- Hikutaia
Location map
North Island
label=Hikutaia
lat_dir=S | lat_deg=37 | lat_min=18
lon_dir=E | lon_deg=175 | lon_min=39
position=right
width= 150
float=right
caption=Hikutaia is a locality on the
Hauraki Plains ofNew Zealand . It lies on State Highway 26, south east of Thames and north ofPaeroa . The Hikutaia River runs from theCoromandel Range through the area to join theWaihou River . [cite book|title=Reed New Zealand Atlas|year=2004|id=ISBN 0-7900-0952-8|author=Peter Dowling (editor)|publisher=Reed Books|pages=map 15] [cite book|title=The Geographic Atlas of New Zealand|year=2005|id=ISBN 1-877333-20-4|author=Roger Smith, GeographX|publisher=Robbie Burton|pages=map 45]History
The area has a rich history of
Māori settlement, with several pā in the vicinity. [cite book|url=http://books.google.co.nz/books?id=h3NCCGttaT0C&pg=PA44&dq=Hikutaia&as_brr=3&ie=ISO-8859-1&sig=yY6roFOODvXUT7GDOEDfnKzY6nI|title=Waihou Journeys: The Archaeology of 400 years of Maori Settlement|pages=p 44|last=Phillips|first=Caroline|year=2001|isbn=1869402278] The localiwi areNgāti Maru andNgāti Paoa .cite book|title=The Coromandel|author=Michael King |pages=p 54|year=1993|isbn=0-908884-29-X]James Cook andJoseph Banks rowed up the Waihou River on20 November 1769 and disembarked near Hikutaia. They were impressed by thekahikatea which formed a dense forest in the area. Banks described it as "the finest timber my Eyes ever beheld". [King, p 53.]In 1794, acting on Cook's description of the forest, Captain Dell and his crew of the ship "Fancy" camped in a place they called Graves End, which is now Hikutaia, and took 213 kahikatea trees with assistance from local Māori. At least five ships came for more timber by the end of the century. Four Europeans were living at Hikutaia in 1799, assisting the trade in timber and the sale of Māori labour. These men lived with and married Māori. Cultural misunderstandings between traders and Māori sometimes led to violence. [cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/TheBush/UsesOfTheBush/LoggingNativeForests/2/ENZ-Resources/Standard/1/en|title=Logging native forests|encyclopedia=
Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand ]Hikutaia was known for its cheese factory in the mid 1960s. [cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/1966/T/Thames/Thames/en|title=THAMES|encyclopedia=
Encyclopedia of New Zealand (1966) ]Education
Hikutaia School is a coeducational full primary (years 1-8) school with a decile rating of 4 and a roll of 86. [cite web|url=http://www.tki.org.nz/e/schools/display_school_info.php?school_id=1738|title=Te Kete Ipurangi - Hikutaia School|publisher=Ministry of Education]Notes
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