale horse The Clydesdale is a Scottish horse breed, breed of draught horse. It is named for its area of origin, the Clydesdale (district), Clydesdale or valley of the River Clyde, much of which is within the county of Lanarkshire. The origins of the br ...

s. *Upper Symonds Street Historic Area, an area covering Symonds Street south of the Southern Motorway, and adjacent parts of Kyhber Pass Road, Newton Road, Mt Eden Road and New North Road.

References

{{Streets in Auckland Streets in Auckland Auckland CBD