History of the Dunedin urban area

Dunedin City of Literature
George O'Brien aspirational drawing of Dunedin from the 1860s, First Church had not yet been built and many other depicted buildings never were.
FounderWilliam Cargill
Built1848

The villages and then city that lay at the head of Otago Harbour never existed in isolation, but have always been a staging ground between inland Otago and the wider world. While Dunedin's current official city limits extend north to Waikouaiti, inland to Middlemarch and south to the Taieri River mouth, this articles focus is the history of the Dunedin urban area, only mentioning Mosgiel, the Otago Peninsula, Port Chalmers and inland Otago for context.

Archaeological evidence shows the first Māori occupation of the wider Dunedin area occurred within decades of their arrival in New Zealand (1280–1320).[1][2] The population at this time was concentrated along the southern coast and they relied on seals and to a lesser extent moa for the bulk of their food.[3] With reduced moa and seal numbers the population slumped. Elsewhere in New Zealand it grew again with the evolution of the horticulture based Classic culture, necessitating fortified villages (pā). However, this culture did not fully spread to the colder southern South Island. In this period there were two Māori settlements in what is now central Dunedin—Ōtepoti and Puketai.

Initially European contact was made by sealers in the 1790s and then whalers, both being focused in the lower harbour around Otakou. Both Ōtepoti and Puketai were abandoned by 1826 reflecting the massive loss of life from measles, population displacements from the Musket Wars and the new economic opportunities provided by Europeans.[4][5][3]

In 1848 the Free Church of Scotland organised two ships to sail to the head of the Otago Harbour and found the colony of Dunedin. Soon after the discovery of gold inland from Dunedin in 1861 led to the new city becoming the New Zealand's main industrial and commercial centre. The University of Otago, the oldest university in New Zealand, was founded in Dunedin in 1869 also as a result of the Gold Rush.[6] The successful export of frozen meat in the 1880s provided an extra impetus to Dunedin's importance and growth. During the 20th century, influence and activity moved away from Dunedin to the North Island.[7] Dunedin then re-branded itself based on its culture, history and proximity to the wildlife of the Otago Peninsula.

  1. ^ Irwin, Geoff; Walrond, Carl (2009-03-04). "When was New Zealand first settled? - The date debate". Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Retrieved 2010-02-14.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bunce2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b West, Jonathan (2018). The Face of Nature: An Environmental History of the Otago Peninsula. Otago University Press. ISBN 9781927322383.
  4. ^ Bathgate 1890.
  5. ^ Entwisle 2005.
  6. ^ Otago, University of. "Our History". www.otago.ac.nz. Retrieved 2018-12-06.
  7. ^ Taonga, New Zealand Ministry for Culture and Heritage Te Manatu. "11. – Otago region – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand". teara.govt.nz. Retrieved 2018-12-06.