Karitane | |
---|---|
Town | |
Coordinates: 45°38′20″S170°39′20″E / 45.63889°S 170.65556°E | |
Country | New Zealand |
Region | Otago |
District | Dunedin |
Community board | Waikouaiti Coast Community Board [1] |
Electorates |
|
Government | |
• Territorial authority | Dunedin City Council |
• Regional council | Otago Regional Council |
• Mayor of Dunedin | Jules Radich |
• Dunedin MP | Rachel Brooking |
• Te Tai Tonga MP | Tākuta Ferris |
Area | |
• Total | 1.29 km2 (0.50 sq mi) |
Population (June 2024) [3] | |
• Total | 440 |
• Density | 340/km2 (880/sq mi) |
Time zone | UTC+12 (NZST) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC+13 (NZDT) |
Postcode | 9471 |
Local iwi | Ngāi Tahu |
The small town of Karitane is located within the limits of the city of Dunedin in New Zealand, 35 kilometres to the north of the city centre.
Set in rolling country near the mouth of the Waikouaiti River, the town is a popular holiday retreat for Dunedinites.
The site of the present settlement of Karitane includes that of the pre-European Māori kaika, or undefended village. Giant moa were likely to be hunted in the area. [4]
It encompasses Huriawa on the adjacent peninsula, a pā or fortified village, recalled in oral tradition for sieges in the late 17th or early 18th centuries. It was also the site of the whaling station set up by Long, Wright and Richards in 1837. That was known as Waikouaiti, but the name later became transferred to the present township of that name established by Johnny Jones as a farming settlement in 1840, on the north side of the estuary.
In 1838, Jones acquired the Karitane whaling station, primarily targeting southern rights and humpbacks, resulting in severe depletion of local populations for these species. After sending pioneers to start his farming settlement he sent a Wesleyan missionary to join them in May 1840. Rev. James Watkin established the first mission station in the South Island. [5] The first Christian service in the South Island took place in Karitane on 17 May, 1840. Watkin set up his mission station at Karitane. He was living there with his wife and children in a purpose-built house by late 1842. In 1867 George O'Brien painted a memorable view looking north from the Karitane waterfront, now in the Toitū Otago Settlers Museum, Dunedin.
In early February 2021, high levels of lead (40 times the acceptable level of 0.01mg/L) were detected in Karitane and nearby Waikouaiti's drinking water. The high levels of lead were first detected on 18 December 2020 but the alert was emailed to a Dunedin City Council staff member who was on holiday. [6] [7] In response, Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield offered free blood tests to Karitane and Waikouaiti residents. The Dunedin City Council also dispatched water tanks and staff to assist and reassure local residents. [7] Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern described the lead levels in Karitane and Waikouaiti as "unacceptable." [8] On 9 February, the City Council distributed free fruits and vegetables to residents of Karitane, Waikouaiti, and Hawksbury due to concerns about eating crops irrigated with the contaminated water. [9] On 11 February, the Dunedin City Council also confirmed that it would drain a raw water reservoir and replace 5 kilometres of old pipes in order to reassure local residents. [10] By 10 March, the Southern District Health Board confirmed that 1,512 people had been tested, with blood test results indicating that nobody had a blood lead level requiring hospitalisation and that long term exposure to lead from the water supply was limited. [11]
The name Karitane is often associated with pioneering paediatrician and psychiatrist Sir Truby King, founder of the Plunket Society. The name is echoed in many New Zealand child-related services and products:
Truby King also worked at nearby Seacliff Lunatic Asylum.
Orpheus Beaumont, a woman from Karitane who entered and won the international Navy competition to invent the modern life jacket in 1918. [17]
Karitane is described by Statistics New Zealand as a rural settlement. It covers 1.29 km2 (0.50 sq mi) [2] and had an estimated population of 440 as of June 2024, [3] with a population density of 341 people per km2. It is part of the much larger Bucklands Crossing statistical area.
