Valley of Dreams Booklet

Land in the Mangapurua and the nearby Kaiwhakauka Valleys was offered to soldiers returning from military service during the First World War under the Discharged Soldiers Settlement Act of 1915 and at the height of settlement, almost forty returned servicemen and their families resided in the these valleys.

Today large tracts of the valley have become overgrown with ponga ferns and regenerating native bush and only a few remains of the abandoned scheme exist. These include the Mangapurua Road, stands of exotic trees, culverts and some scattered evidence of bridges and the soldiers’ residences and farming development work. Our society takes a keen interest in the ongoing development taking place in the valleys by many members of our society.