New Zealand - Tuakau - Tuakau College - Form 5C - 1988 Do you have more information about the school or the people in this photo? Please use the comment section below to share. To search for other photos from this school, please type the schools name in to our search engine. Tuakau - The area was first used as a trading centre for passing waka that would transport goods up and down the Waikato River. - A flour mill was built in 1855. - In 1863 war broke out just south of the river and the New Zealand Government stationed in Tuakau Imperial troops brought over from Great Britain.[clarification needed] To help defend the area the Alexandra Redoubt was built as a defensive fort on the bluff near the river. The existing town which was originally intended to be built closer to the Waikato River was subsequently built in an area 2 km further inland. - The railway from Auckland reached Tuakau in 1875, when the Tuakau Railway Station was opened. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuakau)