Schnapper Rock

The name refers to the solid rock landing place used by early colonial residents of Auckland who travelled along Lucas Creek. The name schnapper is a variation of snapper, which people believed was the correct spelling in the mid-19th century, and refers to the good fishing found in the area.{{sfn|King, R. E.|1984|pp=41}}

Schnapper Rock is an area of the northwestern North Shore in Auckland, New Zealand. It is located on the eastern bank of the upper reaches of the Lucas Creek, an estuarial arm of the Upper Waitematā Harbour. The creek forms the suburb's western border, while Albany Highway acts as the suburb's border to the east.{{Cite web |url=https://gazetteer.linz.govt.nz/place/5295 |title=Schnapper Rock |website=New Zealand Gazetteer |publisher=Land Information New Zealand|access-date=20 November 2023}} Te Wharau Creek is a tributary of the Lucas Creek, which is found to the southwest of the suburb, between Schnapper Rock and 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=20 November 2023}} The highest point in the suburb is the hill to the south of the junction between Kittiwake Road and Schnapper Rock Road, which reaches a height of {{convert|85|m}} above sea level.

Much of the Albany area is formed from Early Miocene Waitemata Group sandstone and mudstone, with areas of conglomerate rock called Albany Conglomerate.{{Cite book| publisher = Engineers Australia and Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy| isbn = 978-1-925100-16-7| pages = 195–202| last1 = Roberts| first1 = RC| last2 = Hawes| first2 = OJ| last3 = Crossen| first3 = SW| last4 = Strachan| first4 = LJ| title = 15th Australasian Tunnelling Conference 2014: Underground Space - Solutions for the Future| chapter = Underground construction challenges associated with the Albany conglomerate in Auckland| location = Barton, ACT| date = 2014}} 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}}

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,{{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 |first1=Fiona |last1=McKenzie|publisher=NZ Transport Agency |date=June 2016 |access-date=30 June 2023}} 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,{{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}} 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, 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}}

The warrior Maki migrated from the Kāwhia Harbour to his ancestral home in the Auckland Region, likely sometime in the 17th century. Maki conquered and unified many the Tāmaki Māori tribes as Te Kawerau ā Maki, including those of the North Shore.{{Cite web| date=December 2018 | title = Waitākere Ranges Heritage Area |url=https://www.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz/arts-culture-heritage/heritage-walks-places/docswaitakererangesheritagearea/waitakere-ranges-heritage-area-local-parks-design-guide.pdf | publisher = Auckland Council| access-date = 28 June 2021}}{{Cite book| editor-first=James| editor-last=Northcote-Bade |title=West Auckland Remembers, Volume 1 |year=1990 |publisher=West Auckland Historical Society |isbn=0-473-00983-8 |chapter=Nga Tohu o Waitakere: the Maori Place Names of the Waitakere River Valley and its Environs; their Background History and an Explanation of their Meaning |first1=Graeme |last1=Murdoch |page=13-14}} After Maki's death, his sons settled different areas of his lands, creating new hapū. His younger son Maraeariki settled the North Shore and Hibiscus Coast, who based himself at the head of the Ōrewa River. Maraeariki's daughter Kahu succeeded him, and she is the namesake of the North Shore, {{lang|mi|Te Whenua Roa o Kahu}} ("The Greater Lands of Kahu"),{{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}}{{cite web|url=https://restorehb.org.nz/resources-matauranga-maori/ |title=He taonga o te rohe |first=Mel |last=Whaanga |publisher=Restore Hibiscus & Bays |date=March 2022 |access-date=30 June 2023}} Many of the iwi of the North Shore, including Ngāti Manuhiri, Ngāti Maraeariki, Ngāti Kahu, Ngāti Poataniwha, Ngāi Tai ki Tāmaki and Ngāti Whātua, can trace their lineage to Kahu.{{Cite web|last=Ngāi Tai Ki Tāmaki and the Trustees of the Ngāi Tai Ki Tāmaki Trust and the Crown|date=7 November 2015|title=Deed of settlement schedule documents|url=https://www.govt.nz/assets/Documents/OTS/Ngai-Tai-ki-Tamaki/Ngai-Tai-ki-Tamaki-Documents-Schedule-Nov-2015.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=31 October 2021|website=NZ Government|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200213154038/https://www.govt.nz/assets/Documents/OTS/Ngai-Tai-ki-Tamaki/Ngai-Tai-ki-Tamaki-Documents-Schedule-Nov-2015.pdf |archive-date=13 February 2020}}

By the first half of the 19th century, the mouth of the Lucas Creek to the southwest of Albany was 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 Tāmaki Māori 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}}

The Schnapper Rock area was a part of the Mahurangi Block, which was purchased by the New Zealand Government in 1841.{{sfn|King, R. E.|1984|pp=15}} While kauri logging was one of the first industries in the area, the supply of kauri was exhausted by the early 1840s. By the late 1840s, kauri gum digging had become a more prominent industry for the Lucas Creek area. Itinerant gum diggers would scour the area for kauri resin to sell at stores, including one located at Schnapper Rock, which was established in the late 1840s.{{sfn|King, R. E.|1984|pp=21-22}}{{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}} By 1864, the area began to be subdivided into smaller lots for farmers and residents.