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
2006 | 348 | — |
2013 | 363 | +0.60% |
2018 | 405 | +2.21% |
Source: [18] |
Karitane had a population of 405 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 42 people (11.6%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 57 people (16.4%) since the 2006 census. There were 192 households, comprising 198 males and 207 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.96 males per female, with 66 people (16.3%) aged under 15 years, 42 (10.4%) aged 15 to 29, 195 (48.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 102 (25.2%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 92.6% European/Pākehā, 11.1% Māori, 0.7% Asian, and 2.2% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 59.3% had no religion, 28.1% were Christian, 0.7% had Māori religious beliefs, 1.5% were Buddhist and 0.7% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 90 (26.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 54 (15.9%) people had no formal qualifications. 72 people (21.2%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 153 (45.1%) people were employed full-time, 60 (17.7%) were part-time, and 3 (0.9%) were unemployed. [18]
The Bucklands Crossing statistical area, which also includes Warrington, covers 421.96 km2 (162.92 sq mi). [2] It had an estimated population of 1,650 as of June 2024, [19] with a population density of 3.9 people per km2.
Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
---|---|---|
2006 | 1,230 | — |
2013 | 1,425 | +2.12% |
2018 | 1,482 | +0.79% |
Source: [20] |
Bucklands Crossing had a population of 1,482 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 57 people (4.0%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 252 people (20.5%) since the 2006 census. There were 675 households, comprising 753 males and 729 females, giving a sex ratio of 1.03 males per female. The median age was 48.2 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 261 people (17.6%) aged under 15 years, 156 (10.5%) aged 15 to 29, 756 (51.0%) aged 30 to 64, and 309 (20.9%) aged 65 or older.
Ethnicities were 93.3% European/Pākehā, 11.7% Māori, 0.8% Pasifika, 1.2% Asian, and 1.8% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity.
The percentage of people born overseas was 17.2, compared with 27.1% nationally.
Although some people chose not to answer the census's question about religious affiliation, 61.1% had no religion, 26.5% were Christian, 0.4% had Māori religious beliefs, 0.2% were Hindu, 0.2% were Muslim, 1.2% were Buddhist and 2.6% had other religions.
Of those at least 15 years old, 354 (29.0%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, and 210 (17.2%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $32,500, compared with $31,800 nationally. 225 people (18.4%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 570 (46.7%) people were employed full-time, 231 (18.9%) were part-time, and 30 (2.5%) were unemployed. [20]
Huirapa Marae, also known as Puketeraki Marae, is located in Karitāne. It is a marae (meeting ground) of Ngāi Tahu, including the Kāti Huirapa Rūnanga Ki Puketeraki branch, and includes the Karitāne wharenui (meeting house). [21] [22]
Close to the settlement is the site of Huriawa Pā, which was a major pā (fortification) in pre-European New Zealand. It was set in a strong position on a rocky promontory above the coast.
Karitane School is a co-educational state contributing primary school for Year 1 to 6 students, [23] with a roll of 24 students as of August 2024. [24] A school has existed at Karitane since at least 1892. [25]
Otago is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately 32,000 square kilometres (12,000 sq mi), making it the country's second largest local government region. Its population was 257,200 in June 2024.
Waikouaiti is a small town in East Otago, New Zealand, within the city limits of Dunedin. The town is close to the coast and the mouth of the Waikouaiti River.
Portobello is a village beside the Otago Harbour halfway along the Otago Peninsula in Dunedin City, New Zealand. It lies at the foot of a small peninsula between Portobello Bay and Latham Bay.
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from Dùn Èideann, the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. The city has a rich Māori, Scottish, and Chinese heritage.
Mataura is a town in the Southland region of the South Island of New Zealand. Mataura has a meat processing plant, and until 2000 it was the site of a large pulp and paper mill.
Otakou is a settlement within the boundaries of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand. It is located 25 kilometres from the city centre at the eastern end of Otago Peninsula, close to the entrance of Otago Harbour. Though a small fishing village, Otakou is important in the history of Otago for several reasons. The settlement is the modern centre and traditional home of the Ōtākou rūnanga (assembly) of Ngāi Tahu. In 1946 Otakou Fisheries was founded in the township; this was later to become a major part of the Otago fishing industry.
The Waikouaiti River is found to the north of Dunedin in Otago, New Zealand. It flows to the Pacific Ocean at Karitane, close to the town of Waikouaiti.
