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BEFORE THE ENVIRONMENT COURT ENV-2018-AKL-000078
I MUA I TE KOOTI TAIAO O AOTEAROA
IN THE MATTER of the Resource Management Act 1991 (RMA)
AND
IN THE MATTER of direct referral of an application for
resource consent for the necessary
infrastructure and related activities associated
with holding the America’s Cup in Auckland
BETWEEN PANUKU DEVELOPMENT AUCKLAND LIMITED
Applicant
AND AUCKLAND COUNCIL
Respondent
STATEMENT OF EVIDENCE OF DR MALCOLM PATTERSON ON BEHALF OF:
(A) NGĀTI WHĀTUA ORĀKEI WHAI MAIA LTD;
(B) SUPPORTING MANA WHENUA
Rob Enright Barrister Magdalene Chambers Level 1, 28 Customs St East Britomart Auckland m: 021 2765787 e: [email protected]
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INTRODUCTION
1. My name is Malcolm Patterson. I am a qualified medical doctor and hold a Masters in
Environmental Sciences from the University of Auckland. I am a Director of Ngāti
Whātua Orākei Whai Maia Ltd which is the community development subsidiary of the
Ngāti Whātua Orākei Trust, an elected body that represents the collective interests of
the descendants of Tuperiri who established Te Taou, Nga Oho and Te Uringutu mana
and Ahi Kaaroa on the Auckland Isthmus in the mid 17th Century. Today those 3 sub-
tribes are more commonly known as Ngāti Whātua Orākei.
2. I am authorised to give this evidence on behalf of Ngāti Whātua Orākei in support of
our submission on the AC36 Americas Cup proposal. I understand that the proposal is
described in the corporate evidence of Roderick Marler on behalf of the applicant
(Panuku). I am authorised to give this evidence on behalf of Ngāti Whātua Orākei
based on my expertise in the specific history, korero, tikanga and kawa of Ngāti
Whātua Orākei. I have not reviewed and do not respond to the relevant background
and application documents for the AC36 proposal; including the detailed evidence of
Panuku and Auckland Council.
3. The AC36 proposal is located within multiple areas of importance to Ngāti Whātua and
the footprint of the proposal falls within an important cultural landscape. I produce a
report prepared by me, dated November 2011 (Attachment A). This identifies our
relevant ancestral and contemporary relationships with the Auckland CBD, Viaduct
Harbour area and Waitematā, including the subject area for the AC36 proposal. I adopt
this report as my evidence in this case.
Dated this 27th day of August 2018
Dr Malcolm Patterson
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MĀORI HERITAGE IN TĀMAKI
(with particular reference to the Auckland waterfront)
Malcolm Paterson
7/4/11
This report has been prepared by Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei to inform the possible naming of
new design elements of the Auckland waterfront, by calling on the Māori heritage of the area.
Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei anticipates continuing to work closely with the Auckland Waterfront
Development Agency in the selection and bestowing of such names.
‘Named features present a cultural grid over the land which provides meaning, order and
stability to human existence without which we are strangers on the land, lost souls with
nowhere to attach ourselves.’
Professor Hirini Moko Mead
The whenua of Auckland is part of the body of Papatūānuku, the earth mother, the sky
above is Ranginui, the sky father – primal parents and human ancestors. Their children, such
as Tāne and Tangaroa, are the progenitors of the life found in, on and around the land.
Hence all living things are linked by whakapapa.
Auckland can also be viewed as part of the great fish raised up by the demi-god Māui, its
irregularities resulting from the careless efforts of his brothers to carve it up. Its volcanism
may be attributed to Mahuika, goddess of fire, or Mataaho the giant local deity of volcanoes
[Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]. These traditions reflect
Māori cosmological beliefs and explain the environment our tūpuna encountered. They also
emphasise the spiritual importance of the landscape here – associated with the actions of the
gods themselves and the very body of our earth parent.
Some traditions describe the earliest ‘human’ inhabitants of Tāmaki Makaurau (Auckland)
as otherworldly or arising from the earth itself – peoples such as the Tūrehu and
Patupaiarehe [Taua, W. He kohikohinga kōrero mō Hikurangi in West (MacDonald F. and
R. Kerr Eds). Random House. New Zealand. 2009. P26]. An illicit love affair between
youngsters, Hinemairangi and Tamaireia, belonging to two of these groups based respectively
at Hunua and Waitākere, provides another explanation for Auckland’s geography – conflict
between their peoples causing the tohunga of Waitākere to unleash the volcanic forces of the
earth against an advancing Hunua war party.
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Various ancient peoples are said to have visited and / or left descendants in Tāmaki
Makaurau. The famed voyagers from Hawaiki, Kupe mai Tawhiti and Toitehuatahi (with
his waka Paepae ki Rarotonga) are prominent examples [Minhinnick, R. Ka Whiti te Ra ki
Tua o Rehua ka ara a Kaiwhare i te Rua – traditional report of Ngati Te Ata. WAI 508. 2000.
P29]. Indeed one name for the Hauraki Gulf is Te Moana Nui o Toi.
Archaeological analysis suggests there are Tāmaki sites that date back to the earliest phase of
human colonisation in Aotearoa, eg. recent finds of first settlement type stone-working at
Taurarua (Judges Bay) [Dr Marianne Turner, archaeologist and lecturer, Department of
Anthropology, University of Auckland. Personal comment, October 2010].
The Tini o Maruiwi people of the Kahuitara canoe are claimed to have migrated from
Taranaki and intermarried with the Tūrehu [Murdoch, G. A brief history of Muriwai Regional
Park and its environs. Auckland Regional Council. 1994. P1]. The crews of Te Arawa,
Tainui, Māhuhu ki te Rangi, Takitimu [Murdoch, G. A brief history of Muriwai Regional
Park and its environs. Auckland Regional Council. 1994. P1] and Moekaraka all contributed
to the exploration, naming and peopling of the region. After reaching Tikapa Moana (the
Hauraki Gulf) after its voyage from Hawaiki, the Te Arawa sailors placed a mauri stone (Te
Arawa Kahu) on Boat Rock off Birkenhead [Dave Simmons, ethnographer, formerly of the
Auckland War Memorial Museum. Personal comment, 2010]. This became known as Te
Matā – fully, Te Matā o Kahu (named for Kahumatamomoe, son of the captain
Tamatekapua) – a name extended to the wider Waitematā Harbour [George Graham
manuscripts. M95. Auckland Institute and Museum].
