Māori history in Greenhithe was named after the tauhinu shrub, known for its medicinal properties (pictured:
Pomaderris amoena) Most of what is known of Greenhithe's traditional history is based on the retelling by Whatarangi Ngati of
Pāremoremo in the early 20th century. Whatarangi was the mother-in-law of ethnographer
George Graham, and was well-versed in the tribal histories of
Ngāti Whanaunga,
Ngāti Whātua and
Ngāti Pāoa. At Greenhithe, Tauhinu was established as a fortified Te Kawerau ā Maki
pā, on the southern cliffs of the peninsula. The band of the Upper Waitematā Harbour between Greenhithe and
Herald Island was known as Wainoni. Tauhinu pā, alongside other settlements of the North Shore, was attacked by Kapetaua (also known as Kapetawa) of the
Hauraki Gulf around the year 1700, in retribution for Kapetaua being left stranded on
Bean Rock. During the conflict between
Ngāti Whātua and
Kiwi Tāmaki of
Waiohua, who was the paramount chief of the
Auckland isthmus (circa 1740), the people of Tauhinu pā fought with Ngāti Whātua. Pahauroa, chief of Tauhinu, was wounded and died at Judges Bay during the conflict. By the first half of the 19th century, the Greenhithe area was one of the most densely settled areas of the
North Shore by Tāmaki Māori peoples. During the early 1820s, most Māori of the North Shore fled for the
Waikato or
Northland due to the threat of war parties during the
Musket Wars. Ngāti Whātua left an
ahi kā presence at Tauhinu pā, which included a small number of warriors. When people returned in greater numbers to the Auckland Region in the mid-1830s, Ngāti Whātua focused resettlement in the
Māngere-
Onehunga area, while Te Kawerau ā Maki focused settlement at
Te Henga / Bethells Beach.
European settlement The Greenhithe area was a part of the Mahurangi Block, which was purchased by the
New Zealand Government in the early 1840s.
Kauri gum digging was a major income source for European settlers in the late 1840s. The first Crown land grants to European settlers in Greenhithe were to the Gamble Brothers, shoemakers from Auckland who purchased property in 1854 and 1855. The first known permanent resident was George Deane, who purchased 69 acres of land adjacent to Lucas Creek in 1858 and settled here with his wife. After struggling to make a living in the area, Deane and his wife left for Britain in 1861. During this period, the western Greenhithe headland gained the name Humbug Point by shippers who worked along the Upper Waitematā Harbour area, due to the extensive sand banks that required ships to take wide detours. In the mid-1860s, Thomas and Mary Forgham arrived in Auckland from
Birmingham, establishing a self-sustaining community in Greenhithe. In 1958, a boatyard opened on Rame Road, leading boat repair to become one of the largest enterprises in Greenhithe. Ferro Cement Ltd began producing concrete hulled boats in Greenhithe in the mid-1960s. The population of the suburb grew significantly after these changes, from 4,170 in 2001 ==Local government==