Lucas Creek

File:Lucas Creek (1854).jpg

Lucas Creek is an arm of the Upper Waitematā Harbour.{{cite web|url=https://www.lawa.org.nz/explore-data/auckland-region/estuaries/waitemat%C4%81-harbour-upper/lucas-creek/ |title=Lucas Creek |work=LAWA |publisher=Auckland Council |access-date=15 November 2023}} The creek begins as a freshwater stream, flowing south-west from Fairview Heights,{{Cite web |url=https://gazetteer.linz.govt.nz/place/26969 |title=Lucas Creek |website=New Zealand Gazetteer |publisher=Land Information New Zealand|access-date=15 November 2023}} The Lucas Creek Waterfall is found on a section of the stream near Gills Road in Albany,{{cite web|url=https://waterfalls.co.nz/waterfalls-by-region/80-new-zealand-waterfalls/north-island/auckland/305-lucas-creek-waterfall |title=Lucas Creek Waterfall |website=New Zealand Waterfalls |access-date=15 November 2023}} After flowing through Albany, Lucas Creek is joined by the Ōteha Stream.{{Cite web |url=https://gazetteer.linz.govt.nz/place/34509 |title=Oteha Stream |website=New Zealand Gazetteer |publisher=Land Information New Zealand|access-date=15 November 2023}} After widening to a tidal inlet and passing the suburbs of Lucas Heights and Schnapper Rock, the creek is joined by a second tributary, Te Wharau Creek, at Greenhithe.{{Cite web |url=https://gazetteer.linz.govt.nz/place/43348 |title=Te Wharau Creek |website=New Zealand Gazetteer |publisher=Land Information New Zealand|access-date=15 November 2023}} The creek enters the Upper Waitematā Harbour between Pāremoremo and Greenhithe, opposite to Herald Island. Some sources describe the freshwater section as the Lucas Stream, and the estuary as the Lucas Creek.{{cite journal|title=Sedimentation patterns and catchment use change recorded in the sediments of a shallow tidal creek, Lucas Creek, Upper Waitemata Harbour, New Zealand |first1=T. M. |last1=Hume |first2=M. S. |last2=McGlone |date=1986 |journal=New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research |volume=20 |number=4 |pages=677-687 |doi=10.1080/00288330.1986.9516188}}

During the Last Glacial Maximum (known locally as the Ōtira Glaciation) when sea-levels were significantly lower, Lucas Creek was an entirely freshwater river that flowed into the Waitematā River (modern-day Upper Waitematā Harbour). Once sea levels rose between 12,000 and 7,000 years ago, the lower Lucas Creek was flooded, becoming an estuary.{{Cite web| title = Estuary origins |url=https://niwa.co.nz/te-kuwaha/tools-and-resources/ng%C4%81-waihotanga-iho-the-estuary-monitoring-toolkit-for-iwi/estuary-origins | publisher = National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research| access-date = 3 November 2021}} The first marine sediments are recorded as being deposited approximately 6,500 years ago. The Lucas Creek and wider Ōteha Valley area is predominantly formed from clay, The banks of the Lucas Creek were historically kauri-dominated forests.{{sfn|King, R. E.|1984|pp=9}} By the mid-19th century, the area had developed into a mānuka and fern-dominated scrubland.{{sfn|King, R. E.|1984|pp=15}}{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=9}}

