Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill is a volcanic peak and Tà «puna Maunga (ancestral mountain) in Auckland, New Zealand. It is an important place culturally and archeologically for both MÃÂori and . The suburb around the base of the hill is also called One Tree Hill. It is surrounded by the suburbs of Royal Oak to the west, and clockwise, Epsom, Greenlane, Oranga, and Onehunga. The summit provides views across the Auckland area, and allows visitors to see both of Auckland's harbours.
The scoria cones of the hill were erupted from three craters â one is intact and two have been breached by lava flows that rafted away part of the side of the scoria cone. Lava flows went in all directions, many towards Onehunga, covering an area of , making it the second largest (in area covered) of the Auckland volcanic field, behind Rangitoto Island. The volcano erupted approximately 67,000 years ago.
In pre-European times, Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill was the largest pàon the Auckland isthmus. The MÃÂori name Maungakiekie means "mountain of the kiekie vine". The terraces of the pàwere constructed by NgÃÂti Awa chief Tëtahi in the 17th century, and were traditionally known as NgàWhakairo a Tëtahi (the carvings of Tëtahi).
The tihi (summit) of the maunga was where the umbilical cord of NgÃÂti Awa rangatira Korokino was buried and a tà Âtara tree sprig was planted on top, giving rise to the name Te Tà Âtara-i-ÃÂhua ("The Tà Âtara That Stands Alone"), another common name for the mountain used by TÃÂmaki MÃÂori.
Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill is associated with the Waiohua confederation of tribes, who were active in the 17th and 18th centuries. The time of the third paramount chief of Waiohua, Kiwi TÃÂmaki, is associated with the time of the greatest unity and strength of the Waiohua confederation, when the TÃÂmaki Makaurau region was one of the most populated areas of Aotearoa. The cone and its surroundings are estimated to have been home to a population of up to 5,000. Kiwi TÃÂmaki, the third paramount chief of Waiohua, moved the seat of power of the confederation from Maungawhau / Mount Eden to Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill. Near the summit of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill was a gigantic pahà « pounamu (greenstone gong) known as Whakarewa-tÃÂhuna ("Lifted from the Banks of the Sea"), which Kiwi TÃÂmaki used to call for the warriors of the TÃÂmaki isthmus to assemble. During the later Waiohua period, the southern slopes of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill south to Onehunga were known as Nga MÃÂra a Tahuri ("The Plantations of Tahuri"), which were extensive kà «mara (sweet potato) plantations managed by Tahuri, an agriculturalist and wife of Waiohua chief Te Ika-maupoho. Kiwi TÃÂmaki and most of the people of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill did not live permanently at the mountain, instead migrating across circuits of the Auckland region collecting resources.
Kiwi TÃÂmaki's rule and the Waiohua hegemony over the TÃÂmaki isthmus came to an end in the 1740s, after war with the Te Taoà « hapà « of NgÃÂti WhÃÂtua from South Kaipara. After the war, Te Taoà « settled on the isthmus, and chief Tuperiri constructed a pàbelow the summit of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill, known as Hikurangi. Hikurangi was abandoned around 1795 AD, with the death of Tuperiri, and NgÃÂti WhÃÂtua re-centred their activities around the Onehunga-MÃÂngere area. While Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill was no longer central to NgÃÂti WhÃÂtua life, it remained a central part of the iwi's rohe.
In 1844, NgÃÂti WhÃÂtua chiefs sold a block of land which included Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill to a merchant, Thomas Henry. Most of this property was removed from Henry's ownership in 1847, with the 115 acres of the hill and surrounding land becoming a Crown reserve, now known as the One Tree Hill Domain. In 1853, Auckland businessmen John Logan Campbell and William Brown purchased the Henry's remaining land. Henry had referred to his property as Mt Prospect, however after the purchase Campbell renamed the farm the One Tree Hill Estate. Over the next 20 years, the farm was developed for cattle and sheep farming, and included potato cultivations. During this period, Campbell and Brown spent most of their time in Europe.
In 1874, Campbell returned to Auckland and took sole ownership of the property, planning to build an Italian-style mansion adjacent to the mountain. Campbell's wife Emma did not approve of the designs or location, so by 1876 abandoned plans for the villa. In 1878, he planted an olive grove at Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill, the only commercial olive grove in New Zealand until the 1980s.
In 1880, after the death of his daughter Ida, Campbell decided to gift the One Tree Hill Estate to the public, leasing the land to Chinese market gardener Fong Ming Quong in the mean-time. In 1901, Campbell formally handed over the land to the public during the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall in 1901 (who later became King George V and Queen Mary of Teck).
One Tree Hill Domain, a park, is owned by the NgàMana Whenua o TÃÂmaki Makaurau Collective (also known as the TÃÂmaki Collective) and administered by the Tà «puna Maunga o TÃÂmaki Makaurau Authority (Tà «puna Maunga Authority). One Tree Hill Domain adjoins Cornwall Park's , creating a total of of public green space.
The hilltop is always accessible by foot, but because of anti-social behaviour, including drinking, vandalism and crime, after-dark road access to the summit was closed in 2008.
