Te Tāhuhu Kōrero O Takapau

Takapau is a small rural community in the Central Hawkes Bay in New Zealand. It is located 20 kilometres west of Waipukurau, off State Highway 2, and has a population of more than 500…

Takapau has been inhabited since about 1525, when the Ngai Tahu people came from Tauranga-nui-a Rua in Poverty Bay and settled on the limestone ridge behind Takapau on a range named Ngā Kaihinaki O Whata. In about 1675, the Horehore Pa was built to live in and earthworks of this can still be seen on the centre one of the three hills behind the township.

The first recorded European journey in the vicinity of Takapau was that of Bishop Selwyn and party in 1842. In the 1850’s Land commissioner Donald McLean made several journeys through the district. At this time several separate Maori communities existed at the edge of the bush, and the first large tracts of land were being taken up for grazing, namely  Oruawharo, Ashcott, Burnside and Lambertsford.

The local Rongo o Tahu Marae is a tribal meeting ground for the Ngāti Kahungunu hapū of Ngāi Toroiwaho.

A few miles north of Norsewood a small bridge spans the narrow stream that is the Manawatu River, and beyond it the road rises and turns before heading towards the Takapau Plains. Near the edge of the plains the early travellers emerged from the deeper gloom of the Seventy Mile Bush and continued through trees that were less dense.

At the southern end of the plains on a rise to the right of the highway (when travelling north) can be seen an area enclosed by trees. Between this area and the road is said to have been the site of the Railway Hotel built and named because it was expected that the railway would be passing nearby. Instead the line went through Kopua and Ormondville.

Also near the southern end of the plains, on the left when travelling north, is a small Maori cemetery. The marble angel rises above the grave of the highly-born Maraea Te Apatu who died in 1928 when she was 104 years of age. At one time a redoubt stood opposite the Takapau cemetery on the highway. It was built of totara planks with double walls, the space between the walls being filled with earth by way of bullet-proofing. The last remaining posts of this place of refuge disappeared about 1918.

Takapau is reached today by branching off the main highway and was originally part of the Orua Wharo Station. It was surveyed in 1876 by James Rochfort of Napier and was named after the nearby Takapau pa.

The railway was opened there on 12 March 1877. Orua Wharo was taken up in 1852 by John Johnston (later the Hon.) founder of the firm Johnston and Company Ltd., Wellington. During that year he walked through Hawke's Bay with John Harding (later of Mount Vernon) and Alex St Clair Inglis and on his return to Wellington he applied for the lease of 9,280 acres.

The property was run for him by St Clair Inglis and Charles Gully, the latter being a relative of artist John Gully, until Johnston's second son, Sydney Johnston, arrived to take over the management of the station. Sydney Johnston eventually became the owner of Orua Wharo, which expanded to 17 ,260 acres, and his homestead became a well known landmark in the district.

Railway station

Takapau had a railway station from 12 March 1877 to 27 September 1981. It was the terminus of the line from Spit for 10 months, until 25 January 1878, when the extension to Kopua opened. Takapau at that time was on the northern edge of the Seventy Mile Bush.

Edmund Allan and Samuel Kingstreet had a £14,100 contract to build the 14 mi (23 km) extension of the Napier to Waipukurau railway south to Takapau. They built a 5th class station in 1875 and Donald McLeod, a Waipukurau carpenter, built a goods shed and platform in 1877. Initially, only one train a day ran from Takapau then in 1890 there were two trains a day. In 1879 when the chief, bearing a grudge against the railways in general and one of its guards in particular, led a raiding party to stop the train.

There was a post office at the station from 1887 to 1911. By 1896 there were 30 ft (9.1 m) x 20 ft (6.1 m) and 40 ft (12 m) x 30 ft (9.1 m) goods sheds and also a cart approach, loading bank, cattle yards, stationmaster's house, urinals and a passing loop for 24 wagons, extended to 55 in 1911 and further extended in 1940. In 1905 a verandah was added and the platform extended. Electric lights were installed in 1921. Railway houses were built in 1928 and 1946.

On 27 September 1981 the old station closed and a new station and loop line opened near Oruawharo, 3.78 km (2.35 mi)[26] to the east. The loop is still in use, with sidings linking to the Silver Fern Farms works and a platform and shelter remain, which appear weed-grown in a 2015 photo. There has been no regular passenger train since at least 1995. There is now only a single line passing through the original Takapau station site.

There was also a passing loop at Whenuahou, 4 mi 42 ch (7.3 km) south of Takapau, which was originally used for construction of the viaduct to the south.

When the Takapau township was surveyed he donated sections for the school, Catholic, Anglican and Presbyterian churches, and was also most generous with his gifts towards public amenities. At various times the homestead was used as a vice-regal residence by Lord Plunket during the absence of the family in England and by Lord Jellicoe in 1923.

