First published in 1987, this remains one of the most accurate and informative full-length histories of the Hokianga. As one of the areas to be first populated over 600 years before the arrival of Europeans, Lee deals with a vast range of material drawn from careful research of preserved oral records to give insight into early Maori and Pakeha colonisation of the region.
In contrast to other areas settled by Pakeha during the 1800s, the local chiefs controlled – in a political sense – the early settlers to the Hokianga, and dominated the resources of the country on which the newcomers depended for their livelihood. Lee discusses how other factors such as war, religion, missionaries, the flourishing timber and ship-building industries, as well as the relatively high proportion of intermarriage, contribute to our present-day understanding of events that have shaped the communities that surround the harbour.