Descendants of these celebrated ancestors and their waka formed hapū and iwi in Tāmaki: eg.
Ngāi Tai (after the name of the waka Tainui itself or one of its crew, Tai haua [Jones, P. and
B. Biggs. Nga Iwi o Tainui. Auckland University Press. 2005]; Ngāti Huarere (named for
the grandson of Ihenga – Tamatekapua’s brother) [Belgrave, M., Young, G. and A. Deason.
Tikapa Moana and Auckland’s Tribal Cross Currents. Hauraki Maori Trust Board and the
Marutuahu Confederation. 2006. P507, citing G. Graham]; Ngāi Riukiuta (their eponymous
ancestor being Riukiuta – also known as Rakataura and Hape – senior tohunga on the
Tainui [Taua, W. Brief of Evidence (to the Waitangi Tribunal regarding WAI 470). P5]) and
Ngā Oho (named for Oho Matakamokamo, a great grandson of Rakataura [Taua, W. He
kohikohinga kōrero mō Hikurangi in West (MacDonald F. and R. Kerr Eds). Random House.
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New Zealand. 2009. P30] or Ohomairangi – a tūpuna from Hawaiki from whom Te Arawa
descend [Minhinnick, R. Ka Whiti te Ra ki Tua o Rehua ka ara a Kaiwhare i te Rua –
traditional report of Ngati Te Ata. WAI 508. 2000. P6]). The various origin stories for this
last tribal name illustrate the richness of the Māori heritage of Tāmaki. Hapū and iwi have
their own interpretations of the historical record and the names that accompany it. There is
usually no one ‘correct’ version and similarities / variations between groups reveal much
about their relationships with one another and their individual corporate identities. This can
be as important as the name / place itself.
Occupying the narrowest piece of land in Te Ika a Māui, the isthmus contained multiple
portages for canoes between the Waitematā and the Manukau harbours, the Waitematā and
the Kaipara, and the Manukau and the Waikato - making it a significant place of contact
between groups travelling east-west across the country as well north and south along the
coastline. ‘Tāmaki herenga waka’ acknowledges it as a meeting place of canoes and their
peoples. Tāmaki Makaurau (Tāmaki [the maiden] contended for by a hundred lovers) alludes
to the area’s reputation as a whenua tāmaki (contested land) due to its plentiful maritime
resources, fertile volcanic soils and potential to control trade and movement. The whakatauki
(proverbs) ‘Te pai me te whai rawa ō Tāmaki’ ('the incredible wealth of Tāmaki') and
‘Tāmaki kainga ika me ngā wheua katoa’ ('Tāmaki, where even the bones of the fish are
good enough to eat'), speak of Auckland’s luxurious bounty.
Migrations of sections of Ngāti Awa under different ariki (chiefs), such as Titahi, made
significant contributions to the bloodlines of Tāmaki. Maki, of the Ngā Iwi hapū (called after
his great grandfather) led a group from Kawhia in the mid-1600s which established itself
particularly in north and west Auckland through conquest and intermarriage. Descent groups
today include Te Kawerau a Maki and Ngāti Rehua [Taua, W. He kohikohinga kōrero mō
Hikurangi in West (MacDonald F. and R. Kerr Eds). Random House. New Zealand. 2009.
P32]. To the former group at least, Tāmaki is also known as Te Ipu Kura a Maki.
From the far north, Ngāti Whātua had been undertaking a gradual southwards migration
over centuries back towards the Kaipara (where their ancestral waka Māhuhu ki te Rangi had
left behind settlers). This migration was initiated by a vengeful pursuit of elements of the
Ngāti Awa (then resident in the Hokianga) and subsequently motivated by the desire for
fertile land.
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Ancient ancestral ties and ongoing marriages between Ngāti Whātua and the peoples then
resident in south Kaipara, notably Kawerau and Ngā Oho, failed to prevent conflict
developing. Consequently, around 1680 Ngāti Whātua sought the assistance of their relation
Kāwharu, a famed giant of a warrior living at that time at Aotea Harbour. Kāwharu became
the leader of a Ngāti Whātua war party that undertook Te Raupatu Tīhore (the ‘Stripping
Conquest’) — a punitive expedition against Kawerau from the Kaipara down the Waitākere
coast [Paterson, M. Ngā kurī purepure o Tāmaki in West (MacDonald F. And R. Kerr Eds).
Random House. New Zealand. 2009. P50]. Even during this period of strife however, the
links that existed between the two tribes meant that ‘not every division of [Ngāti Whātua]
was represented, many men considering themselves too closely bound by ties of blood to turn
against Kawerau’ [Archie, C. Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara Ki Te Tonga – Traditional History,
Wai 312]. Kāwharu went on to have further martial successes with Ngāti Whātua on the
Tāmaki isthmus, eg. at Rerengaoraiti / Pt Britomart [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush
Press. Auckland. 1987].
The Māori history of Tāmaki is much richer than a mere litany of successive conflicts and
conquests however. Just as real as these, is the dense web of connections between the various
occupying peoples – their whakapapa linked and re-linked time and again over the centuries
through marriage. As with a large family, but on an even grander scale and with
comparatively greater consequences, their relationships move over time between close
collaboration and support to fractious conflict. Groups coalesce and splinter from generation
to generation depending on their political perspectives, ties to other hapū and iwi, and unique
ambitions.
Around 1700 the ariki Hua Kaiwaka (the ‘canoe eater’, a metaphor for someone who
brought together disparate groups) formed a confederation of Tāmaki peoples who came to
be known as the Wai o Hua. This unification of many of the constituent population groups of
Auckland reflected the political skill of Hua and increased ‘intra-isthmus’ cohesion. By the
time of his grandson, Kiwi Tamaki, the Wai o Hua are held in local tradition to have been as
numerous as ants. The Ngāti Rauiti hapū of Wai o Hua occupied the Tangihangapūkāea Pā
at the western end of the valley on what was to later be known as Point, and then Fort,
Britomart, as well as that of Reuroa (“on the cliffs north of the Old Supreme Court”)
[Murdoch, Graeme quoting “A History of the Water Supply of Metropolitan Auckland”
(unpublished manuscript held by Auckland Regional Council)].
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Tensions between Wai o Hua and surrounding iwi however, threatened their security.
