Trounson Kauri Park is a 450-hectare forest reserve restoration project. It has been managed
as a 'mainland island 'since 1995 and is home to several threatened species, such as North Island
brown kiwi.
History
The Northland area including the Waipoua
valley has a long history of Maori occupation. Local Maori tradition, the records of early European explorers and archaeological evidence all show that the area in the past supported a large and thriving community, based on fishing, shellfish gathering, forest produce and a sophisticated agriculture.
The arrival of Europeans resulted in a massive exploitation of the kauri
forests, which was accelerated by the demand for cleared farmland. The forests of Waipoua were at
first saved from destruction by their remoteness. Waipoua itself was purchased by the Crown in 1876 but
logging continued through the 1940s when a campaign against logging resulted
in the creation of the 9,105 hectare Waipoua Sanctuary in 1952. Protective measures over other kauri
forests gradually
increased until 1987 when all remaining Crown kauri forests came under the
protection of the Department of Conservation.
Trouson Kauri Park's history is slightly different. In 1890, when the timber industry threatened to virtually wipe out Northland kauri forests 3.34 hectares was initially set aside by the Government of the day. An early settler and saw miller James Trounson added a further 22 hectares to this initial gesture.
Following the establishment of a Scenic Preservation Club, Mr Trounson offered to sell another
364 hectares of forest land to the Government for the value of the trees alone. It was officially
opened as Trounson Kauri Park in 1921.
