Northland historical overview
Northland/Te Taitokerau contains a wealth of significant historic heritage and in a historic and cultural sense is rightly considered the 'Cradle of the nation'.
Map of recorded archaeological and
historic sites in Northland.
Click to view larger (JPG, 69K)
There are approximately 12,000 recorded archaeological and historic sites in Northland, of which approximately 3000 are on public conservation land managed by the Northland Conservancy.
There are a range of different site types, from middens to Mission Stations, and prehistoric gardening systems to World War II gun emplacements.
For a brief overview of the history and historic heritage values present in Northland, see
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Prehistoric Taitokerau - Find out more about one of the most densely populated regions of New Zealand before European colonisation.
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European "discovery" and colonisation - Learn about European colonisation of Northland in the centuries after Abel Tasman first sighted the northern coast in 1643.
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Settlement and industry - tells you how the early timber industry exploited the massive kauri that dominated Northland forests and how widespread industry developed in the first half of the 19th century.
(excerpted from the Northland Historic Functional Strategy, DOC Northland 1999).
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