Defensive battles needed to be fought against Ngāti Paoa under Kapetaua (eg. at
Onepūwhakatakataka on the eastern side of Waitaramoa / Hobson Bay [Pita Taurua in
Fortune, G and Grant Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minute Books of the Native Land
Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and the Hauraki Maori Trust Board. 2005]). The killing
of Kahurautao and his son Kiwi of Ngāti Maru at Patutahi (St Johns), led to the campaign of
revenge of his younger son Rautao against Tāmaki [Belgrave, M., Young, G. and A. Deason.
Tikapa Moana and Auckland’s Tribal Cross Currents. Hauraki Maori Trust Board and the
Marutuahu Confederation. 2006].
Conflict also flared between Ngāti Paoa and Ngāti Tai at sites on the North Shore, Te Weiti
(Silverdale) and Matakatia (Arkell’s Bay) [Graham, G. A Legend of Old Mahurangi, citing
Mereri of Kawerau. The Journal of the Polynesian Society. Vol 27, no. 106. 1918.
http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_27_1918/Volume_27%2C_No._106/A_Le
gend_of_old_Mahurangi%2C_by_George_Graham%2C_p_86-
89/p1?page=0&action=searchresult&target=].
Incidents involving Wai o Hua and Ngāti Whātua saw relations between these neighbouring
iwi deteriorate, eg. Te Hika a Rama (a small bay or gap in the cliff at the foot of Nelson St)
recalls where the Wai o Hua chief Rama and his party were surprised and captured by Ngāti
Whātua [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland, 1987. P67].
Matters came to a head in the mid 1700s with kohuru (unacceptable killings) committed by
Kiwi and his followers upon the Te Taoū hapū of Ngāti Whātua in the Kaipara. Te Taoū
raised a taua and moved on Wai o Hua seeking revenge. Clashes occurred at various places
around Auckland. Retaliatory raids on Kaipara saw the field of conflict move back and forth.
Although further ‘mopping up’ engagements were fought, the climactic battle at Paruroa /
Big Muddy Creek saw the death of Kiwi Tamaki and many of his chiefs and warriors
[Paterson, M. Ngā kurī purepure o Tāmaki in West (MacDonald F. And R. Kerr Eds).
Random House. New Zealand. 2009. PP51-54].
Various of Te Taoū settled the former Wai o Hua lands around the isthmus — eg. the
rangatira Waitaheke took over the headland pā of Te Tō, overlooking Waiatarau (Freeman’s
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Bay) [Te Waka Tuere in Fortune, G and Grant Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minute
Books of the Native Land Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and the Hauraki Maori Trust
Board. 2005. P153]. The marriages of Te Taoū with Wai o Hua added ancient whakapapa to
the Kaipara group’s claims to Tāmaki through conquest and ongoing occupancy and resource
use (eg. two generations later the leader of Ngāi Whātua in Tāmaki, Apihai Te Kawau, would
be known as ‘the man of many cousins’). The offspring of these unions reconstituted an
ancestral name, Ngā Oho, for themselves as a hapū. Those Wai o Hua who formed part of the
new collective became known as Te Uringutu. Other of their kinfolk who survived the war,
maintained their identity and traditions on the southern side of the Manukau.
In the period following the demise of Wai o Hua power on the isthmus, Ngāti Paoa became
increasingly well established and numerous - particularly in the huge complex based around
the twin settlements of Mokoia and Mauinaina (Panmure) [Heteraka Takapuna in Fortune, G
and Grant Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minute Books of the Native Land Court. The
Marutuahu Confederation and the Hauraki Maori Trust Board. 2005]. This followed the
provision of land to them in that area by Ngāti Whātua, in recognition of relationships created
through intermarriage between the tribes.
Examples of both amity and enmity can be found in the traditions describing the relationship
between Ngāi Paoa and Ngāti Whātua towards the end of the 18th Century and the start of the
19th [eg. Te Reweti and Warena Hengia in Fortune, G and Grant Young. (Transcription of)
Orakei Minute Books of the Native Land Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and the
Hauraki Maori Trust Board. 2005. PP88 & 187]. While there was conflict however, this was
a time characterised more by peace than war and allowed for the development of an era of
what Agnes Sullivan calls “whenua rangatira” – generally secure occupation of the Tāmaki
landscape and its resources. The various tangata whenua groups, Ngāti Whātua, Kawerau a
Maki, Ngāti Paoa, Ngāi Tai, Wai o Hua (and its kin and descent groups such as Te Akitai and
Ngāti Te Ata) etc had ‘home base’ papakāinga with a movement cycle around the region that
made use of its various resources in season. Common understandings and agreements over
use rights and mana whenua meant that resources were often shared and activities such as
gardening and fishing might occur with different hapū and iwi working side by side, or even
together [see Apihai Te Kawau in Fortune, G and Grant Young. (Transcription of) Orakei
Minute Books of the Native Land Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and the Hauraki
Maori Trust Board. 2005. P75].
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Map showing the pattern of settlement and movement for resource use by Ngāti
Whātua in Tāmaki in the early 1800s. Note the importance of the harbours and Tikapa
Moana (the wider Gulf) as waka routes – the highways of the time - and the establishment
along what is now the coastline of fishing camps and associated gardens.
[Agnes Sullivan c.1977, ‘The Maori Economy of Tamaki 1820–1840’, unpublished thesis, University of
Auckland; created by Geography Department, University of Auckland, November 2000. Courtesy of the Ngāti
Whātua o Ōrākei Trust Board].
In the early 1800s there was a limited Pākehā presence in Tāmaki [Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei.
http://www.ngatiwhatuaorakei.com/About/brief-history-of-ngatiwhatuaorakei.html. Accessed
2/3/2010]. The Bay of Islands was the centre of engagement between tangata whenua and the
new arrivals [see Stone, R. From Tamaki-Makau-rau to Auckland. Auckland University
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Press. 2001. PP191-4]. This gave preferential access to new technologies, notably guns, to the
hapū of the Bay. Escalating conflict between both Ngāti Whātua and the Hauraki tribes and
Ngāpuhi, took a deadly turn for the people of the isthmus when war parties with firearms
began to make raids from the north. In 1821 their power was fully realized when Mauinaina
and Mokoia were destroyed [Tamati Otuhu in Fortune, G and Grant Young. (Transcription
of) Orakei Minute Books of the Native Land Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and the
Hauraki Maori Trust Board. 2005. P48]. For more than a decade from this time the people of
the isthmus led a nomadic existence, living at times in the Waitākere Ranges, Hauraki, the
Waikato, Kaipara and Mahurangi. This era of the ‘Musket Wars’, during which Tāmaki
Makaurau was both a destination and a highway for taua from the north, rendered the isthmus
a ‘no go’ zone for permanent habitation.
