The town of Wairoa gets its name from the river the runs through the middle of the township - Te Wairoa Hōpūpū Hōnengenenge Mātangi Rau, which in Māori means 'the long water which bubbles, swirls and is uneven'.
The ancestral canoe Tākitimu travelled up the river and landed near where the Tākitimu marae (meeting house) now sits. The river was an important source of food for the community that grew on its banks.
William Rhodes established a trading station there in 1839, and missionary William Williams first visited in 1841. A permanent mission station was established in 1844. Early settlement in the area included a whaling station and trading post, dealing largely in flax. These establishments offered sufficient income and attraction. Its initial name was Clyde, but this was changed largely to avoid confusion with Clive near Napier and Clyde in the South Island.
Development of the town was hindered by lack of roads and difficulty navigating the entrance to the Wairoa River. The land was converted into pastoral farms and later exotic pine forestry, and dairy factories and freezing works were opened. However, Wairoa continued to be constrained by its isolation and reliance on rural industries vulnerable to economic downturns.