Opononi

European settlement John Webster arrived in New Zealand in 1841. In 1855, he bought 700 acres of rough land at Opononi, and established a homestead and pastoral farm. He developed this into a showplace, entertaining vice-royalty several times. He also built a wharf, gum-store and a trading store. In 1894, Webster put the house and farm on the market. The store and gum store were taken over by Alfred Sprye Andrewes who later converted the gum store into a two storey hotel. 20th century The Opononi Post and Telephone was opened in 1892 and operated until 1989. The road between Opononi and Ōmāpere was developed in the mid 1930s leading to ribbon development. In 1959, a fire destroyed the Opononi Hotel and Opononi Store. Opononi became famous throughout New Zealand in the summer of 1955 and 1956 due to the exploits of a dolphin called Opo. • Pākanae Marae and Maraeroa meeting house • Kōkōhuia or Ōmāpere Marae and Te Whakarongotai meeting house (also affiliated with Ngāti Te Pou) In October 2020, the Government committed $470,000 from the Provincial Growth Fund to upgrade Pakanae Marae, creating 11 jobs. ==Demographics==

Statistics New Zealand describes Opononi as a rural settlement. It covers 2.3% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 52.7 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 51 people (19.3%) aged under 15 years, 30 (11.4%) aged 15 to 29, 99 (37.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 84 (31.8%) aged 65 or older. Waipoua Forest statistical area Waipoua Forest contains Opononi and Ōmāpere, and covers . It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2. Waipoua Forest had a population of 1,305 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 90 people (7.4%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 270 people (26.1%) since the 2013 census. There were 651 males, 651 females and 3 people of other genders in 546 dwellings. 3.0% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 52.7 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 225 people (17.2%) aged under 15 years, 138 (10.6%) aged 15 to 29, 564 (43.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 375 (28.7%) aged 65 or older. ==Education==

The first school was the Pakia Native School which opened in 1874 under the Native School Act. In 1912 the school was renamed Omapere. Opononi did not have a school of its own and children either went to Pakia/Omapere School, or after it opened in 1909, to Pakanae School. In 1974, the newly built Opononi Area School replaced both. Opononi Area School is a coeducational composite (years 1–15) school with a roll of students. == References ==