We enjoyed out visit to this historic, picturesque township 36 km north-east of Kaitāia, on Doubtless Bay. The settlement and Taipā coast had a combined population of 1,587 in 2001.
Mangonui became a favoured haven for whalers from the early 1800s. The township then grew as a trading port where kauri logs were milled and prepared for export. Farming started slowly too. By the 1860s Mangonui was the administrative centre for the far north with government offices, hotels, a hospital, and coastal shipping links with Auckland.
Gum digging and flax milling boosted growth in the 19th century, but after 1900 kauri and gum business shifted west to Kaitāia. The administrative centre followed in 1918 and the hospital in 1934. Disappearance of the old industries and better roading led to Mangonui’s decline as a coastal shipping port in the 1950s.
We had a delicious lunch of fish and chips by the Bay before we went for a walk following a history trail around the town to see some of the beautiful old buildings.
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