During lulls in Ngāpuhi activity, tangata whenua would return to their ancestral lands
in Tāmaki to fish, forage, ‘light fires’ (as maintenance of customary possession demanded)
and even plant gardens, but they often had to flee again when news arrived that a new taua
was moving their way [Paterson, M. Ngā kurī purepure o Tāmaki in West (MacDonald F.
And R. Kerr Eds). Random House. New Zealand. 2009. PP56-57].
During this time Onepanea (Commercial Bay) was used as a place to lift tapu from warriors
and display the heads of slain enemies. Such acts are variously said to have been carried out
by Ngāti Whātua and their allies after a battle with Ngāpuhi [Kay, Richard and Heather
Bassett, ‘Maori Occupation of Land within the Boundaries of Auckland City Council 1800-
1940: An Historical Report for the Auckland City Council’. [Auckland]. 1997. P21], or by
Ngāpuhi returning from a campaign in the Waikato [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush
Press. Auckland. 1987. P75]. References have also been made to Ngāti Paoa hanging up the
heads of slain opponents at Te Paneiriiri (on the eastern headland of Freemans Bay) in a
ceremony of whangaihau [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987.
P77].
Following their return from the Waikato with Ngāti Mahuta, with the support of their ariki
Pōtatau Te Wherowhero [Stone, R. From Tamaki-Makau-rau to Auckland. Auckland. 2001.
PP174-175 & 182], Ngāti Whātua established gardens at Waiariki (Official Bay) on the
eastern side of the Symonds Street ridge [Ibid, PP183 & 247].
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The crops were sold as provisions to the first government settlers, emphasising the role
played by Maori in the British establishment of Auckland as its first permanent capital in
Aotearoa New Zealand [Ibid, PP247-248].
Apihai Te Kawau sent a deputation to the north to actively encourage Governor Hobson to
move to Tāmaki even before signing the Treaty of Waitangi on the Manukau in March 1840.
His ‘sale’ of several thousand acres of central isthmus land (including coastline) to the Crown
(celebrated by the raising of a flagstaff on Te Rerengaoraiti, Pt Britomart), is viewed by Ngāti
Whātua as a ‘tuku rangatira’ – an offer of a place to settle for the mutual benefit of both
parties, but with mana whenua retained by the tribe [Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei Māori Trust
Board and Her Majesty the Queen in right of New Zealand. Agreement in Principle for the
Settlement of the Historical Claims of Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei. Government of New Zealand.
2006].
Different concepts of authority over whenua and how it could be shared or transferred are at
the heart of Māori grievances over the passage of land into the exclusive ownership of others.
Further issue has been taken with the Crown's assumption of ownership of the foreshore and
seabed and the ignoring of Māori interests in the creation of titles for 'new', reclaimed land.
The ‘sale’ of land by tangata whenua to Pākehā had begun before the Treaty and was a key
feature of that agreement when it was drawn up. Unfortunately, after a short period of mutual
benefit, the tangata whenua of Auckland began to experience the negative aspects of
colonisation. Promises relating to the sale of land (such as the establishment of endowment
funds from the proceeds, the exclusion of pā and wāhi tapu from sales and the setting apart of
portions of sold land for the tribal use and benefit), and guarantees of possession and
chieftainship under the Treaty of Waitangi, were not honoured.
Māori labour was essential for infrastructure development in the young town. Some of the
most prominent construction during its foundation was performed by tangata whenua, eg.
Albert Barracks [Stone, R. Logan Campbell’s Auckland. Auckland University Press. 2007.
P36].
Traditionally mana whenua would often share the landscape and its resources with other
groups as long as their authority was recognised and respected and there were mutual benefits
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to be gained from the arrangement (eg. availability being made to resources controlled by the
visiting people back in their rohe, or in the post-Treaty era, to Pākehā trade goods and
technology). The increasing settler population with their notions of exclusive ownership
however, saw limitations begin to be placed on Māori access to their ancestral places and
resources.
The position of tangata whenua deteriorated further in 1863 when the Government invaded
the Waikato. Governor George Grey required all Māori around the Manukau and in South
Auckland to sign an oath of allegiance to the Crown (and wear a marker identifying
themselves as ‘friendly’). “Quite understandably, because of their strong ties with the
Waikato tribes, they refused and were left with no alternative but to abandon their farms,
crops and cattle and flee south. Almost overnight, 20 years and more of missionary
endeavour and prosperous farming enterprise by the Maori farmers under the guidance of the
missions [eg. at Ihumatao] was, for all practical purposes, ended. Their land was confiscated”
[Mogford, J. The Onehunga Heritage (revised edition). Onehunga Borough Council. 1990.
P23]. At this time the Ngāti Whātua community at Ōrākei were placed under a curfew despite
their declared allegiance to the Crown.
The illustrates the settler-led process through which the Māori of Tāmaki Makaurau were
reduced and displaced from their position as mana whenua / tangata whenua, and New
Zealand citizens as affirmed through the Treaty, to being viewed as outsiders, a potential
threat to the Pākehā dominated town who must be suppressed. The destruction of the Māori
way of life was furthered by more than a century of spoiling of the harbours by industrial,
sewerage, farm and domestic waste, as well as land reclamation, that damaged the shellfish
beds and left the waters and marine resources polluted. From then until now, mana whenua
have striven to have the promises made to them by the Crown honoured, to have their
relationships with their ancestral lands supported and to be empowered to fulfill their role as
tangata whenua in their city.
The destruction of the traditional system of tribal land control through the individualisation of
title by the Native Land Court disinherited many tribal members who were not named on land
titles, and encouraged the fractionation and piecemeal sale of tribal estates. This was
exacerbated by Crown acquisition of land through legislation such as the Public Works Act.
The effect of this can be seen using Ngāti Whātua of Tāmaki as an example. From the
isthmus-wide rohe shown in the map of the time of ‘whenua rangatira’, land in Ngāti Whātua
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title was reduced by 1854 to the 700-acre Ōrākei Block — the hapū had functionally become
Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei (as they are known today). By1951, despite at least eight actions in
the Māori Land Court, four in the Supreme Court, two in the Court of Appeal, two in the
Compensation Court, six appearances before Commissions or Committees of Inquiry and 15
petitions to Parliament seeking the restoration of tribal ownership of their land, the quarter
acre cemetery at Ōkahu Bay was all that remained in Ngāti Whātua’s hands [Paterson, M.
