Turua
Encyclopedia
Turua is a small village community located on the banks of the Waihou River in the Hauraki Plains
, southeast of Auckland
in the North Island
of New Zealand
. Turua is a Maori place name meaning "twice seen," referring to reflections in the river. Before European settlement, the town site was a Maori pā surrounded by vast forests of kahikatea that came to be known as the "Turua Woods." In the late 19th century the village of Turua became one of the most important sites of kahikatea exploitation in New Zealand when the family of George and Martha Bagnall bought the Turua sawmill in 1875. Over the next forty years the stands of kahikatea surrounding the town were replaced by small family farms. In 2006 there were 441 households in Turua, with an enrolment of 184 students in the Turua Primary School.
Hauraki Plains
The Hauraki Plains are a geographical feature and non-administrative area located in the northern North Island of New Zealand, at the lower end of the Thames Valley...
, southeast of Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
in the North Island
North Island
The North Island is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the much less populous South Island by Cook Strait. The island is in area, making it the world's 14th-largest island...
of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. Turua is a Maori place name meaning "twice seen," referring to reflections in the river. Before European settlement, the town site was a Maori pā surrounded by vast forests of kahikatea that came to be known as the "Turua Woods." In the late 19th century the village of Turua became one of the most important sites of kahikatea exploitation in New Zealand when the family of George and Martha Bagnall bought the Turua sawmill in 1875. Over the next forty years the stands of kahikatea surrounding the town were replaced by small family farms. In 2006 there were 441 households in Turua, with an enrolment of 184 students in the Turua Primary School.