Orua Wharo was considered to be 100 years old in 1953. There were preparations for the station's centenary and among other functions a dinner and ball had been arranged with piles of invitations waiting to be posted. In the midst of all the organising the celebrations were suddenly cancelled when Sydney Johnston's grandson, thirty year old Sydney Christopher Rolleston, the only son and heir to Orua Wharo, was killed in a tractor accident.

In 1965 the homestead with sixty-two acres was given to the Roman Catholic Church with the object of eventually establishing a preparatory school for Roman Catholic boys. This scheme did not eventuate and the Orua Wharo homestead is now used for wedding receptions and other functions. To reach it the road branches east from the Takapau township.

The Burnside property was also on the Takapau Plains. It was taken up in 1854 by Alexander Grant and was a long narrow area of 13,000 acres lying between two rivers and within a few miles of the Seventy Mile Bush.

In February, 1888, a month before the great Norsewood fire, a blaze broke out on Grant's Burnside run and threatened to sweep the whole countryside. It was Sunday and the Rev. E.H. Granger happened to be riding to take a service at Takapau. He galloped to where the congregation was assembled at the schoolhouse and took the men to fight the fire at Burnside. Their combined efforts saved the homestead. In 1888 £1,500 was raised by public subscription for the relief of those who had suffered by bush fires.

Takapau was once the centre of a large flax milling industry, and the community takes its name from the flax that grew in the expansive Takapau plains. The Māori word translates literally as "mat" or "carpet".

The largest business in Takapau is now the Silverfern Farms meat-processing plant, founded by the Hawke's Bay Farmers’ Meat Company in 1981. Kintail Honey, one of country's largest honey-packing and beekeeping operations, is also based in the town.

Education

Takapau School is a Year 1–8 co-educational state primary school, with a roll of 121 as of February 2024. The school opened in 1879. Takapau Primary School’s Motto is Ma te tikanga ka tangata. "Manners Maketh Man.

The school has six classrooms, four of which have been recently renovated into 21st Century learning environments. They have a large New Entrant /Year 1 / Year 2 classroom, which is very well equipped for this age group. They also have a school hall, library and computer suite.

The outdoor facilities include a fully utilized swimming pool, netball courts, junior and senior adventure playgrounds, an enclosed sandpit and a 350m limestone bike track around the perimeter of the school field.  They also own 50 bikes, which enables everyone to benefit from the cycle track. They have had a brand new turf laid at the beginning of 2022 that encompasses our courts for Netball, Basketball and Patter Tennis. They are very proud of their children and environment and welcome any visitors to the school.

Te Kura Kaupapa Māori o Takapau is a Year 1–8 is a co-educational state Kura Kaupapa Māori school, with a roll of 23 as of February 2024. The school opened in 1994. The Trappist monastery, the Southern Star Abbey, is also located nearby.

Social and Sports

Takapau is blessed with many social facilities and clubs servicing the community. There is the Hotel, RSA, Health Centre, EIT, Pony Club, Rock ‘n’ Roll Group, Play Centre and Woman’s Institute. There is also the Art Centre, and Cake Making Club. No community would be complete without the local Takapau Volunteer Fire Brigade.

The Takapau Memorial Sports Building and grandstand with Memorial gates is Council owned. The site also includes club owned buildings for the RSA, Lions Club and Scouts as well as houses the Cenotaph.

The Takapau Tennis Club has clubrooms and 11 tennis courts, 11 courts; 3 astroturf, 6 grass, 2 hardcourts also marked for netball (Club owns all facilities). The three astro and six grass courts were new in 2021. Before that the club has been using the town's former Bowling Green for two spare grass courts for more than a decade. But after wandering cattle destroyed the surface, the club voted to develop the area into painted concrete courts servicing both tennis and netball.

The Takapau Squash Club owns the lounge and squash court attached to the end of council’s building.

The Takapau Indoor Bowling season has once again already begun. Running from March through until October. They meet at the Takapau Town Hall, Charlotte Street Takapau.

Takapau Rugby Football Club is one of the oldest established Rugby Clubs in the Hawkes Bay. In August 2011 they celebrated their 125th Jubilee. Takapau Rugby Football Club was established in 1886 and has a lot of history which they can be extremely proud of. The club has a Senior Men’s team, A Golden Oldies men's team along with all the junior rugby teams. The Takapau Rugby Club own the adjacent and standalone changing rooms. The “club rooms” as such is the main building.

Takapau golf course is a twelve hole golf course that incorporates two eighteen hole golf courses. It has some of the most challenging holes in Hawkes Bay.

Conclusion

All of the Takapau community is connected by a strategic plan with specific goals that means that they can stay focused on their own development. They also are making sure that they are well connected with the wider Hawke’s Bay communities through sports, culture, and tourism thereby ensuring that the youth of the town can see clear opportunities as they grow.