Devonport | |
|---|---|
 Devonport Naval Base withMount Victoria visible in background | |
 Interactive map of Devonport | |
| Coordinates:36°49′54″S174°47′47″E / 36.831667°S 174.796278°E /-36.831667; 174.796278 | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| City | Auckland |
| Local authority | Auckland Council |
| Electoral ward | North Shore ward |
| Local board | Devonport-Takapuna Local Board |
| Established | 1841 |
| Area | |
| • Land | 189 ha (470 acres) |
| Population (June 2025)[2] | |
• Total | 5,090 |
| • Density | 2,690/km2 (6,980/sq mi) |
| Postcode | 0624 |
| Ferry terminals | Devonport Wharf |
| Hospitals | Navy Hospital |
| (Ngataringa Bay) | Narrow Neck | (Rangitoto Channel) |
| Stanley Point |   Devonport  | (Rangitoto Channel) |
| (Waitematā Harbour) | (Waitematā Harbour) | (Waitematā Harbour) |
Devonport (/ˈdɛvənpɔːrt/DEV-ən-port)[3] is a harbourside suburb ofAuckland, New Zealand. It is located on theNorth Shore, at the southern end of the Devonport Peninsula that runs southeast from nearLake Pupuke inTakapuna, forming the northern side of theWaitematā Harbour. East of Devonport liesNorth Head, the northern promontory guarding the mouth of the harbour.
The suburb hosts theDevonport Naval Base of theRoyal New Zealand Navy, the main facility for the country's naval vessels, but is also known for its harbourside dining and drinking establishments and its heritage charm. Devonport has been compared toSausalito, California, US due to its setting and scenery.[4]
Devonport is named after the English naval town ofDevonport.[5]
Eastern Devonport is known as Cheltenham, named after the English town ofCheltenham.[6]
Devonport is a peninsula at the mouth of theWaitematā Harbour on theNorth Shore of Auckland. It is surrounded by Ngataringa Bay to the northwest, the Waitematā Harbour mouth to the south, and theRangitoto Channel of theHauraki Gulf to the east.[7]
The suburb ofStanley Point can be found to the west of Devonport, while the suburbs ofNarrow Neck and Vauxhall are found to the north.[7] The northwestern section of Devonport is located at Duders Point, a peninsula within Ngataringa Bay.[7]
The suburb has three beaches: Devonport Beach and Duders Beach to the south,[8][9] and Cheltenham Beach to the northeast.[10]
Devonport is home to three volcanoes of theAuckland volcanic field:Takarunga / Mount Victoria,Maungauika / North Head andTakararo / Mount Cambria. Of these three volcanoes, Maungauika / North Head is the oldest, estimated to have last erupted around 87,500 years ago. Takaroro / Mount Cambria and Takarunga / Mount Victoria are estimated to have last erupted 42,300 and 34,800 years ago respectively.[11] Takarunga / Mount Victoria is the taller of the volcanoes, reaching a height of 81 metres (266 ft),[12] with Maungauika / North Head reaching a height of 65 metres (213 ft).[13] Takararo / Mount Cambria formerly stood at a height of 30 metres (98 ft), but was quarried in the 1870s. Another scoria cone, the 20 metres (66 ft) highDuders Hill, believed to be a section of Takarunga / Mount Victoria, was quarried in the early 20th century.[14]
Around 40,000 years ago Devonport consisted of three islands of volcanic origin,Mount Victoria,North Head and between themMount Cambria (now largely quarried away).[15]
The earliest evidence forMāori settlement dates from the mid-14th century (roughly the same time as the believed landing of theTainuimigration canoe, which is commemorated by a stone memorial on the foreshore).[16] A significant Māori settlement onNorth Head was ended by attacks from rival tribes in the 1790s.[17] About 50 Māori were still living inTorpedo Bay, with their meeting house just east of Cambridge Terrace, until they fled to the Waikato when thecolonial government launched war on Waikato Māori in 1863.[18][19]
Jules Dumont d'Urville, a French explorer, is thought to have gone ashore in the area in 1827, possibly as the first European.[16] The first European building on the foreshore was agunpowder magazine built in 1840.[20]
Devonport is one of the oldest colonial settlements in Auckland, and the first on the North Shore.[21] TheRoyal Navy survivors ofHMSBuffalo settled at Devonport.[21] In 1841 asignal station for Auckland's shipping was erected onMount Victoria (Takarunga), and the signal master, Robert Snow, and his family became the first Europeans to live in the area permanently.[20] From then until the 1860s, the settlement was called Flagstaff, because of the flagstaff at the signal station.[22] Flagstaff was subdivided for town sections and farms in the early 1850s.[20]
For the first half century or so of its existence Devonport was geographically isolated from the rest of the North Shore, and was sometimes called "the island" by the local inhabitants.[23] Only a thin strip of land beside the beach at Narrow Neck connected Devonport to Belmont and the rest of the North Shore peninsula. In the late 19th century themangrove swamp that stretched from Narrow Neck toNgataringa Bay was filled in to form a racecourse, now a golf course.[23] A new road was built along the western edge of the racecourse allowing more direct travel to the north.