Ngā kurī purepure o Tāmaki in West (MacDonald F. And R. Kerr Eds). Random House. New
Zealand. 2009. P60].
Tangata whenua have continued to be active participants in the society and development of
Auckland in the post-Treaty era. Thus we share in the history of the past one hundred and
seventy years of this city with all Aucklanders. Developments of the cityscape in that time are
a part of our history too, eg. roading, culverting, parkland/reserves, buildings, construction,
landscaping, quarrying, reclamations – even if such developments have not always been
supported by tangata whenua and in many instances have damaged the environment,
landscape and heritage sites and failed to recognize their values to us. Tangata whenua
however have never ceased visiting these places or appreciating their cultural significance.
MĀORI HERITAGE LOCATIONS ALONG THE AUCKLAND WATERFRONT
Te Routu o Ureia
“”The comb of Ureia”. A reef of Pt Erin Campbell. Ureia was an ancient monster… which
resorted here to scratch itself on his journey from Hauraki to Manukau [Simmons, D. Maori
Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]. According to Hone Nahe, “Ureia [was] a tupua
(a monster) a mauri (mascot) of the people of this Sea of Tikapa, otherwise Hauraki. That is
to say, he was the emblem of the mana (authority) of the people…Yet another description of
him is that of a taniwha...Ureia was actually a fish—a fish larger than is the whale of some
species and smaller than are some others” [Graham, G. Some Taniwha and Tupua. Journal of
the Polynesian Society. Vol 55, No. 1, P26-39. 1946].
The killing of Ureia at Puponga by Waikato people was a precipitant for Hauraki attacks on
Tāmaki [[Belgrave, M., Young, G. and A. Deason. Tikapa Moana and Auckland’s Tribal
Cross Currents. Hauraki Maori Trust Board and the Marutuahu Confederation. 2006. P503].
Okā / Te Koraenga
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Okā (sharp cliff) / Te Koraenga (the headland), today more commonly known as Pt Erin
[Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987], was traditionally a
headland pā. In the time of Wai o Hua ascendancy in Tāmaki, Te Okā was “the fish
processing plant for the Wai o Hua empire” [Pita Turei, Ngāti Paoa heritage spokesperson.
Public comment, 2010].
Te Onemaru a Huatau
‘The sheltered beach of Huatau’. Shelly Beach [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush
Press. Auckland. 1987 citing The George Graham Manuscripts, Auckland Institute and
Museum. N42 326636]. Huatau was the son of Hua Kaiwaka (the eponymous ancestor of the
Wai o Hua) [Minhinnick, R. Ka Whiti te Ra ki Tua o Rehua ka ara a Kaiwhare i te Rua –
traditional report of Ngati Te Ata. WAI 508. 2000. P11]. Also known as Te Oneone a
Huatau (‘Huatau’s extensive beach’) [Pita Turei. Public comment, 2010].
Kotakerehaea
“The split canoe hull”, St Mary’s Bay. Some slaves were careless in their handling of a waka,
resulting in its damage and, subsequently, their deaths [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The
Bush Press. Auckland. 1987].
Te Pāpaku a Whai
“Whai’s shoal” – the eastern end of St Mary’s Bay [Heart of Auckland City, Auckland City
Council, NZHPT, Tourism Auckland. Auckland City Heritage Walks – Auckland’s Original
Shoreline. Auckland City and Heart of Auckland City (Publishers)].
Te Tō
A Wai o Hua headland pā associated with intensive fishing operations around the bay beneath
[Pita Turei. Public comment, 2010] - Waiwhakaata / Waikōkota / Freeman's Bay. Occupied
by the rangatira Waitaheke after the Te Taoū conquest [Te Waka Tuere in Fortune, G and
2280
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Grant Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minute Books of the Native Land Court. The
Marutuahu Confederation and the Hauraki Maori Trust Board. 2005. P153].
Waiatarau
“Waters reflecting shadows”. Freeman's Bay [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. Auckland.
1987].
Waiwhakaata
“”Water reflecting image”. Freemans Bay” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press.
Auckland. 1987].
Waikōkota
“Cockle waters”- Freeman’s Bay [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland.
1987]. Parts of the original cliff line of the bay are preserved within the Victoria Park Market,
including an old pōhutukawa [Heart of Auckland City, Auckland City Council, NZHPT,
Tourism Auckland. Auckland City Heritage Walks – Auckland’s Original Shoreline.
Auckland City and Heart of Auckland City (Publishers)].
Waikuta
“”Water-reed river”. A creek at the foot of College Hill to the south thereof. (Kuta a weed
used for making floor mats)” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland.
1987].
Tunamau
“”Eel caught”. A creek formerly between the foot of Franklin Rd and Union St” [Simmons,
D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987].
Waipiro
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“Stinking water”. A more modern name mocking the drunken residents. Eastern end of
Freeman’s Bay [Heart of Auckland City, Auckland City Council, NZHPT, Tourism
Auckland. Auckland City Heritage Walks – Auckland’s Original Shoreline. Auckland City
and Heart of Auckland City (Publishers)].
Te Koranga
Foot of Victoria St West. Refers to scaffolding for drying fish, reflecting activity that took
place there in the 1840s [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. 1987].
Old Māori Community Centre
At the end of WWII, Māori were encouraged to move from the country into the city for
employment opportunities. “A converted war depot building on the corner of Halsey and
Fanshawe Sts became the Māori Community Centre substituting as a marae and gathering
place” for these newly urban Māori. It hosted dances and showbands, including such greats as
Prince Tui Teka and Billy T James [Heart of Auckland City, Auckland City Council,
NZHPT, Tourism Auckland. Auckland City Heritage Walks – Auckland’s Original
Shoreline. Auckland City and Heart of Auckland City (Publishers)]. The old building and the
events associated with it are remembered with great affection by Tāmaki’s Māori community.
This building was recently demolished and the current structure erected. Today the site is
owned by Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei.
