The Onepoto Stream flows east through Birkenhead and Northcote, entering Shoal Bay south of Onewa Road.

[17] The traditional Tāmaki Māori name for Shoal Bay is Oneoneroa, meaning "Long Sands"; a name which also referred to Sulphur Beach.

[12] The upper reaches of Shoal bay were called Waipaoraora, referring to how the spring tides did not fully cover the shallow parts of the estuary.

[18][19] The Tainui migratory canoe visited Northcote, stopping at Ngā Huru-a-Taiki, a sacred tree on the cliffs south-east of Tank Farm.

[21] Te Onewa Pā was constructed at the Northcote headland at the mouth of Shoal Bay, was prized for its strategic location and view over the Waitematā Harbour, and protected fisheries and kūmara gardens of the nearby volcanic soil.

[24][25] From the 1840s, European settlers established sawmills at Shoal Bay, primarily focusing on logging the pūriri forests of the southern North Shore.

[28] From 1848, a soap and candle factory was established on Sulphur Beach,[28] and other early industries included timber milling and kauri gum digging.

[36][37] To the north of Bayswater, Shoal Bay is a DoC high priority site of special wildlife interest, SSWI, because of its significance for wading birds.