On the southern shore, to the west of the centre of Devonport, a nearby deep water anchorage suitable forRoyal Navy vessels, theDevonport Naval Base was established in 1841.William Hobson, then the Governor of New Zealand, considered the sandspit-protected area a better choice for a naval installation than the shallower waters on the southern side of theWaitematā Harbour.[16] While some facilities have expanded and shifted in location over time, the area is still the primary base for theRoyal New Zealand Navy. The Calliope Dock atStanley Bay, part of the base, was opened on 16 February 1888 and at the time was the largest dock in the Southern hemisphere. The suburb also had one of the oldest New Zealand shipyards, now part of the Devonport Yacht Club area.[16]
The main centre of the suburb slowly shifted west from Church Street and the original wharf at Torpedo Bay, to its current location around the ferry wharf.[16] The settlement itself was renamed Devonport by 1859 after the English naval town ofDevonport.[5] Devonport achievedBorough status in 1886 and was incorporated intoNorth Shore City in 1989.
Devonport played a special role in thenuclear free movement. In 1981 the Devonport Borough Council voted to declare Devonport a nuclear-free zone, the first local council in New Zealand to do so.[24]
In July 2007, Devonport was given permission to be excluded from a list of local Auckland growth node centres. TheAuckland Regional Council accepted that while it was encouraging intensified growth (such as higher-density housing) around transport nodes such as Devonport, the character and historical nature of the Devonport Wharf area would make such a designation inappropriate in this case.[25]
The first ferry services to Auckland city began in the 1840s. These were open sailing cutters operated by local seamen running passengers to the foot ofQueen Street, Auckland's main road. In 1860 the firstpaddlesteamer ferries began operation.[15][23] These were in turn replaced by double-ended, screw-driven ferries in 1904.[23] Both passenger and vehicle ferries operated on the Devonport run until the opening of theAuckland Harbour Bridge in 1959. Immediately after the opening of the bridge, passenger ferry services to other North Shore destinations (such asNorthcote andBirkenhead) were cancelled, as were all vehicular ferries. The Devonport passenger ferry was retained on a much reduced timetable. The majority of the ferries were scrapped, only a handful being retained until being replaced by more modern vessels. The last of the old-style double-ended ferries, the diesel-enginedKestrel (built in 1905), was retired from the commuter run in 1988 and was then operated for cruises and sightseeing.
In 2002 theKestrel was moved to Tauranga to serve as a floating restaurant. TheKestrel changed hands again in 2010 and moved back to Auckland.[26] On 8 March 2016 theKestrel broke up and sank while tethered in its Wynyard Quarter berth.[27] She was refloated, but her future remains uncertain.[28]
Devonport maintains many oldvillas some of which date back to the 19th century.[29]
The navy base at Devonport features strongly in the local character, with the North Shore City Council having signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Navy which recognises the developing partnership between them.[30] TheTorpedo Bay Navy Museum is also located in Devonport.[31]
Devonport covers 1.89 km2 (0.73 sq mi)[1] and had an estimated population of 5,090 as of June 2025,[2] with a population density of 2,693 people per km2.
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 5,499 | — |
| 2013 | 5,487 | −0.03% |
| 2018 | 5,358 | −0.47% |
| 2023 | 5,079 | −1.06% |
| Source:[32][33] | ||
Devonport had a population of 5,079 in the2023 New Zealand census, a decrease of 279 people (−5.2%) since the2018 census, and a decrease of 408 people (−7.4%) since the2013 census. There were 2,421 males, 2,634 females and 21 people ofother genders in 2,097 dwellings.[34] 3.2% of people identified asLGBTIQ+. The median age was 49.3 years (compared with 38.1 years nationally). There were 771 people (15.2%) aged under 15 years, 807 (15.9%) aged 15 to 29, 2,313 (45.5%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,185 (23.3%) aged 65 or older.[33]
People could identify as more than one ethnicity. The results were 92.3%European (Pākehā); 6.4%Māori; 2.7%Pasifika; 4.5%Asian; 2.1% 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 98.2%, Māori language by 1.2%, Samoan by 0.4%, and other languages by 16.3%. No language could be spoken by 0.9% (e.g. too young to talk).New Zealand Sign Language was known by 0.2%. The percentage of people born overseas was 36.4, compared with 28.8% nationally.
Religious affiliations were 26.9%Christian, 0.5%Hindu, 0.1%Islam, 0.2%Māori religious beliefs, 0.6%Buddhist, 0.4%New Age, 0.3%Jewish, and 1.1% other religions. People who answered that they hadno religion were 63.1%, and 6.9% of people did not answer the census question.