The traditional Tāmaki Māori name for the creek was either {{lang|mi|Ōkahukura}} ("Of Kahukura"),{{cite report|url=https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/FileAPI/proposal/NSP000039/Applicants-proposal-documents/7a1333716c/NSP000039-NCI-Vol-2-AEE-Appendix-F-Cultural-Values-Assessments.pdf |title=Cultural Impact Assessment for the NZ Transport Agency's Northern Corridor Improvements |first=Fiona |last=McKenzie |work=Manuhiri Kaitiaki Charitable Trust |publisher=NZ Transport Agency |date=June 2016 |access-date=30 June 2023}}{{cite report|url=https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/UnitaryPlanDocuments/pc-66-appendix-11-archaeological-assessment.pdf |title=57 and 57A Schnapper Rock Road: archaeological assessment |first=Ella |last=Ussher |date=6 August 2021|publisher=CFG Heritage |access-date=15 November 2023}} or {{lang|mi|Kaipātiki}} ("Stream for Eating flounder"){{cite q|Q58677091}} Māori settlement of the Auckland Region began around the 13th or 14th centuries.{{Cite web|url=https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/about-auckland-council/how-auckland-council-works/local-boards/all-local-boards/puketapapa-local-board/docsheritagestudies/waikowhai-coast-heritage-study.pdf |title=Waikōwhai Coast Heritage Study |first1=Elizabeth |last1=Pishief |first2=Brendan |last2=Shirley|date=August 2015|publisher=Auckland Council|access-date=14 February 2023}}{{cite report|url=https://nzta.govt.nz/assets/projects/penlink/docs/penlink-cultural-and-environmental-context-cultural-environmental-design-framework.pdf |title=Penlink Cultural & Environmental Design Framework: Penlink Cultural and Environmental Context |author=Boffa Miskell |publisher=Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency |access-date=4 July 2023}} The North Shore was settled by Tāmaki Māori, including people descended from the Tainui migratory canoe and ancestors of figures such as Taikehu and Peretū.{{cite report|url=https://www.epa.govt.nz/assets/FileAPI/proposal/NSP000039/Applicants-proposal-documents/7a1333716c/NSP000039-NCI-Vol-2-AEE-Appendix-F-Cultural-Values-Assessments.pdf |title=Cultural Values Assessment Report to New Zealand Transport Agency for Northern Corridor Improvements Project (NCI) |author=Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki |publisher=NZ Transport Agency |date=April 2016 |access-date=30 June 2023}} Many of the early Tāmaki Māori people of the North Shore identified as Ngā Oho,{{cite report|url=https://www.waitangitribunal.govt.nz/assets/E79-CVA-Te-Kawerau-Iwi-Tribunal-Authority.pdf |title=Cultural Values Assessment for America's Cup 36 - Wynyard and Hobson Planning Application |first=Sarah |last=Mossman |work=Te Kawerau Iwi Tribunal Authority |date=August 2018 |access-date=30 June 2023}} and the Lucas Creek has significance to modern iwi including Ngāti Manuhiri, Te Kawerau ā Maki and Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara.{{cite report|url=https://www.govt.nz/assets/Documents/OTS/Ngati-Whatua-o-Kaipara/Ngati-Whatua-o-Kaipara-Deed-of-Settlement-Attachments-9-Sep-2011.pdf |title=Deed of Settlement: Attachments |author1=Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara |author2=The Crown |date=2011 |access-date=30 June 2023}} The poor clay soils of the area were not suitable for Māori traditional gardening techniques, but the creek was a good source for eels, crayfish and flounder.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=11}}

An {{lang|mi|ara}} (traditional path) connected Lucas Creek and the Okura River to the north, which led to Long Bay and the upper Hauraki Gulf. This was used as a portage, where waka could be hauled overland between the two bodies of water, Numerous archaeological sites are found on the banks of the Lucas Creek and the Ōteha valley, because of its importance as a transportation node,{{cite report|url=https://knowledgeauckland.org.nz/media/1737/tr2011-010-north-shore-heritage-thematic-review-vol-1-july-2011.pdf |title=North Shore Heritage - Thematic Review Report Volume 1 |author=Heritage Consultancy Services |publisher=Auckland Council |date=1 July 2011 |isbn=978-1-927169-21-6 |access-date=29 June 2023}} following the ridge line of Lonely Track Road.{{cite report|url=https://www.watercare.co.nz/CMSPages/GetAzureFile.aspx?path=~%5Cwatercarepublicweb%5Cmedia%5Cwatercare-media-library%5Cnorth-harbour2%5Cni_and_nh2_watermain_appendix_i-archaeology.pdf&hash=e383b476f58ac8d11573d5e4e90dd4745a4fb21d86c8efca487e10c685dc2b64 |title=North Harbour 2 Watermain and Northern Interceptor Shared Corridor: Preliminary Archaeological Assessment (Technical Report I) |first1=Charlotte |last1=Judge|first2=Zarah |last2=Burnett|first3=Rod |last3=Clough|date=March 2016|publisher=Watercare Services |access-date=15 November 2023}} This included a kāinga called {{lang|mi|Te Wharemoenanu}} ("The House of Sleep Talking"), located at the southern headland at the mouth of Lucas Creek, at modern Greenhithe.{{cite q|Q58677091}} Other permanently settled kāinga could be found near Te Wharau Creek, including {{lang|mi|Te Karaka}}, located at the Te Wharau Creek headland.

By the first half of the 19th century, the Greenhithe and Lucas Creek areas were one of the most densely settled areas of the North Shore by Tāmaki Māori peoples.{{cite report|url=https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/UnitaryPlanDocuments/pc-59-appendix-n-archaeological-report.pdf |title=473 Albany Highway, Albany: Archaeological Assessment |first1=Doug |last1=Gaylard |first2=Rod |last2=Clough |work=Clough & Associates |publisher=Auckland Council |date=March 2020 |access-date=17 July 2023}} 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.{{cite report|url=http://www.cfgheritage.com/15_0654longbayentrance.pdf |title=Long Bay Regional Park Northern Entrance, archaeological investigations (HNZPTA authority 2016/575) |date=30 July 2018 |first1=Danielle |last1=Trilford |first2=Matthew |last2=Campbell |publisher=CFG Heritage Ltd. |access-date=12 July 2023}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.govt.nz/assets/Documents/OTS/Ngati-Manuhiri/Ngati-Manuhiri-Deed-of-Settlement-21-May-2011.pdf |title=Deed of Settlement of Historical Claims |author1=Ngāti Manuhiri |author2=The Crown|date=21 May 2011|publisher=New Zealand Government|access-date=18 May 2022}} When people returned in greater numbers to the Auckland Region in the mid-1830s, Te Kawerau ā Maki focused settlement at Te Henga / Bethells Beach.{{sfn|Taua|2009|pp=40}}