Te Paneiriiri
Eastern headland of Freeman’s Bay. Ngāti Paoa hung up heads of slain enemies here in a
ceremony of whangaihau [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]
[Heart of Auckland City, Auckland City Council, NZHPT, Tourism Auckland. Auckland
City Heritage Walks – Auckland’s Original Shoreline. Auckland City and Heart of Auckland
City (Publishers)].
Te Hika a Rama
2282
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A small bay or gap in the cliff at the foot of Nelson St. ‘The fire-lighting of Rama’. Rama, a
Wai o Hua rangatira was hiding here with his people and foolishly lit a fire to warm his
grandchild. A Ngāti Whāuta taua encamped at Northcote Pt noticed the smoke, crossed the
harbor and, with surprise on their side, captured them [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The
Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]. This was one of several incidents that contributed to the
subsequent war between the two tribes.
Ngā Wharau ā Tako
“”Tako’s reed huts”. The name of an old village on the ridge between Queen St and Hobson
St, near the foreshore probably near the site of the Star Hotel, because the track to the creek
now Queen St [see Tarapounamu], led down where Swanson St is now situated. [N42 c
282605]” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]. The village was
“well famed for its hospitality” [Nepia, E. Queen Street Gully. Landmarks in Maori Days.
Auckland Star. October 10, 1931].
Pare Tuhu
Nepia places this pā “Bold against the foreshore, at the foot of what is now Albert St, and
perched above the…roadway to the municipal baths…Later this became the home of the
[George] Graham family…it became a recognized stopping place for such notable chiefs as
Tawhiao, Te Wherowhero and others when passing through Akarana” [Nepia, E. Queen
Street Gully. Landmarks in Maori Days. Auckland Star. October 10, 1931].
Ngā Ūwera
“”Burnt Breasts”. The headland at the mouth of Waihorotiu (Queen St) and the approximate
site of the Waitemata Hotel [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]
or the Customs Buildings [Brown, HJR. Site Reference Form N42/73 (R11/80), “headland
pa”. NZAA. Auckland. 1961]. Formerly Smale’s or Stanley Pt – cut down in the 1880s to
facilitate Albert St’s expansion into the wharf area [Heart of Auckland City, Auckland City
Council, NZHPT, Tourism Auckland. Auckland City Heritage Walks – Auckland’s Original
Shoreline. Auckland City and Heart of Auckland City (Publishers)].
2283
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Te Hororoa / Te Ahurutanga
“Te Ahurutanga. “The haven or sheltering place” (for canoes)”. After an extensive slip (‘Te
Hororoa’) to the east of Pt Britomart (in which the front of the Ngāti Rauiti pā – under the
rangatira Parerautoroa - there slipped away and many of the residents died), the sea formed a
small cave by eating into the spoil. This event has been interpreted as a tohu (omen) of
impending disaster and indeed occurred just before the Ngāti Whātua invasion. [Simmons, D.
Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987]
Former railway land at Quay Park
20 hectares was purchased here in 1996 by Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei as surplus Crown land.
This land (that now includes residential apartments and the Vector Arena) is highly
significant to the hapū, as the cornerstone of its commercial investments undertaken after
Treaty of Waitangi grievances were first acknowledged in statute by the Crown under the
1991 Orakei Act, and compensation paid. It was the first foray of the hapū back into the CBD
as a landowner [Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei. www.ngatiwhatuaorakei.com. Accessed 2/3/2010]
and exemplifies the ambition of the hapū’s late leader, Sir Hugh Kawharu, that Ngāti Whātua
land only be leased (not sold) for commercial gain, to ensure that the tribal estate would only
continue to grow.
Street and reserve names around the Park celebrate Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei heritage, eg.
Mahuhu and Te Taou Crescents, Te Taou Reserve, Ngaoho Pl.
Waiariki
Waiariki is an historic natural spring originating between what are now Waterloo Quadrant
and Eden Crescent, that supplied surrounding papakāinga and pā such as Te Reuroa (north of
the High Court) [1]. The name reveals its high value as the ‘chiefly’ waters [12] or "waters
having a curative value" [13]. Murdoch states that the “small valley now traversed by Eden
Crescent…which ran down to what became Official Bay” contained a “series of springs”.
This valley is also identified as Waiariki [1]. Simmons / Graham concur that Waiariki was
"Formerly Official Bay" [13].
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Following the Te Taoū conquest of the Isthmus in the mid 1700s, Waiariki continued to be
used by the ancestors of Ngāti Whātua o Ōrākei. John White also records a Ngāpuhi attack
there in the early 1800s on 'a hapu of the Waikato people' [8].
When Governor Hobson came to Tāmaki in 1840, the area around the waterway was under
cultivation by Ngāti Whātua (eg. for potato and kūmara [3] and peaches [1]). This settlement
and its gardens were referred to as Waiariki by witnesses at the Ōrākei Native Land Court
hearings, including by those who had lived there.
Waiariki’s waters were the actually the cause of a confrontation between Te Taoū and the
sailors of a ship that brought Hobson to Tāmaki from the Bay of Islands. The Ngāti Whātua
rangatira Paora Tuhaere recalled in the Native Land Court that, ‘We prepared a clearing at
Waiariki when a man-of-war came, the first vessel I saw here. 30 of Te Tāoū were staying
here at that time. The sailors came to get water the old men turned them away and said they
should not have water without paying. The sailors went on board got swords and guns and
returned and took the water’. Stone identifies this man-o-war as Hobson’s ship the Herald
[4].
In 1851-2 the Auckland Municipal Council constructed a holding tank at the foot of Short St,
with pipes from the tank run out along the new (Wynyard) pier to supply ships. The origin of
the water was noted as being a “private source” which Truttman concludes was most likely
the spring on what is now 16 Waterloo Quadrant [17].
The map below shows the flow of the Waiariki watercourse into the harbour just south of
Short Street.
2285
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Bibliography for Waiariki section
[1] Murdoch, Graeme (Auckland Regional Council Historian) quoting “A History of the
Water Supply of Metropolitan Auckland” (in unpublished manuscript).
Auckland Regional Council.
[2] Palmer, David. Walking Historic Auckland. New Holland (Publisher). New Zealand.
2002.
[3] Stirling, Bruce. Ngati Whatua o Orakei and the Crown, 1840-1870. 2001.
[4] Stone, R. From Tamaki-makau-rau to Auckland. Auckland University Press. 2001.
[5] Papa, Bernadette and Ngarimu Blair. Nga Manga Toitū – remnant streams of Tāmaki.
