Manawatu-Horowhenua is an extensive area of low land situated on the western side of the southern part of the North Island. It extends some 90 miles north-south but is little more than 25 miles at its greatest width. It is bounded on the east and south by the Tararuas and on the west by the Tasman Sea; its northern limit is less distinct, but the line of the Rangitikei River has been chosen for present purposes. Included within these limits are the counties of Kiwitea, Pohangina, Oroua, Manawatu, Kairanga, and Horowhenua, which, with their boroughs and cities, form the basic units for the collection of statistics. Palmerston North (urban area population 1961, 43,185) is the principal town of the region which in 1961 registered a total population of 96,225 (3·98 per cent of the national total), 4·44 per cent of which was classified as Maori.
The Manawatu-Horowhenua region has a certain duality evident in most aspects of its geography. Although Waikanae and, especially, Otaki were important Maori settlements where European influences soon penetrated (the church of Rangiatea is 110 years old), the Horowhenua remained largely unsettled until the opening of the Wellington-Manawatu Railway in 1886. To the north of the Manawatu River European settlement was much earlier and sooner completed. Foxton was an important river-mouth port by the 1840s and by the 1850s some of the scrub country of the lower Rangitikei had been occupied by graziers. Most of the land, however, was covered with bush or swamp and its settlement was organised either by the Government, as at Palmerston North, or, more commonly, by settlement companies and associations such as the Manchester Co. (Feilding, Halcombe, Ashhurst), the Douglas Co. (Rongotea), and the Hutt Small Farms Association (Sanson). By 1880 the majority of the new settlements were linked by rail with Foxton and Wanganui and a basis for their prosperity had been laid.
The physiography of the region serves to emphasise and, in part, explain the distinction between the northern (Manawatu) and southern (Horowhenua) parts which has been evident from the earliest period of settlement. Immediately south of Paekakariki the ranges rise boldly from the sea rendering access from the Wellington region difficult. In the vicinity of Queen Elizabeth Park (Paekakariki) the coastal plain has developed sufficiently to display the characteristic morphological features which lie parallel to the coast in bands that widen to the north. Behind the strand is the sand-dune country which intermingles with the adjacent peat area and dams the small streams. At Levin, consequently, dunes of considerable height (288 ft) rise above Lakes Horowhenua, Waitawa, and Papaitonga. Between the peat areas and the foothills of the range, which display cliffing associated with the earlier coastline, are small areas of sedimentary deposits (Otaki Sandstone) and piedmont fans which are preferred as the sites for farmhouses and buildings. Further north these two elements dominate the landscape. In the vicinity of Otaki, for example, the large fan of the Otaki River provides an extensive area of level country underlain by gravels, and at Levin an expanse of Otaki Sandstone gives rise to a landscape distinctive for its square-sided valleys which are hidden in the apparently flat surface, and to soils which are noted for their greater fertility.
All of these land forms are found to the north of the Manawatu River. At Himatangi the sand-dune region obtains a width of approximately 10 miles, the dunes lying like long fingers laid in the direction of the prevailing north-west wind. At Moutoa the peat and swamp zone attains its greatest extent, while the gravels of the Manawatu underlie most of the Oroua-Kairanga districts. At the Manawatu Gorge the ranges descend to a low saddle where Tertiary sediments overlie the basement of older greywackes. Between the ranges (which continue beyond the gorge and form the Ruahines) and the Rangitikei River, a new morphological element appears in the form of three low anticlinal domes, composed of sedimentary sandstones of the Hawera Series, pitching to the south-west, their axes arranged parallel to the main ranges. They give rise to the lovely “downland” associated with the Halcombe, Feilding, and Kimbolton districts. This is sheep country par excellence, for which the Manawatu is justly famous, and which serves to distinguish it again from the Horowhenua.
