story

RAILWAYS

The absence of building permits in early years makes it difficult to find out the age of many of the older houses in Tauwhare.

This came into being in 1903. Prior to that, any major drainage work in Tauwhare was done by the Hauraki Drainage Board or the Tamahere Road Board.
In February 1890, Mr G. Walworth and others asked the Road Board to lower the outfall of the Waitakaruru Stream. The Board agreed to pay Seven pounds out of a total cost of Twenty one pounds. Mr Walworth operated the Store and Temperance Hotel, which had holding paddocks at the rear, probably prone to flooding.

The formation of roads and building of bridges up to 30 foot span was primarily the task of the Tamahere Road Board which was formed on the 6th November 1872 under the provisions of The Highway Boards Empowering Act 1871.  The annual meeting of ratepayers held in January 1873 elected Patrick Leslie of Tamahere, Chairman. He farmed 950 acres near the gully which bears his name on State Highway One. He called his farm Wartie, after his family estate in Scotland -Wart Hill.

"Kua u mai tenei tauhou, ki tenei whenua tauhou ".
This stranger has arrived at this strange land. (Reed's Maori Proverbs)

FOOD SUPPLY:
Food other than that produced on the farm would be obtained from the local store, mentioned earlier. Tamahere had its own store over many years George Owen ad Son who followed J.H. Stewart, were from 1920 to 1940. Anything from this store, galvanised piping to peas, beans and raisins. The store burnt down one Christmas morning 1975.

We must pay a tribute to the housewives of the countryside, who in many cases, were not used to ordinary housework. The better class, if you may use the word class, were used to their maids in England or Scotland; had to take over and run their new houses with conditions nowhere comparable to the conditions they were used to in the old country. They also had to help outdoors. The garden being their main interest.

HAUTAPU SCHOOL:
The first school in the district was Hautapu School which was built in 1878 on the triangle section of the corner of Pickering's Road and the main road.
Roll of 54, 36 boys and 18 girls.
The first Head was R. McLaurin; at a salary of £65, which hardly covered the living costs with nine children.

William Reids Mill; from the Waikato Times 29th July 1875. The flour mill erected in the Mangaone Stream about half a mile from Crawfords crossing, between Reids property and that of John Shaw, on the Southern bank, was burnt down at about 8.00 a.m. on Monday 18th July under suspicious circumstances.
A feud had been in progress with John Shaw, who did not approve of the dam, and there was a suspicion that he had dug a trench and let water away.

BARWELL:
On the Northern end of Grahams block, bounding on the River and Leslies Gully, was the farm, bought by Mrs Banvell and her sons. Charles and J. Henry. On the Eastern side the boundary was the gully running parallel with the main road until it bounded on Aberdeen.
Barwell's land had been laid out in orchard, the land deemed to be suitable for fruit, being of clay formation.
A cider plant was purchased which was later bought by Mr Barugh of "Wartle". Little use was made of the machine.