Due to the spiritual and cultural significance of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill to MÃÂori, and for pedestrian safety, the summit road was permanently closed to most vehicles in March 2019.
The area contains two parks, One Tree Hill Domain and Cornwall Park, which are next to each other and thus often perceived as one. One Tree Hill Domain is open to the public and was formerly administered by Auckland City Council but since 2012 has been owned and administered by the Tà «puna Maunga Authority. All decisions are made by the owners, who have delegated minor day-to-day operations to Cornwall Park Trust. Cornwall Park is a private park, also open to the public, administered by the Cornwall Park Trust Board. The Trust's endowment includes income from leasehold properties adjoining the park's borders.
Because One Tree Hill Domain is high and relatively central, the city has long used it for its potable water reservoirs. The first of these was constructed in 1900 atop the western peak; though it is no longer in service, the small structure remains in place. Five further reservoirs were subsequently built underground, with the latest completed in 1977. These were built at such a height to enable them to be easily connected with similar reservoirs at Maungawhau / Mount Eden.
Cornwall Park, which adjoins the One Tree Hill Domain, was given by Sir John Logan Campbell to a private trust he had established to hold the land for the use of the public.
In the 2014 Treaty of Waitangi settlement between the Crown and the NgàMana Whenua o TÃÂmaki Makaurau collective of 13 Auckland iwi and hapà « (also known as the TÃÂmaki Collective), ownership of the 14 Tà «puna Maunga of TÃÂmaki Makaurau / Auckland, was vested to the collective, including the volcano officially named Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill. The legislation specified that the land be held in trust "for the common benefit of NgàMana Whenua o TÃÂmaki Makaurau and the other people of Auckland". The Tà «puna Maunga o TÃÂmaki Makaurau Authority or Tà «puna Maunga Authority (TMA) is the co-governance organisation established to administer the 14 Tà «puna Maunga. Auckland Council manages the Tà «puna Maunga under the direction of the TMA.
On the summit of the hill is an obelisk, a memorial to MÃÂori. Before the obelisk stands a bronze statue of a MÃÂori warrior. The stone obelisk was designed by Richard Abbott and completed in 1940, but the unveiling of the obelisk was delayed until after World War II on 24 April 1948. This was in keeping with MÃÂori custom of not holding such ceremonies during a time of bloodshed.
Beneath it is the grave of Sir John Logan Campbell who bequeathed ã5,000 for the obelisk. His grave is a plain granite slab, ornamented only by a bronze wreath. It lies in the middle of the viewing platform, on axis with the main memorial plaques on the Obelisk base and the bronze Warrior Statue.
Campbell, like many European New Zealanders of his generation, had expected that MÃÂori would gradually die out and that an impressive memorial would be a most fitting symbol to perpetuate their memory. By the 1930s this had obviously not happened, and some considered the term "memorial" was inappropriate with many MÃÂori objecting to its use. During construction of the obelisk, a suggestion was made that it should be described as a centennial tower to mark the centennial year of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and not a memorial.
The Stardome Observatory (previously known as Auckland Observatory), is located within One Tree Hill Domain, and contains two telescopes and a planetarium. The observatory has, amongst other research, discovered and named the asteroid 19620 Auckland. Its current functions combine entertainment and education (via the planetarium and via public access to the older telescope) as well as ongoing research with both telescopes. It is operated by a charitable trust.
During the Waiohua confederation of the 17th and 18th century, the summit of the maunga was known for its single tà Âtara tree.
When Auckland was founded as a colonial town a tree stood near the tihi which gave the maunga its English name. Two accounts identify it as a pà Âhutukawa (Metrosideros excelsa). This tree was cut down by a settler in 1852, in an act of vandalism in one account, or for firewood in another. An exotic Monterey pine was planted in 1875 by John Logan Campbell to replace the tà Âtara or pà Âhutukawa. Campbell repeatedly tried to grow native trees on the tihi, but the trees failed to survive â with only two pines, originally part of a shelter belt for the native trees, surviving for long. However, in 1960, one of the two was felled in another attack.
The remaining tree was later attacked twice with chainsaws by MÃÂori activists to draw attention to injustices they claimed the New Zealand government had inflicted upon MÃÂori. The first attack happened on 28 October 1994, the anniversary of the 1835 Declaration of Independence. A second attack in October 2000 left the tree unable to recover, and it was removed the following year by Auckland Council due to the risk of it falling. In 2007, the chainsaw used by activist Mike Smith in the first attack was placed on sale on auction site TradeMe, but withdrawn by the website after complaints and a poll of users. It was later listed on eBay. The chainsaw is now in the collection of Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.
A dawn ceremony conducted by the Tà «puna Maunga Authority took place upon Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill on 11 June 2016 planting nine young tà Âtara and pà Âhutukawa grown from parent trees on the maunga. The strongest single tree will eventually remain and kiekie will be added.
In 2021, The Spinoff produced a short documentary centred around the chainsaw called "The chainsaw used on One Tree Hill and heard across Aotearoa".