Okaiawa

19th century

Frank Bremer, a Taranaki farmer originally from Adelaide, purchased a property in Okaiawa in 1890. His farm covered 284 acres of freehold land and 316 of leasehold land. He became a breeder of high-class draught horses which won several races, was president of the local racing club, and milked about 100 cows.^[7]

In the 1880s, Thomas Joll established a chain of private dairy factories, based in Okaiawa.^[8] He opened a creamery three kilometres from the settlement in 1894.^[7] The chain became a cooperative when Joll died in 1908, and Joll was commemorated with a marble bust at the local park named in his honour.^[8]

By 1908, the township had a hotel, a store, a butchery, and electricity. The farming community was growing, and the school roll was averaging about 92 children. A Māori Methodist minister was living in the township.^[7]

20th century

Eleven local men died in World War I and dozens of others served in the war.^[9] A roll of honour was unveiled at the school in 1919 for two ex-pupils who died and 39 other ex-pupils who served.^[10] Another roll of honour was unveiled at the local St Aidan's Anglican Church the following year.^[11] A memorial statue was unveiled at Joll Park on Anzac Day 1922 for the town's fallen soldiers.^[9][12] An individual memorial was erected at Okaiawa Cemetery for Frank Williams, one of the men who died.^[9]

By 1922, 198 students were enrolled in Okaiawa School. At an annual school picnic, parents were reminded to send their children to school "regularly" to keep attendance high.^[12]

Three local men died in World War II, and 52 others served in the war. A memorial feature on a brick feature at the school pool was unveiled by Minister of Internal Affairs William Bodkin on 10 March 1952, listing all the men's names.^[13]

Okaiawa School celebrated its 75th Jubilee in 1958.^[14] By this stage, many students were travelling to Manaia High School for secondary education.^[15]

21st century

The New Zealand Government proposed merging Okaiawa School with Manaia School in 2004.^[16] Okaiawa School closed permanently in 2009.^[9] The World War II plaque at the school was moved to a new wall of river stones at Okaiawa Cemetery in 2009.^[13] The location of the school's World War I memorial is unknown.^[9]

Okaiawa statistical area

Okaiawa statistical area, which also includes Ohawe, covers 102.14 km² (39.44 sq mi)^[20] and had an estimated population of 1,340 as of June 2025,^[21] with a population density of 13 people per km².

Okaiawa had a population of 1,248 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 66 people (5.6%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 114 people (10.1%) since the 2013 census. There were 645 males, 597 females, and 3 people of other genders in 465 dwellings.^[24] 2.4% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 40.0 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 264 people (21.2%) aged under 15 years, 201 (16.1%) aged 15 to 29, 591 (47.4%) aged 30 to 64, and 192 (15.4%) aged 65 or older.^[22]

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 85.8% European (Pākehā); 24.5% Māori; 2.6% Pasifika; 1.7% Asian; 0.5% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 3.4% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.8%, Māori by 5.5%, Samoan by 0.2%, and other languages by 3.8%. No language could be spoken by 1.4% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.5%. The percentage of people born overseas was 9.1, compared with 28.8% nationally.^[22]

Religious affiliations were 33.4% Christian, 0.5% Hindu, 1.2% Māori religious beliefs, 0.2% Buddhist, 0.5% New Age, and 0.7% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 52.6%, and 10.8% of people did not answer the census question.^[22]

Of those at least 15 years old, 120 (12.2%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 594 (60.4%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 270 (27.4%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $44,100, compared with $41,500 nationally. 93 people (9.5%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 546 (55.5%) full-time, 150 (15.2%) part-time, and 24 (2.4%) unemployed.^[22]