Wainuiomata occupies a basin at the headwaters of the Wainuiomata River, between the eastern Hutt hills and the Orongorongo Range. There is little evidence of Māori occupation of the area before 1840, probably because it was covered in dense forest and large swamps. The 1855 Wairarapa earthquake raised these swamps and encouraged European settlement. The earliest settlements grew up around the river, where timber mills supplied the Wellington region when the demand was great in the 1850s and '60s. Today this area is known as "The Village" or "Homedale". The isolated location of Wainuiomata proved a problem for early settlers. Narrow hill-routes into the settlement were the only access during the 1850s and 1860s. By the end of the 19th century there were two roads in the valley: Main Road and Fitzherbert Road (known locally as "Swamp Road").