File:-View of upper wharf and Albany Bridge, Lucas Creek, from homestead, 1897- (48753024612) (cropped).jpg

The first European visitors to Lucas Creek were predominantly kauri loggers in the early 1840s.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=21-22}} The Crown purchased Lucas Creek from Māori as a part of the Mahurangi Block, in 1841.{{sfn|Dunmore, John|2001|pp=3}}{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=15}} Early settler Daniel Clucas, the namesake of the creek, arrived in Auckland in the early 1840s and established a flax mill along the upper reaches of the creek near modern-day Albany.{{cite report|url=https://knowledgeauckland.org.nz/media/1741/tr2011-010-north-shore-heritage-thematic-review-vol-2-parts-6plus-july-2011.pdf |title=North Shore heritage – North Shore area studies and scheduled items list: volume 2 parts 6+ |first1=Heike |last1=Lutz |first2=Theresa |last2=Chan |work=Heritage Consultancy Services |publisher=Auckland Council |date=2011 |access-date=7 July 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230201094607/https://knowledgeauckland.org.nz/media/1741/tr2011-010-north-shore-heritage-thematic-review-vol-2-parts-6plus-july-2011.pdf |archive-date=1 February 2023}} Early maps variously labelled the creek as Clucas Creek, or Lucas Creek.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=15}} Clucas and his wife left the area in 1846, having struggled to make a living in the isolated area.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=15}} While the kauri logging industry finished early in the 1840s, gum digging soon after by itinerant diggers became a major industry, and one of the major camps in the area was established at Schnapper Rock on the banks of the Lucas Creek.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=21-22}}{{sfn|King, R. E.|1984|pp=9}} The area also became known for illicit moonshine operations during the 1860s and 1870s, which led to the naming of one of the bays of the creek, Whisky Cove.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=28}}

By the 1850s, a village called Lucas Creek had begun to be established in the upper section of the creek (later renamed Albany in 1890),{{cite q|Q120520385|pp=37}} joined by a community established in the mid-1860s by Thomas and Mary Forgham, later known as Greenhithe. In the early 1870s, the first makeshift wooden bridge was constructed across the Lucas Creek, near the Lucas Creek village.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=30}} The gum digging industry thrived until the 1880s, after which fruit growing became an important trade for the area.{{cite web|url=https://www.nzgeo.com/stories/edge-city/ |title=Edge City |first=Liz |last=Mahoney |date=January 1997 |website=New Zealand Geographic |access-date=15 November 2023}}

River transport along the Lucas Creek was the main transportation for Albany and Greenhithe in the 19th century. By 1915, roads on the North Shore had improved enough that river traffic had begun to lessen, and in 1930 the Kaipatiki ferry to Albany ceased operation.{{sfn|Harris, Alison|Stevenson, Robert|2002|pp=79}}

While Lucas Creek during much of the 20th century had minimal sedimentation, this increased in the 1990s, when areas such as Albany on the banks of the river were developed for suburban housing.{{cite journal|title=Effect and timing of increased freshwater runoff into sheltered harbor environments around Auckland City, New Zealand |last1=Hayward |first1=Bruce W. |author-link1=Bruce Hayward |last2=Grenfell |first2=Hugh R. |last3=Sabaa |first3=Ashwaq T |last4=Morley |first4=Margaret S. |author-link4=Margaret S. Morley |last5=Horrocks |first5=Mark |date=2006 |journal=Estuaries and Coasts |volume=29 |pages=165–182 |doi=10.1007/BF02781987}}

File:Lucas Creek Waterfall.jpg|Lucas Creek Waterfall

File:Yachts Moored at Lucas Creek 01.jpg|Yachts moored at the mouth of the Lucas Creek

{{Reflist}}

{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFDunmore, John2001}}

{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFKing, R. E.1984}}

{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFHarris, AlisonStevenson, Robert2002}}

• {{cite q|Q123416573}}
• {{Cite q|Q123416976}}
• {{cite q|Q123424599}}
• {{cite book |last=Taua |first=Te Warena |chapter=He Kohikohinga Kōrero mō Hikurangi |pages=23–48 |editor-last1=Macdonald |editor-first1=Finlay |editor-link1=Finlay Macdonald (editor) |editor-last2=Kerr |editor-first2=Ruth |title=West: The History of Waitakere |publisher=Random House |date=2009 |isbn=9781869790080}}

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{{Upper Harbour Local Board Area}}

Category:Estuaries of the Auckland Region

Category:Rivers of Auckland

Category:Upper Harbour Local Board Area

Category:Waitematā Harbour catchment

Category:Wetlands of the Auckland Region