Its cultural identity, very similar to that of the rest of Lower Hutt, has progressed [some would jokingly disagree] a long way from the "congregation of old shellbacks and whalers, men-o'-wars men and seamen, lags and hard cases, living in tents and whares ... [a] heterogeneous mass of misguided humanity"[4] reported in 1855.

[8] The modern history of the area, as far as European settlement is concerned, began on 21 September 1839, when local Te Āti Awa chief Te Puni[9] gestured with his arms and pointed finger the areas of the Hutt Valley and Wellington, that he was willing to sell to the New Zealand Land Company through its agent Colonel William Wakefield aboard the ship Tory.

The original survey party that arrived in 1840 on the Cuba comprised Captain William Mein Smith (Surveyor General) and Messrs. R. D. Hanson, W. Carrington, R. Park, R. Stokes, and K. Bethune, all well known personalities in the early history of Wellington.

He published a work in 1844 on the Wairau Affray, led the first European crossing of the Rimutaka range to the Wairarapa, built a once-famous house in Wellington, "Saint Ruadhan", on Woolcombe Street (since demolished; the site now forms part of The Terrace).

There is no known evidence that he ever left England, and it was common to have absentee ownership of Crown grants in those days, but it is known that he served on the Committee of the First Colony formed in London.

Hart who was born in London, also never settled in the valley, but he did leave England after receiving the land grant, arriving on the ship Mary in 1843.

[8] Judd arrived at Port Nicholson on the ship Martha Ridgway in July 1840 along with his wife Anne and their sons John, George, and Stephen.

He constructed a home on a leasehold title on the southern side of the present Stokes Valley main road.

The exact date of his move to the valley is unknown, but his name is listed in the "Memorial of the Settlers of Wellington and the Neighbouring Districts..." published in the local newspaper of the time in April 1852.

Hart worked for Sir Francis Molesworth on the building of the first cutter and house to be built from New Zealand timber.

[18] He moved to Stokes Valley in 1853, and resided there until 1857, when he took his family to Matarawa where he had access to valuable bush-clad land.

[8] A source says that Udy set up a sawmill at the valley mouth in 1858, but it doesn't make it clear whether this was the original one he dissolved in 1852 that he reactivated or an additional one.

[8] Mr Hart Udy Jr., who was five years old when his parents arrived in 1840, married Elizabeth Holland of Petone in 1855, their first home being in Stokes Valley.

The bush was populated with a considerable amount of wildlife, including weka, California quail, and wild pigs.

On 5 June Thomas Sparks was married to Mary Ann Robinson (both residents of Stokes Valley) at the Primitive Methodist Church by Rev.

[20] Other early incidents in Stokes Valley include the invention and patenting of an improved milk churn, by Ignatius Singer in 1900,[21] and two local tragedies.

According to this account the youth (Sinnox) was a friend and popped in to demonstrate his newly acquired shotgun after hunting rabbits.

This earthquake apparently lasted a long time and was exceedingly frightful for even the most hardened soul as the story below relates: On 20 December 1976, extremely heavy rainfall struck the Hutt Valley and Wellington.

This caused hundreds of slips and widespread flooding,[28] [29] and Pinehaven and Stokes Valley were declared disaster zones.

A petition was submitted to the Department of Internal Affairs, awaiting the Ministers objection to a change of name.

Since the late 1990s Stokes Valley has been affectionately known by some locals (both past and present) and those living within the greater Wellington area as Snake Gully.

[36][37] The origin of this nickname is not known but is likely to relate to the 1940s radio series 'Dad and Dave from Snake Gully' [38] In common with several other New Zealand towns stereotypically seen as largely consisting of working-class people with little access to nightlife, Stokes Valley is now ironically referred to on many internet forums and discussion groups as Stokes Vegas.

[52] Brothers Neville and Dave Hiscock were both internationally famous motorcycle racers who lived in Stokes Valley.

A recent mural that shows many historical elements of Stokes Valley life has been completed honouring the Hiscock brothers and mentioning how they both "dominated motorcycle racing in the 1970s".

It is located in the car park facing the current New World supermarket in the Scott Court Shopping mall in Oates St.

Irene van Dyk the famous South African born New Zealand Netball player called Stokes Valley her home for at least 10 years from late 1990s to early 2000s.

Irene van Dyk is recognised as the most capped international player of all time, and has won numerous titles for South Africa and then later New Zealand.

His sculpture Elevating Worms is in the Scott Court shopping mall, on the side facing Stokes Valley Road.

[56] Darcy Nicholas, "one of the best known of early contemporary Maori artists",[57] also resides in Stokes Valley with his wife Anne.

Bradshaw represented the country as a member of the Tall Blacks during the 2004 Summer Olympics campaign and the 2006 FIBA World Championships.