Of those at least 15 years old, 2,184 (50.7%) people had a bachelor's or higher degree, 1,599 (37.1%) had a post-high school certificate or diploma, and 528 (12.3%) people exclusively held high school qualifications. The median income was $55,300, compared with $41,500 nationally. 1,236 people (28.7%) earned over $100,000 compared to 12.1% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 2,028 (47.1%) people were employed full-time, 738 (17.1%) were part-time, and 90 (2.1%) were unemployed.[33]
| Name | Area (km2) | Population | Density (per km2) | Dwellings | Median age | Median income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Devonport | 1.08 | 3,180 | 2,944 | 1,290 | 49.0 years | $55,600[35] |
| Cheltenham | 0.82 | 1,899 | 2,316 | 804 | 49.8 years | $55,000[36] |
| New Zealand | 38.1 years | $41,500 |
The first form of local government in Devonport was the Flagstaff Highway District in 1866, which renamed to Devonport in 1869. In 1886, the road district split fromWaitemata County, forming the Devonport Borough Council.[37] In 1989, the borough was merged into theNorth Shore City, and in 2010 incorporated into the single unitary council, run byAuckland Council.[citation needed]
Within the Auckland Council, Devonport is a part of theDevonport-Takapuna local government area governed by theDevonport-Takapuna Local Board. It is a part of theNorth Shore ward, which elects two councillors to the Auckland Council.[citation needed]
During its existence from 1886 to 1989, Devonport Borough had 19 mayors. The following is a complete list:
| Name | Portrait | Term of office | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Malcolm Niccol |  | 1886–1890 |
| 2 | Ewen Alison |  | 1890–1895 |
| (1) | Malcolm Niccol | | 1895–1896 |
| 3 | Joseph Macky |  | 1896–1901 |
| (1) | Malcolm Niccol | | 1901–1902 |
| (2) | Ewen Alison | | 1902–1907 |
| 4 | William Handley |  | 1907–1915 |
| 5 | Alick Pickford |  | 1915–1916 |
| 6 | John Henderson | | 1916–1919 |
| 7 | Horace King | | 1919–1923 |
| 8 | Thomas Lamont |  | 1923–1927 |
| 9 | Ernest Aldridge |  | 1927–1930 |
| 10 | John Hislop | | 1930–1931 |
| 11 | Hugh Ferry-Wheir Meikle |  | 1931–1941 |
| 12 | Robert Gordon May | | 1941–1944 |
| 13 | John Raymond Miller | .jpg) | 1944–1950 |
| 14 | Clem Woodall | .jpg) | 1950–1959 |
| 15 | Fred Stevens |  | 1959–1965 |
| 16 | Jack Seelye | | 1965–1968 |
| 17 | Ted Jackson | | 1968–1973 |
| 18 | Pat Sheehan | | 1973–1980 |
| 19 | Jim Titchener |  | 1980–1989 |
.jpg)
Between the wharf andMount Victoria are the Devonport shops and several landmarks:
The Cheltenham area also includes several landmarks:
Today, ferry services to Devonport Wharf are more numerous again, and are subsidised byAuckland Transport. A crossing between theAuckland CBD and Devonport takes approximately 12 minutes, usually on the 'Seabus Kea', a newer double-ended ferry.[23]
The Devonport Wharf / Ferry Terminal received a variety of maintenance and repairs during 2011 in advance of the Rugby World Cup. Further structural works were carried out in 2012.[49]
In 2015, a $24 million redevelopment project to upgrade parts of Devonport, including the wharf, began. The renovation of the Devonport Wharf is all but complete, with applications for retail services currently underway. The project includes an improved car park and an overall modernisation of the building itself, as well as structural improvements and refurbishments.[50]
The 1929 wharf underwent significant repair in the 2010s[51] and is now home to the sculpture Flight Support for Albatross by Greer Twiss.[52]
| Broadcast area | Devonport, Auckland, New Zealand |
|---|---|
| Ownership | |
| Owner | North Harbour Community Radio Trust |
| History | |
First air date | May 1999 |
| Links | |
| Website | theflea.co.nz |
The Flea 88.2 FM and 107.1FM is a community radio station inAuckland, New Zealand.[53] The station founder, Mike Baker, died on 4 April 2009, at the age of 71.[54]
Devonport Primary School is a contributing primary (years 1–6) school with a roll of 221[55] located on the side ofMount Victoria with the address of 18 Kerr Street. The school was established in 1870 on a plot of land given to them by the Trevarthen family for the purposes of a chapel, before it was later renegotiated to be used as a school.[56]
.jpg)
St Leo's School is a state-integrated Catholic primary (years 1–6) school with a roll of 50.[57] It was founded in 1893.[58]
Both these schools are co-educational. Rolls are as of July 2025.[59]
Places of worship in Devonport include:
North Shore United are anassociation football club that play their football at Allen Hill Stadium, located near the southern end of Lake Road. The club, founded in 1887, currently play in theNRFL Division 1, a league in thethird tier ofNew Zealand Football. The club is the oldest in both New Zealand and Oceania, winning theChatham Cup 6 times and theNew Zealand Club Championship twice.
North Shore Rugby Football Club is aRugby Union club located in Devonport that play their games at Devonport Domain. Founded in 1873, it is one of the oldest clubs in New Zealand.
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