Waiouru - Waiouru Army Camp

Waiouru Army Camp

From 1936 to 1938, Territorial artillery batteries camped under canvas at Waiouru for their summer training exercises. In 1939, a month after war was declared, most of the leasehold Waiouru run was taken back by the Crown. By December 1940 a large training camp had been built, and 340 km² of land acquired for training.

From 1949 another 250 km² of land to the north and east was acquired for training, and for upgrading of the State Highway and constructing a high-voltage power line up the Moawhango valley. The base expanded for compulsory National Service and for SAS training. At its peak in the 1970s, Waiouru had a population of 6000 people, including 600 children.

In the 1980s, some army units were transferred to Linton, and by 1990 Waiouru’s permanent population had fallen to about 3000. In 2005, Waiouru’s population dropped to about 2000 with the transfer out of armoured force personnel, and continues to drop as operations are shifted to nearby Linton Camp and Ohakea. But the Army expects a number of courses to continue to be run at Waiouru.