George White is said to have been the first European settler to take up land for farming on the flats¹ across the harbour from Ferry Landing. He was settled in Mercury Bay by October 1866. White married Lillian Short [aka
Lillie] in 1884 and the couple had at least nine children.

Whitianga¹s White Street is named for the family, whose descendants still live in the area today.

The store is believed to have been built for White by two runaway sailors in return for their keep. According to local historian Jenny Bithell the building was at one time known as the OEPig and Whistle¹ and was used as
a sly grog shop.

The Whites also ran a trading store and from 1890 the store
was used as a dairy. The property on which the store stands was transferred to William Robinson, farmer, and Catherine Robinson, spinster, in 1940, hence the name of the road on which it is located.

The White / Robinson farm was subdivided for residential development from the late 1960s.