Kumeu (district)

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Kumeu

Kumeu is a small town 25 km north-west of the Auckland City centre in New Zealand. Map

Extreme surfing

Cabbage trees

'Muriwai gannet colony'

1 Settlement and statistics
2 Industry
3 Allely House
4 Activities
5 Music
6 Transport
7 Place names
8 External links
9 References

[edit] Settlement and statistics

The district, with a (2001) population of 5670, was originally settled by immigrants from the Dalmatian coast of Croatia, many of whom were part of traditional winegrowing families. At the 2001 Census, the median income of people in the Kumeu area unit was $23,800, compared with $19,500 for Rodney District and $18,500 for all of New Zealand. The unemployment rate in Kumeu was 3.8 percent, compared with Rodney District percent for 5.1 and 7.5 percent for all of New Zealand. There were 775 business locations (geographic units) in Kumeu. [1]

[edit] Industry

Areas surrounding the Kumeu district produce labels such as Kumeu River, Cooper's Creek and Matua Valley, and Nobilo's have gained a good reputation for their Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc wines. The wine growing district is the main industry in both Kumeu itself and the smaller nearby settlements of Huapai and Waimauku.

Kumeu River Wines "was established in 1944 when Mick and Katé Brajkovich and their son Maté first came to the small country settlement of [Kumeu.."[2]
Coopers Creek "It was here, in 1980, that Andrew and Cynthia Hendry first established the Coopers Creek winery.." [3]
Landmark Estate "One of New Zealand's early wineries, Landmark Estate was founded in 1937 by Steve Vitasovich, an immigrant from Croatia, who arrived in Auckland late in the 1920s."[4]
Matua Valley
Nobilos was established in 1943 by Nikola Nobilo and remained family owned until the late 1990s. Now known as Nobilo Wine Group the company is New Zealand's second largest wine company.

[edit] Allely House

Allely House began its long and constantly changing career in 1902. Samuel Dawson Allely built it himself from heart kauri on its original site in Buscomb Avenue, Henderson, about 15 km from its current location. The Selak family moved it to their vineyard in Kumeu. [5]

[edit] Activities

Kumeu Observatory

The area is also popular for lifestyle block farming and equestrian pursuits. The Kumeu Agricultural and Horticultural Society hosts one of the largest annual shows in the Southern Hemisphere on 34 hectares (80 acres) of land owned by the Kumeu District Agricultural and Horticultural Society, on the second weekend in March every year. The nearby localities of Woodhill forest and Muriwai Beach means it has strong recreational interests.

Bushwalking. "Goldie's Bush, just a few minutes up the road offers a fascinating walk amongst real New Zealand native bush. Numerous kauri trees overlook your progress as you criss-cross Mokoroa stream." [6]
Astronomy. An astronomical observatory has existed in various forms in Kumeu for about 20 years. The Kumeu Observatory is a convenient semi-rural observing spot for Auckland astronomers. Situated about 5 minutes west of Kumeu, it has given the small, but active, Auckland based JOG Observers group a home base.[7]
Surfing. "The beach between Papakanui Spit at the entrance to the Kaipara Harbour in the north to Toaraerae (Flat Rock) some 40km south was known as Te One Rangatira (The Chiefly Beach), Up until the 1920’s the area was known as Motutara which means ‘Island of sea Birds’." "On July 30th 1948 George Hilton lead the Muriwai beach Surf Life Saving Club formation with 19 foundation members." "In August 1956 purchasing an Australian surf boat started a tradition that lasting to the present day." [8]
Radio. "Judith Holland ZL1AWM - first licensed in March 1958 and one of the initial 7 YLs (radio code for 'woman') who met in Rotorua on March 10 1962 to initiate the club as it is today. She was WARO's (NZ Women's Amateur Radio Operators) longest licensed member. With transfers around the country Judith changed callsign from ZL1AMW to ZL2BHV and then ZL3AGE before 'reclaiming' her original callsign on retirement to Kumeu, north of Auckland. Graduating from Victoria University of Wellington with a science degree and using her knowledge as a teacher, later became Chief Examiner for the School Certificate physics examination." [9]
Fishing.
Birdwatching.

[edit] Music

Since 1948 Kumeu has had a brass band, competing in many events, and playing in parades, concerts & private Functions, traditional & modern music for all occasions.[10]Nor-West News, 21st July 2005, Nor-West News,April 28th 2005, Helensville Anzac Day Parade. The Kumeu Showgrounds are also the venue for the annual Auckland Folk Festival, a 4-day event of music, dancing and workshops, now in its 28th year.[11] The festival is generally held over the last weekend in January.

[edit] Transport

The North Auckland railway line passes through Kumeu, and for six years, the town was the terminus of the isolated Kumeu-Riverhead Section railway. This line linked Kumeu to Riverhead, where ferries ran to Auckland, and it operated from 1875 until 1881. In 1881, the North Auckland Line reached Kumeu, making the town a railway junction. This status lasted a mere five days; the new railway from Auckland made the line to Riverhead redundant and it was accordingly closed.

Auckland suburban rail services currently terminates at Waitakere. In June 2007 it was announced rail services are to be extended to Helensville in 2008, with temporary stations being built at Huapai and Waimauku ^[1].