Palmerston is a town in the South Island of New Zealand. Located 50 kilometres to the north of the city of Dunedin, it is the largest town in the Waihemo Ward of the Waitaki District, with a population of 890 residents. Palmerston grew at a major road junction: State Highway 1 links Dunedin and Waikouaiti to the south with Oamaru and Christchurch to the north, while State Highway 85 heads inland to become the principal highway of the Maniototo. The Main South Line railway passes through the town and the Seasider tourist train travels from Dunedin to Palmerston and back once or twice a week. From 1880 until 1989, the town acted as the junction between the main line and a branch line that ran inland, the Dunback and Makareao Branches.
Moeraki is a small fishing village on the east coast of the South Island of New Zealand. It was once the location of a whaling station. In the 1870s, local interests believed it could become the main port for the north Otago area and a railway line, the Moeraki Branch, was built to the settlement and opened in 1877. However, the port could not compete with Oamaru and the lack of traffic as well as stability problems caused by difficult terrain led to the closure of the railway in 1879 after only two years' operation.
Clinton is a small town in South Otago, in New Zealand's South Island, with convenient road connections to Dunedin, Central Otago via Lawrence or Tapanui, the Catlins and Invercargill. It is located on State Highway 1 approximately halfway between Balclutha and Gore, and the Main South Line railway passes through the town.
Sir Frederic Truby King, generally known as Truby King, was a New Zealand health reformer and Director of Child Welfare. He is best known as the founder of the Plunket Society.
Waitati, from the Māori Waitete, is a small seaside settlement in Otago, New Zealand, within the city limits of Dunedin. It is located close to the tidal mudflats of Blueskin Bay, 19 kilometres north of the Dunedin city centre. The small Waitati River flows through the bay to the sea.
Warrington, known in Māori as Ōkāhau, is a small settlement on the coast of Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand. It is situated close to the northern shore of Blueskin Bay, an area of mudflats north of Dunedin, and is administered as part of Dunedin City. Warrington is 3 km (1.9 mi) from State Highway 1 linked by Coast Road. The Main South Line railway passes through the township and a tourist train, the Seasider passes through the settlement once or twice a week between Dunedin and Palmerston.
Seacliff is a small village located north of Dunedin in the Otago region of New Zealand's South Island. The village lies roughly halfway between the estuary of Blueskin Bay and the mouth of the Waikouaiti River at Karitane, on the eastern slopes of Kilmog hill. Coast Road, an old route north from Dunedin, and the South Island Main Trunk Railway pass through the village.
The settlement of Broad Bay is located on the Otago Harbour coast of Otago Peninsula, in the South Island of New Zealand. It is administered as part of the city of Dunedin, and is technically a suburb of that city, though its isolation and semi-rural nature make it appear as a settlement in its own right.
The Karitane Hospitals were six hospitals in New Zealand run by the Plunket Society, located in Auckland, Christchurch, Dunedin, Invercargill, Wanganui and Wellington. They were established as training hospitals for Karitane nurses and cared for babies with malnutrition and other dietetic complaints, and premature babies. They also offered mother care training and assistance. The first hospital opened in 1907 and the hospitals were closed between 1978 and 1980 due to financial difficulties and changes in society and maternity services.
Huriawa, commonly known as Huriawa Peninsula or Karitane Peninsula, is a headland on the coast of Otago, New Zealand. It is located 35 kilometres north of Dunedin city centre, immediately to the southeast of the settlement of Karitane.
Pūrākaunui is a small settlement in Otago, in the South Island of New Zealand. It is located within the bounds of the city of Dunedin, in a rural coastal area some 25 km (16 mi) to the north of the city centre.
Clydevale is a township on the banks of the Clutha River / Mata-Au, in the Clutha Valley, 29 kilometres north-west of Balclutha.
In February 2021, the East Otago towns of Waikouaiti and Karitane in New Zealand reported high lead levels in their water supplies. Local and national authorities responded by dispatching water tanks and staff to assist local residents and offering them free blood tests, fruits and vegetables. The lead poisoning scare also attracted covered by national media. By 10 March 2021, the Southern District Health Board confirmed that test results indicated that long term exposure to lead in the water supply posed minimial risk to the local population.
Media related to Karitane at Wikimedia Commons