Northland, Wellington

Location

Northland lies to the west of Kelburn separated by a steep gully. It is east of Karori, to the north of Highbury, some distance through The Town Belt to the south-west of Wadestown, and to the south of Wilton. It sits high on the south western slopes of Te Ahumairangi by the Wellington Botanic Garden, Zealandia Wildlife Sanctuary and, on the fill over the piped Kaiwharawhara Stream, Ian Galloway Park with its Rugby fields and dog exercise area.

Notable buildings

There is a cluster of shops at the top of Garden Road and just below Creswick Terrace known as the Creswick Shops. Woburn Road has the Northland Memorial Community Centre.

Church schools

Northland is served by two state primary schools, Northland School and state-integrated Cardinal McKeefry Catholic Primary School which was moved up from Thorndon. Cardinal McKeefry Catholic attracts pupils from a very wide collection zone throughout Wellington's central and western suburbs.

National Poetry Collection

The National Poetry Collection is kept in Woburn Road.

Orangikaupapa

The Orangikaupapa Block (or Orangi-Kaupapa) on the hill directly opposite the main entrance to the Botanical Gardens was a small Ngāti Awa village where there was "considerable settlement". Population in the 1886 census: 53 males and 48 females. In the 1892 census it had doubled to 110 males and 102 females It was also known as Cliff Pa. In the early 20th century the hill was known for a time as Wireless Hill and is now Te Ahumairangi.
Near the top of the road there were 80 acres of potato gardens belonging to Te Matehou of Pipitea.

Creswick

The township of Creswick in Karori riding of Hutt County was surveyed and subdivided and more than a hundred allotments offered for sale in August 1878. The sections varied in size between quarter of an acre and three acres. Population in the 1886 census: 58 males and 30 females, 1892: 47 males and 35 females. The name Creswick stuck to the area between Randwick Road and what was the Kaiwharawhara Stream and is now Curtis Street for some years. A further fifty-one sites were sold in March 1895

Governor's Farm

The area on the Glenmore Street side had the name Governor's farm because for some years in the 19th century the owner, C. J. Pharazyn, leased it to Government House when that was in Thorndon on The Beehive's site. Government House used it for a kind of home farm with vegetable gardens (Garden Road) dairy cows and grazing for horses. The building known as Governor's farmhouse was on what is now Seaview Terrace where it joins the military road. The kink in Glenmore Street at its junction with Garden Road was known as Governor's Bend.

Gold

An "auriferous alluvial deposit" was found on a low spur running east west on the Governor's Farm a few hundred yards from the Botanical Gardens while Mr Bidmead was burying a dead cow in 1888.

Northland

The new western suburb of Wellington, the new township of Northland, was subdivided and put on sale on 9 March 1900 on the instructions of C. J. Pharazyn.
It was named by him in honour of Thomas Uchter Caulfield, Viscount Northland (1882–1915), the eldest son of the Earl of Ranfurly, Governor of New Zealand from 1897 to 1904. Viscount Northland was a subsidiary title of the Earl's, borne by his eldest son as a courtesy.
On 1 April 1908 Northland left the Borough of Karori following a declaration by the Minister of Internal Affairs that the Kaiwarra Stream (Kaiwharawhara Stream) would be the boundary between Karori and the city of Wellington.

Tunnels

The Karori Tunnel. A new road was built in 1898 from Wellington to Karori including a tunnel beneath Baker's Hill. If built as a cutting it would have created 140 foot high slopes on each side with a high risk of slips. The tunnel also left Raroa Crescent, the existing Te Aro — Karori road, undisturbed
The Northland Tunnel. Major earthworks were required to build ramps to link the tunnel's Northland Road, Raroa Road now Crescent and Karori Road now known as Chaytor Street at a gradient suitable for trams. Tunnelling found greasy and treacherous ground requiring double shifts on the tunnelling to complete lining and stabilising as quickly as possible. In view of the public's unease for the safety of the workmen an expert tunneller, a Mr Robert Semple, was called in to inspect the site. The stability of the tunnel remained in doubt. Expensive remedial work was finished in January 1928. A bus service was provided because the roadway on the Northland side had yet to be widened and reinforced to take the weight of the trams. There were lengthy courtroom battles between Council and affected residents which had to be settled before that work could be carried out. The tunnel was opened to trams on 4 June 1929.
The Karori Tunnel was 250 feet long, the Northland Tunnel, 225 feet. For comparison the Kilbirnie (Mt Victoria bus) Tunnel is 1,274 feet and Seatoun 470 feet.