Ōwairaka / Mt Albert’s history

Ōwairaka / Mt Albert - maunga history

 What’s in a name?

The maunga has had a number of names over the centuries indicating the various layers of settlement in the area.

When early Māori occupation occurred the mountain was known as Te Puke o Ruarangi (referring to the occupation by Ruarangi). It has also been known as Te Ahi ka roa a Rakataura (the long burning fire of Rakataura). Ōwairaka (place of Wairaka) was the name in place when European settlers arrived in the mid-19th century.

After the Treaty of Waitangi was signed in 1840 officials eagerly assigned many new names throughout New Zealand, with the maunga and surrounding areas being named Mt Albert, after Prince Albert, consort of the young, newly married Queen Victoria.

It was by this name the mountain was known throughout the 20th century, but when control of the mountain changed in 2014 the Tūpuna Maunga Authority proposed reinstating two of its original Māori names Ōwairaka and Te-Ahi-ka-a-Rakataura.

The naming of any place or geographic feature in New Zealand is under the control of the New Zealand Geographic Board. The board determined that only one Māori name for the maunga was appropriate and also recognised the long standing use of the name Mt Albert. The decision was therefore made that the official name for the volcanic cone located in Mt Albert should be Ōwairaka/Mt Albert.

The volcano

Ōwairaka/Mt Albert erupted over 30,000 years ago. It was one of the earlier eruptions in the Auckland volcanic field and produced prolific lava flows, from two craters, which flowed in a mainly northward direction toward Grey Lynn and Pt Chevalier. This lava was covered by subsequent lava flows from Mt Eden and Three Kings. The resultant volcanic cone was one of the largest in the Auckland field and located in the westernmost position. From the time of eruption to the arrival of human settlers the mountain became a bush covered hill towering over the surrounding landscape.

Māori occupation

Soon after arriving in Aotearoa/New Zealand, some Māori chose to make the Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland district their home, settling close to many of Auckland's volcanic cones, so they could utilise the rich fertile soils for gardening and take advantage of the steep sided mountains as defensive pā. The volcanic cones are believed to have been used as occupation sites from the 14th century and became increasingly fortified from the 17th century on. Development of pā sites could take generations as all earthworks were done by hand. Major earthworks involved creating flat terraced areas to provide living spaces, and food storage pits.

One of the earliest occupants of Ōwairaka/Mt Albert was Ruarangi. He was chief of the Patupaiarehe or fairy people and an ancestor of Tainui. During an extensive siege of the mountain by another tribe, Ruarangi and his people are said to have escaped through a lava cave on the mountain’s side.

After arriving in the Hauraki Gulf from the Pacific, the Tainui waka was dragged from the Tāmaki River to the Manukau Harbour before continuing south to Kawhia. Some crew members, led by prominent tohunga Rakataura, remained on the isthmus, exploring the land around the Manukau Harbour and the southwest of the isthmus. For a time they lived on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert.

The best known peoples to settle on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert was the group led by Wairaka, who came with her extended family to Aotearoa/New Zealand from Rarotonga on the Mātatua waka with her father Toroa, chief of the Ngati Awa people and captain of the waka. The tribe eventually settled in what is now Whakatane, but after a time Wairaka moved north to found a new community on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert. She later returned to Whakatane, but some of her people remained on the mountain.

It was approximately 270 years ago that the Auckland isthmus reached its peak of Māori settlement. With headquarters on Maungakiekie/One Tree Hill the great chief Kiwi Tāmaki held sway over the area, with a population estimated to have reached between ten and twenty thousand. The tribe would move around the area undertaking various food collection activities.

Following intertribal warfare with tribes from the north of Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland, by 1750 most of the isthmus was deserted, with only pockets of Māori occupying areas mainly to the south.

Soon after coming into Crown ownership, the rock strewn land around Ōwairaka/Mt Albert was advertised for sale to satisfy the demand for farming properties. By 1847 all the land in the area had been sold (in many cases to speculators) apart from the mountain which was marked on sale plans as being 'unavailable'.

Early farm holders with properties adjacent to the mountain included:

• Allan Kerr Taylor, who purchased 500 acres on the north eastern slopes in 1849 and established the Alberton homestead (100 Mt Albert Road). Kerr Taylor was at the centre of both civic and social activity within the district until his early death in 1890, aged 58.

• Edward Allen, who purchased 99 acres on the northern slopes in 1861 and established the Allendale homestead (1 Mt Albert Rd). Allen was heavily involved in early civic administration of the area.

