"Hokianga's history is ancient. The oldest Maori and the 2nd oldest European settlements in New Zealand were here. It is both 'the cradle of Ngapuhi' and the place the Treaty of Waitangi was signed the second time. Last century [i.e. 19th] it was the heart of Northland's kauri timber industry, and even today, most of the country's remaining kauri forest, and nearly all the biggest trees, are in Hokianga. The history, the forests, the beaches, the harbour remain largely unknown to most New Zealanders."
