page_title: Whangārei Harbour
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Whangārei Harbour / History
caption_attribution_description: Marsden Point Oil Refinery, New Zealand, viewed from atop Mt Manaia near the Whangarei Heads.
context_page_description: Whangārei Harbour is a large harbour on the east coast of the North Island of New Zealand.
  The harbour stretches from Whangārei City, and the termination of the Hātea River, south east around the Onerahi peninsula and out to the Pacific Ocean at Whangārei Heads.
  Its Māori-language name is Whangārei-te-rerenga-parāoa, meaning "the place where whales gather". Another traditional name for this area is Whangarei-o-te-tohorā – "waiting for the breastbone of whales".
context_section_description: Many early settlers and Maori used the harbour as a form of transport, and this played a large role in the establishment of Whangārei, and many of the industries in the area. These include Portland Cement Works, Marsden Point Oil Refinery and for the extraction of coal from Kamo.
  From 1911–1933 the  Onerahi Branch Railway crossed the upper reaches of the harbour to provide rail access to a new wharf built at Onerahi, as the existing wharf in the town basin was unreachable for some craft. This further promoted the harbour as an important feature to the development of Whangārei.
  In 2006, two marine reserves were opened in Whangārei Harbour. Whangarei Harbour Marine Reserve is located in an inter-tidal area between Onerahi and Waikaraka, and another around Motukaroro Island, at Reotahi, Whangārei Heads. The Motukaroro Island reserve is popular with snorkelers due to the large amount of marine life seen there.
caption: The Marsden Point Oil Refinery at the entrance of Whangārei Harbour
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