Waipaparoa / Howick Beach is a beach in the

Auckland Region Auckland () is one of the 16 regions of New Zealand, which takes its name from the eponymous urban areas of New Zealand, urban area. The region encompasses the Auckland, Auckland metropolitan area, smaller towns, rural areas, and the islands o ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

. It is located in Howick.

Description

Waipaparoa / Howick Beach is located in

East Auckland East Auckland () is one of the major geographical regions of Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. Settled in the 14th century, the area is part of the traditional lands of Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki. The area was developed into farmland in the ...

in Howick, adjacent to Mellons Bay in the west and Cockle Bay in the east. Waipaparoa / Howick Beach looks out towards the

Tāmaki Strait The Tāmaki Strait is an area of the Hauraki Gulf in the Auckland Region of New Zealand's North Island. The strait is east of the Waitematā Harbour, and is located between Waiheke Island, East Auckland and the Pōhutukawa Coast. The area is so ...

Waiheke Island Waiheke Island is the second-largest island (after Great Barrier Island) in the Hauraki Gulf of New Zealand. Its ferry terminal in Matiatia Bay at the western end is from the central-city terminal in Auckland. It is the most populated island ...

Motukaraka Island Motukaraka Island (Auckland) (Island of Karaka) is a uninhabited island off the coast of Beachlands in Auckland, New Zealand with historical significance and a rich history of Māori occupation. The island is flat and approximately 15m ab ...

and Beachlands.

History

The Tāmaki Strait was visited by the ''

Tainui Tainui is a tribal waka (canoe), waka confederation of New Zealand Māori people, Māori iwi. The Tainui confederation comprises four principal related Māori iwi of the central North Island of New Zealand: Hauraki Māori, Hauraki, Ngāti Maniapo ...

'' migratory waka around the year 1300, and members of the crew settled around

and the

Pōhutukawa Coast The Pōhutukawa Coast is an area of the Auckland Region in New Zealand. The area covers townships south of the Tāmaki Strait: Whitford, New Zealand, Whitford, Beachlands, New Zealand, Beachlands, Maraetai and Umupuia Beach, Umupuia. The area w ...

. These were the ancestors of the modern

mana whenua In New Zealand, tangata whenua () is a Māori term that translates to "people of the land". It can refer to either a specific group of people with historical claims to a district, or more broadly the Māori people who's common ancestors are bur ...

of the area,

Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki is a Māori people, Māori tribe that is based in the area around Clevedon, New Zealand, Clevedon, part of the Auckland region (''Tāmaki'' in the Māori language). It is one of the twelve members of the Hauraki Collective ...

. The traditional names for the beach and surrounding bay are Paparoa and Waipaparoa, with Waipaparoa referring to the wider bay between modern-day Howick and Beachlands, including the Turanga Creek. The Howick area was extensively cultivated, but as the area was relatively exposed, two fortified

pā The word pā (; often spelled pa in English) can refer to any Māori people, Māori village or defensive settlement, but often refers to hillforts – fortified settlements with palisades and defensive :wikt:terrace, terraces – and also to fo ...

were constructed: Paparoa Pā at the south-eastern end of Waipaparoa / Howick Beach, and Tūwakamana Pā above Cockle Bay. In addition to agriculture, the Waipaparoa / Howick Beach area was known for (

shortspine spurdog The shortspine spurdog (''Squalus mitsukurii'') is a dogfish, a member of the family Squalidae, found on continental shelves off Japan in temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (approximate ...

sharks), which were caught in the near-by estuaries and dried at the beach. In the 1600s, the warrior Kāwharu attacked and raised Paparoa Pā, without taking occupation of the lands. While the wider area was still cultivated, the site of Paparoa Pā became a wāhi tapu (sacred and restricted) site to Ngāi Tai. In 1836, English Missionary

William Thomas Fairburn William Thomas Fairburn (3 September 1795 – 10 January 1859) was a carpenter and a lay preacher or catechist for the Church Missionary Society (C.M.S.) in the early days of European settlement of New Zealand. Early life He was born in Engla ...

brokered a land sale between

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� ...

chiefs,

Pōtatau Te Wherowhero Pōtatau Te Wherowhero (died 25 June 1860) was a Māori people, Māori rangatira who reigned as the inaugural Māori King Movement, Māori King from 1858 until his death. A powerful nobleman and a leader of the Waikato (iwi), Waikato iwi of the ...

and Turia of Ngāti Te Rau, covering the majority of modern-day

South Auckland South Auckland ( or ) is one of the major geographical regions of Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. The area is south of the Auckland isthmus, and on the eastern shores of the Manukau Harbour. The area has been populated by Tāmaki M� ...

and the

. The sale was envisioned as a way to end hostilities in the area, but it is unclear what the chiefs understood or consented to. Māori continued to live in the area, unchanged by this sale. Fairburn's Purchase was investigated by the

New Zealand Land Commission The New Zealand Land Commission was a 19th-century government inquiry into the validity of claims to land purchases by European settlers from the New Zealand Māori people made prior to 1840, when New Zealand was part of the Australian colony of New ...

found to be excessive and reduced in size. The disallowed parts of his purchase were not returned to Ngāi Tai, however in 1854 a reserve was created for Ngāi Tai around the Wairoa River and

Umupuia Duders Beach, also known as Umupuia Beach, is located in the Auckland Region of New Zealand, to the east of Maraetai on the North Road from Clevedon. Duder Regional Park is on the headland immediately to the east. The land was purchased in 1 ...

. As a part of this arrangement, Ngāi Tai agreed not to settle elsewhere in the region, which included Waipaparoa / Howick Beach. In 1847, Howick township was established as a defensive outpost for Auckland, by fencibles (retired

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

soldiers) and their families. Many of the ships transporting the fencibles arrived at Waipaparoa / Howick Beach, including the ''Minerva'' and ''Sir Robert Sale''. Ships used to offload passengers directly onto the sandstone reef, and since the early colonial era, the beach developed a reputation as being dangerous, due to numerous shipwrecks and drownings. In 1854, wharf was constructed on the beach, however was only usable at high tide. Many ferries preferred to disembark passengers at the

Shelly Park Shelly Park is a suburb of East Auckland, in northern New Zealand. The suburb is in the Howick ward, one of thirteen electoral divisions of the Auckland Council. It is named after the beach of the same name. Geography Shelly Park is located ...

sandspit, despite being further away from Howick. In 1896, a new 240 metre-long wharf was constructed at Waipaparoa / Howick Beach. At the turn of the 20th century, the beach had started to become a popular location for excursions and holidays. In 1905, bathing sheds were erected at the beach, and in the 1920s the northern area of the beach was subdivided for housing. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, an anti-tank trench was dug at the eastern end of the beach, which over time primarily used by children as a changing area. The trench was covered up a few years after construction, due to

little blue penguin The little penguin (''Eudyptula minor'') is the smallest species of penguin. It originates from New Zealand. It is commonly known as the fairy penguin, little blue penguin, or blue penguin, owing to its slate-blue plumage and is also known by ...

s getting trapped inside. From 1956, the Howick Volunteer Coastguard has patrolled the beach.

Amenities

The beach is a popular location for picnics and swimming, and has several boat ramps.

References

Bibliography

* {{Howick Local Board Area Beaches of Auckland Howick Local Board Area Hauraki Gulf East Auckland