The “downland” areas give an impression of trim, close-cropped prosperity, an impression supported by the density of sheep and breeding ewes per acre of occupied land. Fat-lamb production and the breeding of stud sheep are the main activities. By contrast, the flat plain of the Manawatu and Oroua Rivers is favoured for dairy cattle, though sheep are not excluded. South of the Manawatu River it is rash to speak of sheep or dairying areas. The lower slopes of the ranges and the piedmont fans carry sheep, as does much of the Otaki Sandstone country; but near Levin dairying is found, while on the Otaki fan and to the south, the production of milk for the Wellington market becomes the predominant activity. The tendency is for sheep to be more important to the north, and dairy cattle to the south. The statistics support this statement; in Kiwitea, Pohangina, and Oroua Counties the proportion of dairy cows in milk per 100 sheep shorn does not rise above four, in Manawatu and Kairanga Counties it lies between 11 and 12; in Horowhenua County it reaches 16. The extensive belt of sand-dune country poses the greatest difficulties for farming, much of it being extensively or even poorly farmed. Other parts, however, have been well developed, and some areas have been afforested, especially at Waitarere. To improve this land it is necessary to stabilise those dunes close to the strand, to raise the humus content of the soil, and to maintain an adequate supply of moisture and fertilisers for the new pastures which are built around subterranean and strawberry clovers.
Much of the commerical activity and some of the industrial establishments of the region are closely related to farming life: the large freezing works at Longburn and at Feilding, which has also important weekly stock sales; the dairy factories at Otaki, Kuku, Levin, and Bunnythorpe; in particular, the retailing in Palmerston North's Rangitikei Street, which is occupied largely by stock and station firms and the suppliers of agricultural machinery and farm-building materials. The industrial activity of the region displays the increasing interdependence of agriculture and manufacturing, with the production of stainless-steel tanks, machine parts and repair work, wire netting, and concrete products; and at the same time it displays the general trend towards the diversification of secondary manufacturing. Both at Palmerston North and at Levin, textiles and clothing factories are important, metal manufacturing has developed considerably at Palmerston North, while such small boroughs as Shannon, Foxton, and Otaki have attracted industry, and in townships such as Rongotea, Tokomaru, Halcombe, small manufacturing plants have been established.
The appearance of these affiliated manufacturing plants in the villages around Palmerston North is illustrative of a recent trend associated with the motorisation of society, a trend which, once again, emphasises the distinction between the Manawatu and Horowhenua. As a commercial, industrial, and transport centre, and with the establishment of a university which absorbed the Massey Agricultural College, as an educational and cultural centre, Palmerston North is becoming the focus of the Manawatu, and indeed its expansion as a commercial centre is the principal reason for the stagnation of commercial life in the many townships of the surrounding districts. The increasing daily flow of commuters from Feilding, Bunnythorpe, and Ashhurst is a sign of its expanding influence. The development of Himatangi as a weekend beach settlement is a reflection of the city dwellers' need for recreation. Because of its strategic position on the Main Trunk and in relation to the Manawatu Gorge, Palmerston North is extending its influence beyond the immediate region over a much wider zone. Population figures bear out the increasing significance of the city in regional and national affairs. In 1911 Palmerston North ranked tenth amongst the urban areas of New Zealand; in 1961 it ranked seventh. Outside of the four main centres it is second only to Hamilton.
The strong influence exerted by the Wellington metropolitan area upon the Horowhenua stems from a number of causes. An important part of the capital's milk and fresh-vegetable supplies are drawn from the Otaki and Levin districts. Unfortunately the area of market-garden land at Otaki has been severely reduced during the last decade with the expansion of housing in the borough, the competition between non-agricultural and agricultural land uses being an unwelcome characteristic of increasing metropolitan penetration. Between Paekakariki and Waikanae the poor sand-dune and peat country has been adopted by the beach settlements. Originally they were composed largely of weekend baches, but now they are acquiring a more permanent (part retired, part commuter) population. Evidence of this can be seen in the establishment of a post-primary school, the appearance of a few small factories, and the growing retail centres. The impulses behind the development have been the need for recreational areas on the part of the city dwellers, the attractions of beach and sunshine, and the increasing mobility of the population. Significantly, a greater degree of commercialisation is entering the recreational activities of the settlements, especially with the establishment of motels. Undoubtedly, during the next decade the developments on the Golden Coast, as it is figuratively named, will serve to integrate more closely the future of the southern Horowhenua with that of the Wellington region. Because of the fundamental duality of the Manawatu-Horowhenua, one can reasonably expect the polarisation of the region around the two centres of Wellington and Palmerston North.