The area remained rural until the mid-20th century. After the opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge in 1959, larger farms began to be subdivided into smaller farmlets. The semi-rural character of the area remained until the 1990s.{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44333018 |title=Call to halt road plan |work=North Harbour News |page=1 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=7 December 1995 |access-date=20 November 2023}}

North Shore Memorial Park was opened in 1974.{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44311003 |title=Paupers' graves - just in case. |work=North Shore Times Advertiser |page=3 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=29 March 2001 |access-date=20 November 2023}} It is a cemetery run by Auckland Council sited on {{convert|90|acres|ha|order=flip}}.

The first references to Schnapper Rock as a suburb come from the early 2000s;{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44262645 |title=First impressions count. |work=North Shore Times Advertiser |page=12 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=8 February 2002|access-date=20 November 2023}} prior to this it was considered a part of Albany.{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44264233 |title=Speed signs come down. |work=North Shore Times Advertiser |page=2 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=8 February 1994|access-date=20 November 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44345653 |title=Nearing completion. |work=North Shore Times Advertiser |page=2 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=24 May 1994|access-date=20 November 2023}} The name was name chosen by property developers for the area, and already had strong associations with the North Shore Memorial Park and crematorium.{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44278646 |title=Sign is leaving mourners confused. |work=North Shore Times Advertiser |page=5 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=30 October 2001|access-date=20 November 2023}} It was officially recognised as a suburb by the New Zealand Gazetteer and North Shore City in 2007.{{cite web|url=https://natlib.govt.nz/records/44320019 |title=Suburbs now up to 44. |work=North Shore Times |last=Vickers |first=Lucy |page=13 |publisher=National Library of New Zealand |date=10 July 2008|access-date=20 November 2023}}

From 1876 until 1954, the area was administered by the Waitemata County, a large rural county north and west of the city of Auckland.{{cite book |last1=Reidy |first1=Jade |chapter=How the West Was Run |pages=238–239 |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}} On 1 August 1974, the Waitemata County was dissolved,{{cite book | last1=Adam |first1=Jack | last2=Burgess |first2=Vivien | last3=Ellis | first3=Dawn |title=Rugged Determination: Historical Window on Swanson 1854-2004 |publisher=Swanson Residents and Ratepayers Association Inc. |date=2004 |isbn=0-476-00544-2|pages=38–39}} and Schnapper Rock became a rural area incorporated into Takapuna City.{{cite web|url=https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/local/1976/0005/4.0/whole.html |title=Cities of Takapuna and Waitemata (Upper Harbour Bridge) Empowering Act 1976 |date=27 October 1976 |publisher=New Zealand Government |access-date=13 November 2023}} In 1989, Schnapper Rock was merged into the North Shore City.{{cite web|url=https://teara.govt.nz/en/auckland-places/page-5|first=Margaret |last=McClure|title=Auckland places - The North Shore |website=Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand |date=6 December 2007 |access-date=13 November 2023}} North Shore City was amalgamated into Auckland Council in November 2010.{{Cite journal| doi = 10.26686/pq.v11i4.4572| issn = 2324-1101| volume = 11| issue = 4| last = Blakeley| first = Roger| title = The planning framework for Auckland 'super city': an insider's view| journal = Policy Quarterly| date = 2015| doi-access = free}}

Within the Auckland Council, Schnapper Rock is a part of the Upper Harbour local government area governed by the Upper Harbour Local Board. It is a part of the Albany ward, which elects two councillors to the Auckland Council.

Schnapper Rock covers {{convert|2.21|km2||abbr=on}}{{Cite web|title=Stats NZ Geographic Data Service|url=https://datafinder.stats.govt.nz/data/|at=Statistical Area 2 2023 (generalised)|access-date=26 December 2024}} and had an estimated population of {{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Schnapper Rock|y}} as of {{NZ population data 2023 SA2|||y|y||,}} with a population density of {{Decimals|{{formatnum:{{NZ population data 2023 SA2|Schnapper Rock|y}}|R}}/2.21|0}} people per km².