• William Kemp, who purchased 80 acres on the south/eastern slopes in 1851 and established Willoughby Farm.

• William Sadgrove, who purchased a farm on the north eastern slopes in 1865 (and also leased property from Kerr Taylor) to establish a dairy farm that supplied milk to local settlers. William was joined by his brother on the farm and with a large extended family the Sadgrove clan built houses at 49/55/61 and 75 Mt Albert Rd.

The early farmers of the area used the mountain as a grazing facility for their livestock.

As with all of early Auckland, Mt Albert suffered with appalling road conditions - little more than almost impassable bog tracks in winter, and deeply rutted dust bowls in summer. The settlers of the area, and the fledgling administrations they established, spent countless time and effort seeking resolutions to the state of the roads.

Quarry activity

With settler activity increasing and farmers needing to get their goods to central city markets, improving the roads of the area became a priority. In 1867 a test bore was sunk on the mountain and at a depth of 20 feet it was determined that there was 'good scoria suitable for road purposes'. Soon after, quarrying activity commenced and before long scoria from Ōwairaka/Mt Albert was being supplied to many parts of Auckland.

When the Railways Department decided that the Northern Railway should pass through Mt Albert on it's route to Helensville, they determined that the scoria on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert would provide a readily available source of construction material. Thus a branch line was constructed parallel to Mt Albert Rd from the Mt Albert station to the base of the mountain. In 1873 mining of the gravel pit began on an industrial scale. An incline elevator was built on the slopes of the mountain (where Toroa Tce currently exists) with full carts descending from the pit used to pull the empty carts back up the mountain. The scale of the mining operation was huge, but also dangerous with two miners losing their lives in a collapse of the quarry wall. Quarry activity was to continue well into the 20th century.

Saving the mountain

Residents of Mt Albert became increasingly concerned at the level of quarry activity that was occuring in the railway pit. As early as 1880 the community requested that the Government declare the mountain a reserve and were assured it would happen when the Railways Department finished their activity. Again in 1895 local residents presented a petition to the Government to stop 'further disfigurement of the mountain'. Again the assurance was given that the mountain would be returned to its previous symmetrical state - 'just a little lower'. The government determined that local residents’ concerns must take a back seat to 'the interests of the national good' so scoria excavation continued.

In 1905, 12 of the mountain’s 22 acres were vested as a Recreation Reserve, but the quarry remained under the control of the Railways Department.

Under increasing pressure from residents the Local Council resolved in 1911 to cease quarry activity (nothing happened), but again in 1915 the Railways Department was petitioned to stop extracting scoria from the mountain. Such was the opposition to the quarry that in 1917 local resident Harvey Turner (see below) made a special trip to Wellington about the matter, as recorded in an article by Mary Tallon (nee Turner): " My grandfather drove to Wellington in 1917 to ask Prime Minister William Massey to stop the mining of Ōwairaka crater as flying rocks posed a danger to the public and the quarry ruined the beauty of the maunga".

Still the quarry remained operational.

When the Northern Railway line was completed in 1925, activity within the quarry reduced to a much lower level and with parliamentary elections looming, all mining suddenly stopped in 1928. The removal of scoria from the volcanic cone had changed the mountain forever.

Restoring the mountain

When activity in the Railways Department quarry finally ceased the mountain was in a shocking state. The height of the mountain had been reduced from 148 to 135 metres and the vast majority of the Māori terracing and food storage pits had been destroyed. Almost 50% of the bulk of the mountain had been removed as the result of quarrying activity.

Over the next decade a start was made on reinstating the mountain to a state where it could operate as the reserve it was supposed to be.

In 1901 an access road had been formed through what had been the Sadgrove farm. Initially known as Domain Rd, the name was subsequently changed to Summit Dr. In order to make the mountain accessible to all parts of the community pedestrian entrances were created from Mt Royal Ave, La Veta Ave and Toroa Tce. To allow greater access to the mountain the Domain Board, which had assumed control of the reserve section of the mountain in 1905, and took over responsibility for the entire mountain in 1928, by 1930, had created a ring road around the summit. The Domain Board was keen to create a grand boulevard access from New North Rd to the mountain along the previous branch railway line, but this was not supported by the Railways Department and the land was sold off over a number of years. 

The original water reservoir established in 1905 to the left of the Summit Dr entrance to hold water pumped from a spring in the grounds of the Avondale Asylum (Oakley/Carrington Hospital ) for supply of fresh water to residents, had become inadequate and in 1912 was duplicated with an additional reservoir on the opposite side of the entrance. 

