Nearby is the site of the bloody Battle of Ohaeawai fought at Pene Taui's pā during the Flagstaff War in 1845. The therapeutic mercurial waters of the minor health spa of Ngawha Springs are in a small thermal area to the west, where Northland prison is situated. The village is the centre of a rich farming district as a result of the fertile volcanic soils, with the district known to the Ngāpuhi as Tai-a-mai. Taiamai was the name given to a large boulder of volcanic rock situated about 400 msouth east of the Ohaeawai Hotel. This prominent rock stands about high, and was formerly an uruuru whenua, a place where travellers recited a charm and placed a small offering, such as a branch or tuft of grass, in order to placate the spirits of that place. In 1845 Te Ruki Kawiti and Pene Taui fortified Taui's pā, which British forces laid siege to in July that year. The outcome of the Battle of Ohaeawai is considered to be a defeat of the British colonial forces. St. Michael's Anglican Church was built in 1870 on the site of the pā. St. Michael's Anglican Church is from Kaikohe and 3.2 km from the township of Ohaeawai, situated on a gentle rise a short distance west of the main road. In August 2018 the battleground area around the church, including the urupa, was added to the Heritage New Zealand list as a wāhi tapu, a place sacred to the Ngati Hine iwi and of historic significance. The locality is usually called Ngawha, from the hot springs in the neighbourhood. Cowan asserts that the site of the church is the true Ohaeawai and the European township which has appropriated the name should properly be known as Taiamai.
Demographics
The population of the meshblocks immediately adjoining Ohaeawai was 429 in the 2018 census. The statistical area of Ōhaeawai-Waimate North, which is much larger than the village at 87 square kilometres, had a population of 1,140 at the 2018 New Zealand census, an increase of 207 people since the 2013 census, and an increase of 276 people since the 2006 census. There were 408 households. There were 561 males and 579 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.97 males per female. Of the total population, 231 people were aged up to 15 years, 183 were 15 to 29, 501 were 30 to 64, and 225 were 65 or older. Figures may not add up to the total due to rounding. Ethnicities were 71.8% European/Pākehā, 42.1% Māori, 2.9% Pacific peoples, 1.3% Asian, and 1.6% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 12.9, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 51.8% had no religion, 36.3% were Christian, and 6.1% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 141 people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 186 people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $26,900. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 441 people were employed full-time, 144 were part-time, and 45 were unemployed.
