Inglewood, New Zealand

History

The settlement was founded in 1873 and was originally called Moatown. The name was then changed to Milton, before ultimately being renamed to Inglewood in 1875 to avoid confusion with Milton in the South Island.

The railway reached Inglewood in 1877, connecting it with New Plymouth as part of the first extension of what is now the Marton–New Plymouth line.

Until 1991, Inglewood was home to the Moa-Nui Co-operative Dairies factory (which was the fourth largest dairy factory in New Zealand) before it was shut down in favour of centralised processing near Hāwera.

From 1949 until the late 1980s, Inglewood was home to Fun Ho! Toys, a manufacturer of collectible die cast metal toys and one of New Zealand's largest toy companies. The factory shut down in 1987 but a museum in the town still exists with over 3000 toys on display.

Despite its small population, the town has gained notoriety from a string of violent crimes which tend toward the gruesome,{{cite news |last=Coster |first=Deena |date=2018-12-12 |title=Prison door about to swing open for convicted murderer after 25 years behind bars

Historic buildings

A number of buildings are listed by Heritage New Zealand. Inglewood Railway Station and Yard is listed as Category I. The Shoe Store Building on the corner of Rata and Richmond Streets and the band rotunda on the corner of Rata and Moa Streets are listed as Category II.

Marae

Te Kōhanga Moa Marae is located in Inglewood. It features the Matamua meeting house, and is affiliated with the Te Āti Awa hapū of Pukerangiora.

In October 2020, the Government committed $817,845 from the Provincial Growth Fund to upgrade it and Muru Raupatu marae, creating 15 jobs.

Demographics

Stats NZ describes Inglewood as a small urban area, which covers 3.18 km2. It had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km2.

Inglewood had a population of 3,801 in the 2023 New Zealand census, an increase of 246 people (6.9%) since the 2018 census, and an increase of 546 people (16.8%) since the 2013 census. There were 1,845 males, 1,950 females, and 9 people of other genders in 1,497 dwellings. 2.4% of people identified as LGBTIQ+. The median age was 38.5 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 789 people (20.8%) aged under 15 years, 645 (17.0%) aged 15 to 29, 1,623 (42.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 741 (19.5%) aged 65 or older.

People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 90.7% European (Pākehā); 16.8% Māori; 2.1% Pasifika; 3.2% Asian; 0.6% Middle Eastern, Latin American and African New Zealanders (MELAA); and 2.8% other, which includes people giving their ethnicity as "New Zealander". English was spoken by 97.2%, Māori by 2.5%, Samoan by 0.3%, and other languages by 4.0%. No language could be spoken by 2.4% (e.g. too young to talk). New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.6%. The percentage of people born overseas was 12.8, compared with 28.8% nationally.

Religious affiliations were 28.9% Christian, 0.4% Hindu, 0.3% Māori religious beliefs, 0.2% Buddhist, 0.6% New Age, 0.1% Jewish, and 1.2% other religions. People who answered that they had no religion were 59.3%, and 9.2% of people did not answer the census question.

Of those at least 15 years old, 432 (14.3%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,794 (59.6%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 780 (25.9%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $38,100, compared with $41,500 nationally. 189 people (6.3%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was 1,509 (50.1%) full-time, 420 (13.9%) part-time, and 57 (1.9%) unemployed.

Education

Inglewood has a number of coeducational schools.

Inglewood High School is a secondary (years 9–13) school with a roll of . The school was established in 1957.

Inglewood Primary School and St Patrick's School are full primary (years 1–8) schools with rolls of and , respectively. Inglewood Primary School was founded in 1875. St Patrick's is a state integrated Catholic school. St Patrick's was established in 1906 and moved to its current site in 1926.

Rolls are as of

Notable people

Inglewood has produced four All Blacks (John Major, Handley Brown, Dave "Trapper" Loveridge, Chris Masoe).

Other notable people include:

• Fleur Beale (; born 1945), fiction writer
• Henry Brown (1842–1921), sawmiller and Member of the House of Representatives (1896–1899)
• Fiona Clark (born 1954), photographer
• Callum Gibbins (rugby union)Hurricanes (rugby union)
• Ben Hana a.k.a. Blanket Man (1957–2012), Wellington identity, famous for wearing only a blanket
• Harry Kerr (1879–1951), athlete
• Margaret Sparrow (born 1935), medical doctor and reproductive rights activist
• Bill Sullivan (1891–1967), politician

References

References

1. Reed, A. W.. (2010). "Place Names of New Zealand". Raupo.
2. Yonge, J.R.. (1993). "New Zealand railway and tramway atlas". Quail Map Company.
3. (16 August 2007). "Old dairy factory up in flames". New Zealand Herald.
4. Reed, A. W.. (2010). "Place Names of New Zealand". Raupo.
5. Tucker, Jim. (17 May 2022). "Inglewood gothic: Jim Tucker on the killing of a school principal". Newsroom.
6. Lay, Graeme. (May 1995). "Murder in Moaville". Quote Publishing Ltd..
7. (2009-01-31). "Man clung to car bonnet before crash". Taranaki Daily News.
8. Jackson, Michael D.. (2015-04-21). "Harmattan: A Philosophical Fiction (Insurrections: Critical Studies in Religion, Politics, and Culture)". Columbia University Press.
9. (2005-08-17). "Con artist murderer given 17 years non-parole". The New Zealand Herald.
10. Coster, Deena. (2016-09-16). "Parole could be years away for man jailed after 'barbaric' murder of woman and her baby son". Taranaki Daily News.
11. {{NZHPT. 9352. Inglewood Railway Station and Yard. 22 July 2012
12. {{NZHPT. 876. Shoe Store Building. 22 July 2012
13. {{NZHPT. 868. Band Rotunda. 25 March 2025
14. "Te Kāhui Māngai directory". [[Te Puni Kōkiri]].
15. "Māori Maps". Te Potiki National Trust.
16. (9 October 2020). "Marae Announcements". [[Provincial Growth Fund]].
17. "Stats NZ Geographic Data Service".
18. "Geographic Boundary Viewer". Stats NZ.
19. {{NZ census 2018. Inglewood (219600). inglewood. Inglewood
20. "Totals by topic for dwellings, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer.
21. "Totals by topic for individuals, (RC, TALB, UR, SA3, SA2, Ward, Health), 2013, 2018, and 2023 Censuses". Stats NZ – Tatauranga Aotearoa – Aotearoa Data Explorer.
22. {{TKI. 177. Inglewood High School
23. "School Facilities". Inglewood High School.
24. {{TKI. 2177. Inglewood School
25. {{TKI. 2241. St Patrick's School
26. Richardson, Diane. (2000). "Inglewood Primary School 125th jubilee : Easter 2000". Inglewood Primary School.
27. (6 July 2018). "Education Review Report: St Patrick's School (Inglewood) - Previous Reports". Education Review Office.
28. "School History". St Patrick's School.
29. (11 March 1921). "Obituary". Hawera & Normanby Star.