{{Historical populations|2006|1,431|2013|3,699|2018|3,939|2023|3,867|percentages=pagr|align=left|source={{NZ census 2018|Schnapper Rock (118400)|schnapper-rock|Schnapper Rock}}}}

Schnapper Rock had a population of 3,867 in the 2023 New Zealand census, a decrease of 72 people (−1.8%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 168 people (4.5%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,932 males, 1,926 females and 9 people of other genders in 1,131 dwellings.{{cite web|url=https://explore.data.stats.govt.nz/vis?fs[0]=2023%20Census%2C0%7CTotals%20by%20topic%23CAT_TOTALS_BY_TOPIC%23&pg=0&fc=Variable%20codes&bp=true&snb=9&df[ds]=ds-nsiws-disseminate&df[id]=CEN23_TBT_005&df[ag]=STATSNZ&df[vs]=1.0&dq=doTotal%2Bdo1.118400.2023&ly[rw]=CEN23_TBT_DWD_003|publisher=Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer|access-date=3 October 2024|title=Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses}} 3.6% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 36.6 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 735 people (19.0%) aged under 15 years, 855 (22.1%) aged 15 to 29, 1,941 (50.2%) aged 30 to 64, and 330 (8.5%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 41.3% European (Pākehā); 4.4% Māori; 1.6% Pasifika; 55.2% Asian; 3.4% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.2% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 88.0%, Māori language by 0.9%, Samoan by 0.2%, and other languages by 48.9%. No language could be spoken by 1.6% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.3%. The percentage of people born overseas was 58.9, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 27.1% Christian, 2.4% Hindu, 1.9% Islam, 0.2% Māori religious beliefs, 2.5% Buddhist, 0.2% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.3% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 58.0%, and 6.5% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 1,050 (33.5%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,191 (38.0%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 666 (21.3%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $49,400, compared with $41,500 nationally. 594 people (19.0%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,752 (55.9%) people were employed full-time, 432 (13.8%) were part-time, and 84 (2.7%) were unemployed.{{Cite web|url=https://explore.data.stats.govt.nz/vis?fs[0]=2023%20Census%2C0%7CTotals%20by%20topic%23CAT_TOTALS_BY_TOPIC%23&pg=0&fc=Variable%20codes&bp=true&snb=9&df[ds]=ds-nsiws-disseminate&df[id]=CEN23_TBT_008&df[ag]=STATSNZ&df[vs]=1.0&dq=hq011%2Bhq010%2Bhq009%2Bhq008%2Bhq007%2Bhq006%2Bhq005%2Bhq004%2Bhq003%2Bhq002%2Bhq001%2Bhq000%2Bws1%2Bsp99%2Bra80%2Bra08%2Bra07%2Bra06%2Bra05%2Bra01%2Bra04%2Bra03%2Bra02%2Bra00%2Brb1%2Bls66%2Bls03%2Bls02%2Bls05%2Bls04%2Bls01%2Beg6%2Beg5%2Beg4%2Beg3%2Beg2%2Beg1%2BbiTotal%2Bbi0%2Bbi1%2BasTotalLG%2Bas4%2Bas3%2Bas2%2Bas1%2Bws4%2Bws3%2Bws2%2Bge3%2Bge2%2Bge1%2Brc%2BasMed%2BegTotal%2BlsTotal%2BgeTotal%2BrbTotal%2BraTotal%2BhqTotal%2BibTotal%2Bibmed%2BwsTotal.118400.2013%2B2018%2B2023&to[TIME]=false&ly[rw]=CEN23_TBT_IND_003&ly[cl]=CEN23_YEAR_001|publisher=Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer|access-date=3 October 2024|title=Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses|at=Schnapper Rock (118400)}}

{{Reflist}}{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFKing, R. E.1984}}{{sfn whitelist|CITEREFVerran, David2010}}

• {{cite q|Q123424599 |author1=Harris, Alison |author2=Stevenson, Robert |date=2002}}
• {{Cite q|Q123416976}}
• {{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}}
• {{cite q|Q120520385}}

• {{Wikidata-inline}}
• [https://kura.aucklandlibraries.govt.nz/digital/collection/photos/search/searchterm/Schnapper%20Rock Photographs of Schnapper Rock] held in Auckland Libraries' heritage collections.

{{Upper Harbour Local Board Area}}

Category:Suburbs of Auckland

Category:North Shore, New Zealand

Category:Populated places around the Waitematā Harbour