Dargaville
Dargaville is a town located in the North Island of New Zealand. It is situated on the bank of the Northern Wairoa River in the Kaipara District of the Northland region. Dargaville is located southwest of Whangārei, and north of Auckland.
Dargaville is noted for the high proportion of residents of Croatian descent. The area around it is one of the chief regions in the country for cultivating kūmara and so Dargaville is known by many locals as the "Kūmara Capital" of New Zealand.
History and culture
The town was established by and named after timber merchant Joseph Dargaville, who purchased the then Tunatahi block from local Iwi. Dargaville was founded in 1872, during the 19th-century kauri gum and timber trade.Dargaville was made a borough in 1908.
The area became known for a thriving industry that included gum digging and kauri logging, which was based mainly at Te Kōpuru, several kilometres south of Dargaville on the banks of the Wairoa River. The river was used to transport the huge logs downstream to shipbuilders and as a primary means of transport to Auckland. Dalmatian migrants were particularly prominent in the kauri gum extraction. After the gum and forestry industries started to decline after 1920, farming, especially dairy became a significant contributor to the economy.
The Wairoa River was the main method of transport around Dargaville until the 1940s.
Horses last raced at the Dargaville racecourse in 2016. A proposal in 2022 was submitted to redevelop the racecourse into 450 homes. This private plan change was accepted by the Kaipara Council and released for public consultation in July 2022.
The Bank of New Zealand closed its Dargaville branch in 2020. The Dargaville Town Hall had to be closed and partially demolished in 2023 following damage sustained during Cyclone Gabrielle.
Demographics
Statistics New Zealand describes Dargaville as a small urban centre. It covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2.Dargaville had a population of 5,016 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 189 people since the 2018 census, and an increase of 732 people since the 2013 census. There were 2,460 males, 2,544 females and 15 people of other genders in 1,944 dwellings. 2.4% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 43.4 years. There were 957 people aged under 15 years, 792 aged 15 to 29, 1,959 aged 30 to 64, and 1,311 aged 65 or older.
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 70.5% European ; 37.6% Māori; 9.9% Pasifika; 4.7% Asian; 0.4% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders ; and 1.8% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 96.7%, Māori language by 7.7%, Samoan by 0.6%, and other languages by 7.4%. No language could be spoken by 1.9%. New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.7%. The percentage of people born overseas was 14.4, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 39.2% Christian, 1.0% Hindu, 0.3% Islam, 3.6% Māori religious beliefs, 0.3% Buddhist, 0.2% New Age, and 1.3% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 45.7%, and 9.1% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 294 people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 2,247 had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 1,437 people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $29,100, compared with $41,500 nationally. 159 people earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,587 people were employed full-time, 510 were part-time, and 150 were unemployed.
Geography
The nearby Ripirō Beach has the longest unbroken stretches of sand beach in New Zealand and is largely drivable from one end to the other. This beach is home of the famous local shellfish delicacy the toheroa. Overexploitation in the 1950s and 1960s caused the population of the shellfish to decline so much that public gathering of the shellfish is now prohibited.Dargaville is the gateway to the Waipoua Forest, a protected forest sanctuary and home of the biggest specimens of kauri tree in New Zealand, Tāne Mahuta being chief amongst them.
Dargaville is situated by the Wairoa River, with the rural locality of Turiwiri based across the river from the Dargaville Wairoa River Bridge. Dargaville also houses several boat moorings and a central wharf adjacent to the town centre. The river is tidal when it passes through Dargaville.
Dargaville also includes the previously established village of Mangawhare, with both areas being separated by the Kaihu River – a tributary of the Wairoa. Beyond Mangawhare lies the rural locality of Aoroa, which borders Mount Weasley and Harding Park.
Climate
classifies its climate as oceanic with warm summers and mild winters.Infrastructure
Hospital
Dargaville Hospital and Medical Centre is located at 77 Awakino Road. It provides a 12-bed general medical ward, a 4 bed post-natal maternity unit. It also provides emergency, radiology, laboratory, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, social work and district nursing services. An eight-bed detoxification ward is also located on site. Doctors from Whangārei Hospital also run outpatient clinics at Dargaville Hospital.Road
Dargaville is on the junction of State Highways 12 and 14. Pouto Road, which travels south along the Pouto Peninsula towards the townships of Te Kōpuru and Pouto, terminates at the junction of State Highway 12 in Mangawhare, whereas Hokianga Road transforms into Waihue Road just beyond the township of Dargaville, leading to the nearby rural locality of Waihue.Rail
North of the town, the Donnellys Crossing Section railway was established to provide access to other logging activities. The first portion of this line was opened in 1889, it reached its greatest extent in 1923, and after operating isolated from the national rail network for decades, it was connected with the North Auckland Line by the Dargaville Branch in 1940. The Donnelly's Crossing Section closed in 1959, but the Dargaville Branch remains in use by a tourist venture, having had freight services withdrawn by KiwiRail since October 2014.Air
The Dargaville aerodrome is located on the banks of the Wairoa River within the locality of Turiwiri, just south of the town of Dargaville.Farming
The area around Dargaville is now predominantly a farming region and supports extensive dairy, beef, and sheep farms, as well as a thriving plantation forest industry. The Silver Fern Farms meat processing plant is located on Tuna Street. It employed 300 staff in 2021.Amenities
The Kai Iwi lakes are 25 kilometres north of Dargaville, whereas Trounson Kauri Park is located a further 37 kilometres north of the town centre.Beach
Ripiro Beach is the local beach, just 13 kilometres from the township, and offers 107 kilometres of rugged west coast surf.Swimming pool
The Kauri Coast community swimming pool is located at 8 Onslow Street. The 50-metre outdoor swimming pool was built in 2010 at a cost of $6 million and was damaged in 2011 with a large bulge and crack in the middle of it as a result of removing the weight of the water.Sportsville
Located at the Dargaville Rugby Park, Sportsville is a multi-purpose sports complex that facilitates Tennis, Soccer, Volleyball, Netball, Rugby League, and Rugby Union.Golf course
The Northern Wairoa Golf Club is located at 819 Baylys Coast Road. It is an 18 hole par 72 layout. The golf course provides sea views throughout. The fairways are lined with pōhutukawa trees and are wide and open. The greens are large, well kept, and of moderate speed. All making NWGC an enjoyable layout and playable course.Government
The Kaipara District Council provides local government services for Dargaville. They are located at 32 Hokianga Road. The Northland Regional Council provides regional government services for Dargaville. They also operate out of the same building at 32 Hokianga Road which cost $9.2 million and opened in 2022. Dargaville is part of the Northland electorate for the New Zealand parliament.Culture
Dargaville Museum
The Dargaville Museum Te Whare Taonga o Tunatahi is located in Harding Park, within the suburb of Mangawhare. The museum focuses on local history including exhibitions of Maori history, early European pioneers, industrial and maritime history. Exhibits include a 16-metre-long Māori Waka and a display hall showcasing the history of the Gum diggers. The museum also has a research library and archives as well as the masts from the Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior located just outside the Lighthouse Function Centre.The former Aratapu public library building is part of the Dargaville Museum exhibition space. This building is listed as a category 2 historic place with Heritage New Zealand and was built in 1874. The building was relocated to Harding Park and restored by volunteers. It was built in a neo-classical style made from timber. It previously served as a schoolhouse, a library and a post office.