Again with support from the Mt Albert Borough Council the community undertook an extensive planting programme.

Early in the 20th century Harvey (later Sir Harvey) Turner (of Turners and Growers and the later commercialisation of Kiwifruit growing in New Zealand) had purchased a substantial block of land at the top of Summit Dr, backing onto the mountain. Members of the Turner family established homes on the property and after five generations still reside there. Harvey Turner was a conservationist and was keen to see the mountain as a calm oasis in the middle of suburbia. The attitude of the community toward the mountain can be seen in an article, again written by Mary Tallon (nee Turner):  " My grandmother planted the cherry grove on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert because she was an English romantic. Along with puriri, rimu and pohutukawa planted by my grandfather, the old olives on the northern slopes grew from seeds sent home from Palestine by my father on leave for a week in 1940 prior to four years as a POW in World War II. He planted them when he got back as a sign of freedom and peace".

Planting days were organised and by the middle of the century Ōwairaka/Mt Albert had been heavily planted with a huge array of trees and plants. In some cases members of the community planted a tree in remembrance of a departed loved one. Similarly, memorial seats were installed on the mountain to provide a place for quiet reflection. These planting days continued right through to the 1950s and 60s, often involving groups from local schools. 

The earliest formal design of the mountain involved the Domain Board establishing a full size football and cricket field in the largest of the two craters. During the early 1900s the crater was filled, levelled and sown. In 1905 local residents funded the construction of a stone wall-flanked shelter pavilion together with post and rail fences, and stone walls. This provided a much needed recreation space for the rapidly growing residential development that was occurring in the area. In the area of the pavilion, which was built into a raised bank beside the field, a number of shade trees including oaks and pohutukawa provided a popular picnic area. With the increased use of the sports field, by 1928 it was deemed that toilet facilities were required. An 'earth closet' was the cheapest option for this facility and was located in the area alongside the playing field.

By the mid 1940s, housing development in the greater Mt Albert area was in full swing and it was clear that the two water storage tanks near the Domain entrance were no longer sufficient for the borough's needs. In 1949 a large concrete reservoir was constructed on the southern side of the mountain in the smaller of the two craters. At the time of construction this was the largest underground water storage facility in Auckland - capable of holding over a million litres of water. The reservoir is supplied by dams in the Waitakere Ranges, and still provides Mt Albert with all its water requirements.

However, by the mid 1960s Ōwairaka Domain was becoming increasingly neglected due to the increasing demands placed on the Mt Albert Borough Council to develop additional facilities for a fast growing suburb, coupled with a requirement to provide for changing demographics in the area,. Reports of fighting, drinking, inappropriate and anti-social behaviour, an increase in the amount of rubbish on the mountain and a disturbing increase in gorse growth together with animal pest infestations were regularly received by the borough engineer.

Little was done to solve the growing state of general decay on the mountain. Some additional contouring of steep slopes was undertaken in 1961 to prevent accidents, but overall the domain was in a state of decline. As is the case today, the local residents have always cared deeply about the mountain’s trees, as can be seen in the following letter written to the Mt Albert Borough Council in 1963, Read here

Along with the change in how houses were being constructed in the 1970s came a similar approach to the mountain. A number of fences that were not required to control stock were removed to provide a more 'open plan' concept. The original water reservoir, now no longer in use, was removed in 1975, with the other reservoir beside the domain entrance being decommissioned and abandoned in 1980.

In 1973 a large stone was placed beside the trig station on the summit with a plaque telling the story of the naming of the mountain 'Ōwairaka'. Sadly, the plaque was stolen in 2001.

The new entrance was the start of a much required assessment of the Ōwairaka Domain. The lower slopes of the mountain contained a large number of eucalyptus trees, which had become infected with a root disease that caused them to die and present a safety hazard. In 1990 a large number of these diseased trees were removed. Replacement trees were planted but again suffered the effects of livestock damage. By 2005 the decision had been made to no longer graze cattle on the mountain and the stock and supporting infrastructure, including pens and loading races, were removed.

When the suburb of Mt Albert, with its own municipal governance structure was absorbed into Auckland City Council in 1989 much of the local emphasis on the mountain was lost. Rather than being at the centre of a suburb the mountain became just another facility among many that the council needed to maintain. While the mountain was maintained to a certain standard, much of the community was concerned at the state of what had once been a central part of the identity of Mt Albert.

