Editing Patea (section)

===European settlement===
Patea, called Carlyle or Carlyle Beach for a time by European settlers, was originally nearer the Pātea River mouth than the present town. During the [[New Zealand Wars]] Patea was an important military settlement. [[Duncan Alexander Cameron|General Cameron]]'s force arrived at the river mouth on 15 January 1865 and constructed [[redoubt]]s on both sides of the river.<ref name=heritagefiles>South Taranaki District Council Heritage files (Local Government Historical Body)</ref>

Patea became a [[market town]] when hostilities ended. The first of the sections on the present town site were sold in 1870. A local shipping company was established in 1872, and harbour improvements began. The [[Marton - New Plymouth Line|Marton-New Plymouth railway line]] via Patea was completed in March 1885. The Carlyle Town Board, created about 1877 to administer town affairs, was succeeded by a [[borough council]] constituted on 13 October 1881 under the name Patea.<ref name=market>Historical Settlements: From Whanganui to New Plymouth—N.J Taniwha—Wanganui—summary 2001 1st year 1997 subm. Political Essay—Infrastructure—Patea Freezing Works Government deregulation and asset assumption—A political agenda. National Congress Lib. Washington, D.C., USA</ref>

In the 1920s, Patea was the largest cheese exporting port in the world. The Grader Cool Store received cheese for grading from all over South Taranaki and as far south as Oroua Downs near Himatangi. After grading it was loaded into coastal ships at the grader wharf for transport to Wellington where it was transhipped into overseas ships for export. The port closed in July 1959.{{citation needed|date=April 2020}}