Pause a moment and listen to the gentle murmur of Karori Stream. This waterway whispers tales of transformation and resilience. The story of Karori Stream is intertwined with the story of Karori itself.
Originally known as Kaharore in Māori, meaning the place of many bird snares, this area was a forested hunting ground. Tracks crossed it leading to Māori pā on the west coast. No Māori lived here when Europeans first settled in the 1840s.
These early settlers cleared the land. The valley was turned into farmland. George Baker, William Mitchell, and Joseph Campbell farmed the land. Farming shaped the landscape around Karori Stream.
But Karori Stream’s story takes an unexpected turn. Alluvial gold was discovered near the Karori tunnel in 1869. A gold rush began. Residents flocked to the area hoping to strike it rich. Claims were quickly abandoned upstream. New claims opened where the Old Karori Road crossed the Kaiwharawhara Stream.
Alluvial mining soon gave way to quartz mining. Water wheels and crushing machinery were installed. The Baker’s Hill Mining Company and the Morning Star lease were established. Poor returns led to the end of gold mining in Karori.
The completion of the waterworks dam in 1873 changed everything. The Baker’s Hill and Morning Star mines were submerged when the reservoir filled. Two claims upstream Union and Try Again could not operate due to restricted access.
Karori Stream then became a vital water source for Wellington. The Karori Water Supply Dams and Reservoirs captured the stream’s water. The Lower Karori Dam was completed in 1878. Wellington became the first municipality in New Zealand to construct a public water supply dam. The Upper Karori Dam followed between 1906 and 1908.
The Lower Karori dam was designed by Nicholas Marchant. It is an earth dam with a puddled clay core. Concrete was used for its wave protection lining and culverts. The Upper Karori Dam was a pioneering structure. It was one of the earliest New Zealand examples of a large-scale concrete gravity dam. William Hobbard Morton designed it.
Located on the Wellington fault, the dams were decommissioned in the 1990s due to earthquake safety concerns. For over a century, the Karori waterworks was at the heart of Wellington’s water system.
Today Karori Stream flows through Zealandia. This wildlife sanctuary protects the area’s native flora and fauna. The stream is now a haven for biodiversity. It reminds us of Karori’s journey from hunting ground to farmland to gold rush site to water source to wildlife sanctuary.
So next time you hear the stream trickling, remember the story of Karori Stream. It is a story of change, adaptation, and the enduring power of nature.