Mountain Green Archery Club

One of the longest standing groups to enjoy Ōwairaka/Mt Albert is the Mountain Green Archery Club. The club started in the late 1940s on the May Rd Reserve in Mt Roskill. Conditions were not ideal there with the park being often exposed to strong  winds, meaning club members struggled to achieve accurate shooting. Also of concern was the safety of other park users to errant arrows.

Before long the club was looking for a new location and arranged a lease with the Mt Albert Borough Council of the old Railway quarry on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert. After levelling of the quarry floor the club moved to the new location in 1953. Soon after a timber clubroom was erected on the far side of the field opposite the entrance to the shooting range. Sadly this clubroom was broken into and set on fire in 1957. Clubmembers rallied to build a new clubroom, relocating it to the current location. In an attempt to avoid the possibility of another fire the new clubroom was clad in corrugated iron. This clubroom still acts as a base for the archery club.

Members of the Mountain Green Archery Club have achieved regional, national and international success in their chosen sport. The club is considered to be one of the best located in New Zealand with its sheltered position in the former quarry providing perfect shooting conditions. Such has been the popularity of the club that it has allowed an indoor shooting range to be established in Massey, thereby allowing members to continue activities all year round.

Despite the heyday of the club being in the 1960s, after almost 70 years on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert, the Mountain Green Archery Club still has a strong membership, an extensive calendar of events and facilities that are the envy of most other shooting clubs throughout New Zealand.

A new beginning

From 2003, the Crown was engaged in negotiations with Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei, the dominant hapū within the Auckland area, for settlement of claims under the Treaty of Waitangi. Part of the settlement included the return of a number of volcanic cones, including Ōwairaka/Mt Albert. In 2006 an agreement in principle had been reached, but other iwi and hapū were aggrieved at being left out of discussions. Therefore the agreement in principle was not taken any further. In the end, the Ngā Mana Whenua o Tāmaki Makaurau Collective Redress Act 2014 provided collective Treaty redress to 13 iwi and hapū (even though Auckland Council and the Crown formally recognise at leaset 19 iwi and hapū as Mana Whenua in Tāmaki Makaurau).

This redress included the ownership transfer of Ōwairaka/Mt Albert along with 13 other volcanic cones (maunga) to the 13 iwi and hapū in the Tāmaki Collective. The legislation required those lands to be held on trust, for the benefit of that collective “and all other people of Auckland”. The ‘other people’ includes Tangata Whenua who were not part of that settlement. The settlement conditions also required all maunga to be designated public reserves, thus guaranteeing (among other things) public access.  There are various types of reserves status, with Ōwairaka/Mt Albert being a Recreational Reserve.

Title to the mountain is held by Tūpuna Taonga o Tāmaki Makaurau Trust Ltd, but administration of the maunga is carried out by the Tūpuna Maunga o Tāmaki Makaurau Authority which is a co-governance arrangement between representatives of the iwi and hapu involved with the trust and appointed representatives of Auckland Council. Funding for the Authority comes from the ratepayers of Auckland City.

The Tūpuna Maunga Authority has proposed an ambitious scheme of changes and improvements to the 15 maunga of Auckland under its control. While many of these changes have been welcomed by local communities, some of the proposed plans have not met with approval.

The first major change to occur on Ōwairaka/Mt Albert was the removal of general vehicle access to the ring road around the maunga, with the installation of automated retractable gates. At the same time in 2018 a new car park and toilet block was constructed to the right of the Summit Rd entrance, in the area previously occupied by the second water reservoir.

It was the next announced plan involving removing all of Ōwairaka/Mt Albert’s 345 non-native trees (nearly half of the entire tree cover) that created major disquiet among the community and beyond. The intention to remove these trees, including hundreds planted by successive generations of local residents, in a single phase felling operation resulted in Honour the Maunga’s formation and subsequent occupation of the maunga 11 November 2019. A month later, an Auckland couple not associated with the group instigated legal proceedings, which as at November 2021 are ongoing.

References:

'Fountains of Fire' - Geoffrey J Cox

'The Volcanic Cones of Auckland' - E J Searle & Janet Davidson

'In Old Mt Albert' - Dick Scott

'Mt Albert Then and Now' - Deborah Dunsford

'The Maunga at Mount Albert' - Lisa Truttman

Mt Albert Historical Society

Mountain Green Archery Club

Stuff - Mary Tallon

geocaching.com/Ōwairaka