Settlement
The site of the town has long been populated. M?ori p? (M?ori fortified village) sites in the area date back to the first Polynesian settlements, estimated to have been around 1200 CE. According to M?ori tradition Toi-te-huatahi, later known as Toi-kai-rakau, landed at Whakatane about 1150 CE in search of his grandson Whatonga. Failing to find Whatonga, he settled in the locality and built a pa on the highest point of the headland now called Whakatane Heads, overlooking the present town. Some 200 years later the Mataatua waka landed at Whakatane.
The name "Whakatane" is reputed to commemorate an incident occurring after the arrival of the Mataatua. The men had gone ashore and the canoe began to drift. Wairaka, a chieftainess, said �Kia Whakat?ne au i ahau� (�I will act like a man�), and commenced to paddle (which women were not allowed to do), and with the help of the other women saved the canoe.
The region around Whakatane was important during the New Zealand Wars of the mid 19th century, particularly the Volkner Incident. Its role culminated in 1869 with raids by Te Kooti's forces and a number of it's few buildings were razed, leading to an armed constabulary being stationed above the town for a short while. Whakatane beach heralded an historic meeting on the 23 March 1908 between Prime Minister Joseph Ward and the controversial M?ori prophet and activist Rua Kenana Hepetipa. Kenana claimed to be Te Kooti's successor.
Motuhora Whale Island is a small island off the Bay of Plenty coast about 12 kilometres north of Whakatane. The island has numerous sites of p?. It also provided shelter for James Cook's Endeavour in 1769. A whaling station existed on the island during the 19th century.
The town was a notable shipbuilding and trade centre from 1880 and with the draining of the Rangitikei swamp into productive farmland from 1904, Whakatane grew considerably. In the early 1920's it was the fastest growing town in
