The coastal hills of Mangakuri Station are steeped in history, from the earliest Maori habitation to its purchase in 1876 by James Williams and its stewardship - as owners, co-owners or managers - by six generations of the Williams family.
Mangakuri: The story of a coastal sheep station recounts the trials and rewards of farming land prone to severe drought and extreme rainfall. The coastal situation has other advantages, however; where Maori once - and still - gathered kai moana and farm workers loaded wool into boats before rowing it out to a waiting coastal trader, families now gather at Mangakuri Beach and Netherton Farm Park to swim, fish and enjoy the beach's plentiful wildlife.
Hugh McBain, with historian Patrick Parsons and archaeologist Stella August, presents a detailed history of the inhabitants of the Mangakuri area, from its earliest settlers and the first Europeans, keen for a place to call home, to the present-day descendants who continue the traditions of sheep and cattle farming, forestry and community engagement.
