It is situated on the bank of the Northern Wairoa River in the Kaipara District of the Northland region.

[5] The town was established by and named after timber merchant Joseph Dargaville (1837–1896), who purchased the then Tunatahi block from local Iwi.

[5] The area became known for a thriving industry that included gum digging and kauri logging, which was based mainly at Te Kōpuru, several kilometres south of Dargaville on the banks of the Wairoa River.

[8] After the gum and forestry industries started to decline after 1920, farming, especially dairy became a significant contributor to the economy.

[10] This private plan change was accepted by the Kaipara Council and released for public consultation in July 2022.

[12] The Dargaville Town Hall had to be closed and partially demolished in 2023 following damage sustained during Cyclone Gabrielle.

Dargaville also houses several boat moorings and a central wharf adjacent to the town centre.

Dargaville also includes the previously established village of Mangawhare, with both areas being separated by the Kaihu River – a tributary of the Wairoa.

Beyond Mangawhare lies the rural locality of Aoroa, which borders Mount Weasley and Harding Park.

It also provides emergency, radiology, laboratory, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, social work and district nursing services.

North of the town, the Donnellys Crossing Section railway was established to provide access to other logging activities.

The Donnelly's Crossing Section closed in 1959, but the Dargaville Branch remains in use by a tourist venture, having had freight services withdrawn by KiwiRail since October 2014.

The Silver Fern Farms meat processing plant is located on Tuna Street.

[26] The 50-metre outdoor swimming pool was built in 2010 at a cost of $6 million[27] and was damaged in 2011 with a large bulge and crack in the middle of it as a result of removing the weight of the water.

[29] The Northern Wairoa Golf Club (NWGC) is located at 819 Baylys Coast Road.

Exhibits include a 16-metre-long Māori Waka and a display hall showcasing the history of the Gum diggers.

The museum also has a research library and archives as well as the masts from the Greenpeace Rainbow Warrior located just outside the Lighthouse Function Centre.

[9] The former Aratapu public library building is part of the Dargaville Museum exhibition space.

[37] Established in 2001, and located adjacent to the Dargaville Museum at Harding Park, the Kaipara Heritage Machinery Museum houses and displays an extensive collection of machinery equipment and tractors used in land cultivation during the early years of the settlement, including a 120-year-old operational woolshed powered by a three-horsepower petrol stationary engine.

[39][40] The ANZAC Theatre Te Whare Pikitia o Tunatahi, is located at 39 Hokianga Road.

The cinema itself is based in the old library space in the former War Memorial Town Hall, with the entrance in the now repurposed Dargaville Municipal Chambers.

Located at 58 Hokianga Road, it was designed by Edward Mahoney & Sons architectural practice.

[43] The magnificent east-facing stained glass window was given in memory of the founder of the town, Dargaville.