History
According to local Māori tradition, the Bay of Plenty was the landing point of several migration canoes that brought Māori settlers to New Zealand. Many of the descendent iwi maintain their traditional homelands in the region. The first recorded European contact in the Bay of Plenty came when James Cook sailed through the bay in 1769. Further reports of European contact are limited prior to the arrival of missionaries in1820. During the 1820s and 1830s, northern iwi (tribes), including Ngā Puhi, invaded the Bay of Plenty during their attempted conquests throughout the North Island. This conflict became known as the Musket Wars.
Confiscated Māori land in the Bay of Plenty deprived local iwi of economic resources (among other things), and also provided land for expanding European settlement. The government established fortified positions across the region, including at Tauranga, Whakatane and Opotiki. European settlers arrived throughout the latter half of the 19th century, establishing settlements in Katikati, Te Puke and the Rangitaiki area. By the end of the century the regional population had started to dwindle.
However, after experimenting with different crops, local settlers found success with dairy production. Dairy factories sprang up across the Bay of Plenty in the 1900s, with butter and cheese creating economic prosperity throughout the early 20th century. The present Bay of Plenty region was formed in 1989 after a nationwide review and shakeup of top-level local government in New Zealand. The new region incorporated the former counties of Tauranga, Rotorua, Whakatane and Opotiki.
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