Perhaps a seemingly simple question. What does Kaiwharawhara Point mean? The area has always been known to Māori as Kaiwharawhara. This is Māori for food and the fruit of the Astelia.
Kaiwharawhara Point is an urban seaside suburb of Wellington. It is in New Zealand’s North Island. It is located north of the city centre. It sits on the western shore of Wellington Harbour. Here, the Kaiwharawhara Stream reaches the sea. The stream’s headwaters are in Karori.
This area is largely commercial and industrial. Thus, it has little residential population. However, a recent housing development has increased the resident population. It is up the hillside towards Te Kainga.
Kaiwharawhara Point contains some major transport infrastructure. State Highway 1 passes through it. The North Island Main Trunk railway passes through it too. They run from central Wellington northwards. Due to its waterfront location, Kaiwharawhara also has shipping activity. The Wellington Interislander ferry terminal is on the boundary of Kaiwharawhara and Pipitea.
Kaiwharawhara railway station was closed in 2013. Now, the suburb is served by buses. Just north of the station, the Wairarapa Line diverges from the North Island Main Trunk railway. This includes the commuter Hutt Valley Line.
From 1890, Kaiwharawhara was part of the Borough of Onslow. The borough amalgamated with Wellington City in 1919.
Factories in the area included John Newton’s Caledonian soap works from the 1880s to the 1960s. There was also Charles Schultze’s flourmill and Hirst’s tannery. William Cable and Company had a foundry. The NEECO factory produced electric stoves for state houses in the 20th century. It also made thousands of Army items like steel water bottles in World War II. From 1927, the Gorge area had large tanks for Atlantic Oil’s bulk petrol storage. This was in a former quarry. It had been the source of fill for harbour reclamation in the 1870s. There was a major leak from a pipe at the depot. It polluted much of the harbour in 1967.
In 1869, alluvial gold was discovered in the Kaiwharawhara stream near the Karori tunnel. Residents quickly flocked to the area because of the proximity to the city. By the end of July, claims in the upper stream were abandoned. New claims were opened downstream. This was where the Old Karori Road crossed the Kaiwarra Stream.
Within two years, alluvial mining had disappeared. It was replaced by quartz mining. Water wheels and crushing machinery were installed. This was done by the Baker’s Hill Mining Company and at the Morning Star lease. Many people believed that some neighbouring claims were formed for speculative reasons not prospecting purposes.
Poor returns from all leases soon spelled the end of gold mining at Karori. The completion of the waterworks dam in 1873 resulted in the close of the Baker’s Hill and Morning Star mines. Their land and ground works were submerged when the Reservoir was filled.
The Kaiwharawhara Pa was inhabited before and during early settlement days. It was inhabited by a tribe of Ngati-tama. They migrated through the Manawatu from Taranaki. They eventually settled in the Kaiwharawhara area.
A toll-gate was established at Kaiwharawhara by the Hutt County Council. It caught all vehicular and other traffic in and out of Wellington. It made a substantial charge for the maintenance of roads. The toll-gate was removed when Kaiwharawhara joined the Borough of Onslow in 1890.
The upgrade of the Kaiwharawhara Wellington Ferry terminal has been approved. This project will provide a significant improvement to the current facilities. It includes a new Interislander terminal building and wharf. This will accommodate the two new purpose-built and greener Interislander ferries that will be delivered from 2025.