Ngati Whatua o Orakei Corporate Ltd. 2006.
[6] Rusden, K. Aerated Water Manufacturers of Eden Crescent, 1845-1964. 1979.
[8] White, J. The Ancient History of the Maori. University of Waikato Library. 2001.
[9] Heaphy, C. Plan of the Town of Auckland. 1851. Auckland Public Library. 1984.
2286
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[10] Fortune, G. and Dr G. Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minutes of the Native Land
Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and Hauraki Maori Trust Board.
2005.
[11] Fenton, F.D. Important Judgements. Southern Reprints. 1994.
[12] Williams, H.W. Dictionary of the Maori Language (7th ed.). GP Publications Ltd.
Wellington. 1992.
[13] Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland . 1987.
[14] Great Britain Parliamentary Papers. 1835-42, Vol 3:484.
[15] Land Information New Zealand (LINZ) DP 7925
[16] Salmond Reed Architects Ltd. Newman Hall – A Conservation Plan. Auckland. 2009.
[17] Truttman, L (Historian). Research Summary 15 Eden Cres, City (Spring, “Te Wai
Ariki”). Auckland City Council. 2006.
[18] Daily Southern Cross. Vol. XXXI, Issue 5695, 14 December 1873. Page 3.
Te Reuroa
Waiariki was the water source for the Ngāti Rauiti hapū of Wai o Hua who occupied Reuroa
(“on the cliffs north of the Old Supreme Court”) [Murdoch, Graeme quoting “A History of
the Water Supply of Metropolitan Auckland” (unpublished manuscript)] – “The long outer
pallisading”. A pa that stood on the site of the Supreme Court, extending to the foreshore”
[Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987].
Clough & Associates Ltd noted a midden in the vicinity of the Fale Pasifika / Owen Glenn
Building of Auckland University during pre-construction assessment for those developments.
The midden was noted on the south side of Wynyard St between allotments 20 and L18 and
included: a variety of seashells; fish bone; hāngi stones; obsidian (likely of Mayor Island and
Aotea / Great Barrier origin) flakes; chert, greywacke (Motutapu) and bird bone tools. Their
2287
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assessment suggests a connection with Te Reuroa: “Whether the archaeological evidence of
Maori occupation relates to prehistoric or historic times is unclear, due mainly to the
disturbed nature of the deposit. The stone and bone artefacts suggest that prehistoric
occupation and/or use is most likely. The site may have once been on the lower slopes of the
pa...Flax and food preparation and garment making are some of the activities that may have
taken place there” [Clough & Associates. Middle Class Spread. Archaeology at the Corner of
Wynyard Street and Grafton Road. Clough & Associates Monograph Series no. 2. 2007].
Onepanea
“Beach of the heads in line” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland.
1987] - what became known as Commercial Bay in the Pākehā era was used as a place to lift
tapu from warriors and display the heads of slain enemies. Such acts are variously said to
have been carried out by Ngāti Whātua and their allies after a battle with Ngāpuhi [Kay,
Richard and Heather Bassett, ‘Maori Occupation of Land within the Boundaries of Auckland
City Council 1800-1940: An Historical Report for the Auckland City Council’. [Auckland].
1997. P21], or by Ngāpuhi returning from a campaign in the Waikato [Simmons, D. Maori
Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987. P75]. Simmons identifies a stream flowing
down what is now Swanson St as the place where the tapu-lifting ceremonies were performed
and that the line of dried heads on posts “stretched from one end of the beach to the other”
along what is now Fort St.
Also a traditional canoe landing site [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press.
Auckland. 1987], see Te Whatu and Te Tarakaraihi.
Fort St represents the former shoreline of the beach to the east of the outlet of the Horotiu
Stream. Campbell identifies the location of the three beached waka in the following 1852
illustration (credited in his report as “Photo James Richardson of lithograph by Patrick
Hogan, Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Public Library, 4–501”) as the
current location of the Imperial Hotel buildings.
2288
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[Campbell, M. “The Webb’s Building (Imperial Hotel) basement, cnr Queen and Fort Streets,
Auckland”. CFG Heritage. New Zealand. 2010].
Te Whatu
‘The rock’. “A rocky ledge once at the foot of what is now Shortland St, where canoes were
moored…” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987].
Te Tarakaraihi
“…small seabird of the tern variety). A canoe landing at the foot of what is now Swanson St,
opposite Te Whatu.” A track led from here to Swanson St, to Te To [Simmons, D. Maori
Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987], see Te Tarapounamu.
Te Tarapounamu
“Track from Swanson St. to Queen St” [Graham, G. “Maori Place Names”. Rec. Auckland
Inst. Mus. 16: 1-10. 1980. P31]. Nepia states that the track here lead to / from the settlements
of Ngā Wharau ā Tako and Te Tō [Nepia, E. Queen Street Gully. Landmarks in Maori Days.
Auckland Star. October 10. 1931]. Note that some traditional Māori pathways were important
2289
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enough to be given their own names (like this one and Te Aratakihaere, associated with
Maungawhau, for example).
Te Rerengaoraiti / Tangihangapūkāea (Pt Britomart)
“Ihenga … of Arawa Waka stayed in Tamaki. His grandson Haurere [sic] settled with his
people at … Britomart….” [Belgrave, M., Young, G. and A. Deason. Tikapa Moana and
Auckland’s Tribal Cross Currents. Hauraki Maori Trust Board and the Marutuahu
Confederation. 2006. P507 citing G. Graham].
This is the site of the September 18, 1840 signing of the deed through which Ngāti Whātua
gifted land to the Government to establish itself in Tāmaki. The signing took place before a
flagstaff erected on the orders of the Police Magistrate, Captain Symonds.
Paora Tuhaere, the Ngāti Whātua rangatira, stated in the Native Land Court that, “Captain
Symonds put up the first flagstaff at Fort Britomart”. James Mackay concurs that “Captain
Symonds … put up the flagstaff on Fort Britomart”. George Graham (brick-maker) disagrees
with some details, replying when asked about when he came to Auckland at the end of 1840,
“Was there a flagstaff?”, that “There was a small nikau. I erected a flagstaff on Britomart
Point”. John Robertson (hotel keeper) also stated in court that the first flagstaff was erected
“at Britomart Barracks” [Fortune, G. and Dr G. Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minutes of
the Native Land Court. The Marutuahu Confederation and Hauraki Maori Trust Board.
