How about a journey through a place called \u014ctara-Papatoetoe? It is a local government area in Auckland. This area is governed by the \u014ctara-Papatoetoe Local Board. Auckland Council also governs it. It’s part of the Manukau Ward.
\u014ctara-Papatoetoe includes \u014ctara and Papatoetoe. It also includes Manukau Middlemore and Clover Park.
Let’s explore \u014ctara a bit more. \u014ctara lies near the head of the T\u0101maki River. The name \u014ctara refers to \u014ctara Hill. This hill was once a Ng\u0101i Tai ki T\u0101maki p\u0101. It was also a volcanic hill.
From 1851 to 1910, the Goodfellow family owned a farm here. During the 1910s, it became an agricultural college. The Dilworth Trust ran this college. After 1950s the Auckland Southern Motorway was constructed. \u014ctara then developed as a suburb. This was mainly a state housing project. The New Zealand Government initiated this.
\u014ctara means “The Place of Tara.” It is a shorter version of \u014ctara Hill / Te Puke \u014d Tara. The hill may be named after Tara-mai-nuku. He was a Waiohua ancestor. He was also a taniwha of the Manukau Harbour. Alternatively, it could be named after Tara Te Irirangi. He was a 19th-century chief of Ng\u0101i Tai ki T\u0101maki.
An older name for the area was Ng\u0101 Kopi o Toi. This means “The Karaka Berries of Toi.” It refers to a karaka grove. Tradition says Toi-te-huatahi brought it from the Chatham Islands. He planted it near Greenmount. The name \u014ctara became common in the 1850s.
\u014ctara sits in South Auckland. It’s on the south-eastern headlands of the T\u0101maki River. It is primarily northeast of the Auckland Southern Motorway. The \u014ctara Creek flows through the suburb. It becomes a tidal estuary. This estuary connects to the T\u0101maki River in the north.
Two volcanic features mark the area. Pukewairiki is one. It is part of the \u014ctara Creek estuary. It’s a volcanic maar. It erupted around 130,000 years ago. \u014ctara Hill / Te Puke o Tara is another. This volcano is in East T\u0101maki. It erupted about 56,500 years ago. It was quarried in the mid-20th century. Lava from the hill reached as far as the \u014ctara Town Centre.
The Ng\u0101i Tai ki T\u0101maki consider \u014ctara part of their rohe. These people came from the Tainui waka crew. They arrived around the year 1300. The T\u0101maki River mouth was known as Te Wai \u014d T\u0101iki. It was named after the ancestor T\u0101iki.
Ng\u0101i Tai developed extensive cultivations here. They farmed along the T\u0101maki River’s eastern shores. The area around \u014ctara Creek and \u014ctara Hill was significant. It had stonefield gardens and a fortified p\u0101. People occupied it until the early 19th century.
In 1851, William Goodfellow bought Otara Farm. He built a homestead on the T\u0101maki River’s south-eastern shore.
Today \u014ctara is home to Manukau Institute of Technology’s campuses. It’s also known for its Saturday morning flea market. This market is next to the MIT South Campus. The \u014ctara Markets began in the late 1970s. It is now the largest street market in New Zealand.