During the period 1951–61 the total population of the region increased by 27·76 per cent, a percentage increase above the national figure of 24·46 per cent, the cities and boroughs of the region increasing at a rate more than twice the county rate. The population of Palmerston North city increased by 32·70 per cent during the decade, but Feilding with a 40·39 per cent and Levin with 67·52 per cent displayed the largest increases. In the pastoral sector the number of sheep and lambs shorn has shown a satisfactory rate of development, but an increase in cows in milk has been registered only in the three southern counties. The estimated labour force of the Palmerston North employment district (covering an area somewhat larger than the region) increased from 32,400 in 1953 (April) to 37,600 in 1961 (April). Significantly, the labour force engaged in manufacturing increased by 28·35 per cent during this period, a rate well above the increase of 16·04 per cent in the total labour force. Nevertheless, the importance of the primary industries in the economic life of the region is stressed by the fact that they employ 22·87 per cent of the total labour force, compared with the national percentage of 16·05 per cent.
by Samuel Harvey Franklin, B.COM.GEOG., M.A.(BIRMINGHAM), Senior Lecturer, Geography Department, Victoria University of Wellington.
| Urban Population | |||||
| Town | 1911 | 1936 | 1951 | 1961 |
1961 Maoris |
| Feilding | 3,161 | 4,536 | 5,812 | 8,172 | 289 |
| Foxton | 1,637 | 1,544 | 2,226 | 2,628 | 257 |
| Palmerston North City | 10,991 | 22,202 | 30,894 | 41,014 | 723 |
| Shannon | 752 | 965 | 1,042 | 1,398 | 234 |
| Levin | 1,608 | 2,658 | 4,736 | 7,934 | 266 |
| Otaki | 274 | 1,744 | 2,496 | 2,973 | 436 |
| Total | 18,423 | 33,649 | 47,206 | 64,119 | 2,205 |
| Land Occupation | ||
| County | Average Area of Holdings 1960 | Area Occupied 1960 |
| acres | acres | |
| Kiwitea | 477 | 189,681 |
| Pohangina | 452 | 106,211 |
| Oroua | 201 | 114,748 |
| Manawatu | 205 | 155,524 |
| Kairanga | 165 | 100,896 |
| Horowhenua | 246 | 239,466 |
| County Population | |||||
| County | 1911 | 1936 | 1951 | 1961 |
1961 Maoris |
| Kiwitea | 2,781 | 2,442 | 2,298 | 2,339 | 100 |
| Pohangina | 1,797 | 1,350 | 1,318 | 1,199 | 27 |
| Oroua | 3,588 | 3,886 | 4,009 | 4,559 | 418 |
| Manawatu | 4,461 | 5,283 | 6,114 | 7,288 | 403 |
| Kairanga | 3,877 | 5,358 | 5,666 | 6,160 | 51 |
| Horowhenua | 5,038 | 7,278 | 8,683 | 10,561 | 1,073 |
| Total county | 21,542 | 25,597 | 28,088 | 32,106 | 2,072 |
| Total region | 39,965 | 59,246 | 75,294 | 96,225 | 4,277 |
| Cows in Milk | ||||
| County | Cows in Milk | Dairy Cows in Milk per 100 Sheep Shorn 1960 | ||
| 1921–22 | 1951–52 | 1959–60 | ||
| Kiwitea | 6,028 | 5,885 | 3,526 | 0·74 |
| Pohangina | 3,888 | 3,827 | 2,745 | 1·19 |
| Oroua | 8,941 | 11,475 | 8,958 | 2·60 |
| Manawatu | 17,159 | 28,886 | 29,082 | 11·93 |
| Kairanga | 16,261 | 21,423 | 21,091 | 11·18 |
| Horowhenua | 16,666 | 35,275 | 36,496 | 16·18 |
| Total | 68,943 | 106,771 | 101,898 | .. |