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History:
School: Kiritehere School was opened on 6 July 1931
and it consisted of one room near the beach. In 1940 it was
then moved to the new school site. This school won an award
1961 for the best sole charge school in the Taranaki Boards
jurisdiction. The school closed in 1976 and the children
travelled over the hill to nearby Marokopa School.
Industry:
The Kiritehere Post Office
was opened in 1905 by John and Sarah Wouldes and they
handled all the incoming and outgoing mails and when locals
introduced their own private telephone lines, Sarah became
responsible for the connecting of locals to the exchanges in
neighbouring areas. The Post Office changed hands in 1921
and was operated until 1941 by the Rose family. At this time
the Post Office was moved the the home of Tom and Ciss
Vicary and services were maintained from there until
1961.
Farming: In 1905 cattle were purchased from the
Maoris to enable farmers to stock their sections. In January
1906 the first mob of sheep were brought into Kiritehere.
April 1906 saw daily strings of pack horses loaded with
grass seeds and this continued for some weeks, and the first
two bales of wool were also sent out of the district. In
November 1907 20 - 30 bales of wool left the district.
Farming continued to progress and in 1914 it was estimated
that enough grass seed was brought in by the vessel "Dawn"
to plant 8000 acres in grass.
Today:
Accommodation: The schoolhouse and school buildings have
been retained and are now used as an outdoor activities
lodge. It is available for hire by schools, groups, clubs
and trampers. Local residents oversee the running of the
lodge. It is a popular destination for many school camps and
trampers. The contact for the lodge is Peter Greig and Kay
Lancaster ph. 078767408.
Surfing: Kiritehere is well known for its excellent
surf conditions enabling surfers to spend hours out riding
the waves. Surfers travel from near and far to surf the
waves in such a beautiful, peaceful surrounding. It is not
overcrowded with surfers and swimmers like many destinations
on the East Coast.
Fishing: There are
many spots at Kiritehere where the keen fisherman can come
to in the hope of catching the big one. Whether it is rock
fishing or surfcasting there is plenty on offer for the keen
angler. Boats are also launched at Kiritehere and in good
conditions over the summer there is never a shortage of
boats heading out to catch their haul. Some with divers,
craypots and some just hoping to boat fish and catch their
dinner.
Fossils and
Rockpools: This area is
often frequented by local schools doing studies on the
living community in rockpools. Within an hours drive many of
these schools are able to have a day trip to let the
children explore for themselves the range of life found in
rockpools. As Kiritehere is a very old area there are many
fossils to be found. Never a visit goes by without making a
discovery of some type of fossil. These create many hours of
conversation and children never cease to marvel at the
significance of fossils.
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