Halcombe is a small settlement in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New Zealand. It is situated 13 km north west of Feilding and 4 km east of the Rangitikei River, between State Highway 1 and State Highway 54. The population was 534 in the 2013 Census, an increase of 102 people, or 23.6 percent, since the 2006 Census. Halcombe has 1.9 percent of Manawatu District's population. Halcombe is situated on rolling hill country. The village centre is in a relatively low lying gully, with high hills to the west and low-lying hills to the east. The Halcombe area experiences a temperate climate which is similar to much of the Manawatu, with moderate wind and reasonable sunshine and rainfall; a good gardening climate. Frosts occur in winter, with one or two severe frosts each year due to the inland location. There are occasional fogs yearly. The town has a dairy, a pub, a public hall, a football club, two tennis courts, a playground, public toilets and a rugby field. The pub featured briefly on a DB TV beer ad in the 1990s. A travelling circus large enough to own an elephant once set up on Halcombe rugby field. There is a dilapidated taxidermist's in the central area, Zentveld Taxidermy. The North Island Main Trunk railway line runs through Halcombe.
The European settlement was established in 1876 by the immigration agent Arthur Halcombe, who lived in nearby Feilding. The town was named after him, while the nearby locality of Stanway was named for his wife, Edith Stanway Halcombe. Early European settlers included British and Germany families, followed by Danish settlers. Immigrants were given free passage and an acre of land in the Manchester Block, to provide labour for bush-felling and road construction, with larger blocks of land being made available from 1878. A Methodist church opened in 1876, followed by a Lutheran church in 1878. The railway reached Halcombe in 1877, connecting through to Whanganui in 1878, allowing the town to become a thriving rural centre and the main railway junction in the central North Island. By the 1880s the town has reached its population peak, with four local schools. At one point, 35 trains passed through Halcome everyday. By 1897 the town's saw-milling industry was struggling due to a shortage of logs, but the community was wealthy due to well-performing farms. The town's railway station has a combined post and telegraph office and bank, and Anglican, Presbyterian, Catholic and Lutheran Churches.
20th century
Halcombe was intended to be the main centre of Manawatu, but an active riverbed on the Rangitikei River stopped further development. Land clearance and timer-milling gave way to farming, and the neighbouring towns of Feilding, Marton and Palmerston North took over as the main local centres. A war memorial in the roundabout at the centre of the village commemorates the seven local men who died in World War I, and the nine local men who died in World War II. The train station, which contained a post office and bar, burned down in 1962.
Marae
The local Tokorangi Marae and Te Tikanga meeting house is affiliated with the Ngāti Tūwharetoa hapū of Ngāti Waewae. The area also has three Ngāti Raukawa marae:
Halcombe Primary School is a co-educational state primary school, with a roll of as of. The school was established in 1880 and quickly had to be expanded. The school moved to its current location in 1941. The school gates commemorate 15 former students who served in World War I, and ten local men who served in World War II.
Mt Biggs primary school
Mount Biggs School, another co-educational state primary school, is located south of Halcombe. It has a roll of.
Former schools
Stanway School was established near Halcombe in 1882, and Tokorangi and Kakariki Schools were established nearby later in the 1880s. All three schools were closed by the early 20th century.
