Solway was developed out of a large station owned by one of the first European farmers to settle in the Wairarapa, William Hodgson Donald,, who named his station after the Cumbrian manor-house he was born and grew up in, the now-demolished Solway House on the banks of the Whampool River between Anthorn and Cardurnock. The area had previously been known by the native Maori name Manaia, and for a brief period in 1911-12 was known as Purakau. A new 80-lot subdivision received planning approval in September 2013.
Education
Solway School is a co-educational state primary school for Year 1 to 6 students, with a roll of as of. Hadlow Preparatory School is a co-educational Anglican state-integrated primary school for Year 1 to 8 students, with a roll of. Solway College is a state-integrated Presbyterian girls' intermediate and secondary school for Year 7 to 13 students, with a roll of. It is a boarding school founded in 1916.
200 - To/from central Masterton, Carterton, Greytown, Featherston & Martinborough. Runs all week.
202 - Travelling from Central Masterton through Solway and Kuripuni and back again. Runs 4 times daily on weekdays.
Rail services
connects residents to the cities of Upper Hutt, Lower Hutt and Wellington. Its close proximity to Solway College makes it popular with its students, which board in Masterton and live in Wellington.
is in Solway though as of 2015, there are no commercial flights from it. From early 2009 until late 2013 Air New Zealand provided flights to Auckland, operated by subsidiary Eagle Airwayssix days a week, mainly to serve business customers in the Wairarapa. There have been a few other unsuccessful attempts at commercial air travel in Masterton, mostly failing due to its proximity to major airports in Wellington and Palmerston North. The most significant was by South Pacific Airlines of New Zealand, which operated daily flights using DC3s during the sixties to destinations nationwide until the airline's closure in 1966. Peter Jackson is an avid aviation enthusiast and owns a collection of over 40 flyable World War I-era warbirds housed at Solway's Hood Aerodrome.