2005]. These repeated references to the flagstaff being erected at Britomart Point, or more
specifically Britomart Barracks or Fort, place its location at Tangihangapūkāea – the former
headland pa at the very seaward end of Britomart Point that was also given the name Te
Rerengaoraiti (The Leaping Place of Few Survivors) after its Ngāti Rauiti defenders were
defeated by Ngāti Whātua under Kāwharu in the late 1600s. A similar incident occurred
again during a Ngāpuhi raid in 1822 [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press.
Auckland. 1987] during the Musket Wars.
Stone reports that the ceremony began at one o’clock with Captain Symonds reading out, via
the interpreter Williams, the agreement negotiated over the previous couple of days between
himself and Ngāti Whātua rangatira, led by Te Reweti [Stone, R. From Tamaki-Makau-rau to
Auckland. Auckland University Press, 2001]. Through this arrangement, a wedge of several
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thousand acres (its apex at Maungawhau and its seaward borders the stream of Opou (Cox’s
Creek) and Mataharehare (Parnell), had been made available by Ngāti Whātua to the
Government.
At this point Ngāti Whātua verbally confronted the Government party, citing concerns that
the Queen would take all their land. They were assured “that this was false…that the
governor would come to see that neither Pakeha nor Mauris [sic] were wronged and that all
he or his Officers promised them should be strictly performed” [Ibid].
This clarification made, the rangatira Apihai Te Kawau, Te Reweti and Tinana signed a copy
of the agreement on behalf of Ngāti Whātua (of whom a large number were in attendance),
the Police Magistrate (Symonds) and other officers for the Government. The “flag of St
George” was then run up to the cheers of bystanders, followed by salutes from the guns of
ships in the harbour and toasts of wine. Later in the day a regatta was held, which saw various
boat races held separately within the European and Maori parties [Ibid].
The ceremony and the agreement it symbolised, were the culmination of concerted efforts by
Ngāti Whātua o Orākei to bring about European settlement of their lands, to improve their
trade opportunities and the mutual protection of their ancestral rohe. Their rangatira Apihai
Te Kawau had previously sent a deputation, led by his nephew Te Reweti, to the Bay of
Islands to offer land to Hobson to relocate the seat of Government to Tāmaki.
Tangihangapūkāea was converted by 1842 from a pā into the fort. “The building was of
stone, built on a tongue of land separated from the mainland by a broad, deep ditch and
parapet. It had evidently at some time or another been a fort of the natives. The entrance was
across the ditch, a part of the parapet having been thrown down to fill it up for that purpose”
[Major Thomas Bunbury quoted by Wynne Colgan in “The Past Today” (published by
Pacific Publishers for the NZ Historic Places Trust, 1987)]. Tangihangapūkāea /Te
Rerengaoraiti however was destroyed with the development of the city in the later 1800s as
Pt Britomart was demolished as landfill for surrounding harbour reclamation work. The
NZAA database states that the headland pa “covered an area of c. 7260 square yards”.
The author noted a small lens of shell (eg. kūtai/mussel) in what seemed to be ashy soil in a
roadside ditch cut outside 89 Anzac Ave in August 2008. It was a well-defined anomaly in an
otherwise clay-sided trench (although there appeared to be gravelly fill over the top of the
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shell/ash layer). The HPT was alerted but unfortunately several days elapsed before the site
was assessed and the shell was by then almost entirely removed. The HPT archaeologist who
subsequently viewed the site felt that it had been modified. A single half-shell of kūtai was
retrieved after this from the site by the author.
Some aspects of the shape of the former headland may still be discerned from the layout of
the roads that now cover the area. The location of its tip is marked by a plaque on a rock just
inside the red fence that is the boundary of the dockland on the northern side of Quay St,
roughly opposite Britomart Place. The Historic Places Trust identifies this as “Flagstaff
Point”, the site of the flag-raising ceremony of 1840.
The two images below are sourced from "Mrs Hobson's Album" (Reproduced with
Commentary and Catalogue by Elsie Locke and Janet Paul, Auckland University Press,
1990). The text discussing the sketches reveals that the drawing of the flag raising ceremony
on Pt Britomart and the one showing the "First Government Settlement", were made only two
weeks apart by the same person (although one is a copy of the original) - who was actually at
the ceremony. Therefore the position of the flag as shown in the "First Government
settlement" sketch should be reasonably accurate.
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"First Government Settlement"
The two images below show the gully(s) around Te Rerengaoraiti via which I presume
Waiariki would have run into the harbour. Sourced from: Barr, J. The Ports of Auckland.
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Te Roukai
“”The food gathering”. A pipi bank which lay formerly between the site of the Waitemata
Hotel and Pt Britomart, mouth of Horotiu Creek” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush
Press, Auckland. 1987].
Te Tōangaroa
Mechanics Bay. A hostelry (Waipapa) for visiting Māori traders [Heart of Auckland City,
Auckland City Council, NZHPT, Tourism Auckland. Auckland City Heritage Walks –
Auckland’s Original Shoreline. Auckland City and Heart of Auckland City (Publishers)] was
built on land set aside as a canoe reserve. The supply of Māori products was essential to the
fledgling township that was developing on the isthmus. “In 1848 20,000 tons of potatoes,
apples, peaches and wheat passed across the [hostel] reserve” [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland.
The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987. P41].
The hostel continued to function even after the wars of the 1860s [Cameron et al. A Field
Guide to Auckland. Godwit Publishing ltd. Auckland. 1997. P89] and was still in use in the
1950s [Op cit Simmons, P41]. Māori occupants of Te Tōangaroa at different times included
some of the most prominent members of Māoridom, including Te Wherowhero, who is
recorded as present in an 1845 census [MacLean, M. 1989. Cited in July 2008 update of
NZHPT “City at Risk” Project Report].
The pensioner soldiers of Onehunga “were called out on only one occasion...In April
1851...to the city where they formed up with other troops in the hills above Mechanics Bay”
[Clune, F. The Odyssey of Onehunga. Dawson Printing Co., Ltd. Auckland. 1960] to
confront a Ngāti Paoa party angered by the treatment of one of their chiefs [Fortune, G. and
G. Young. (Transcription of) Orakei Minutes of the Native Land Court. Marutuahu
Confederation and the Hauraki Maori Trust Board. 2005. P184, Wiremu Reweti & P194,
Wiremu Watene Tautau], Ngawiki, accused of theft.
In pursuit of utu and the release of their relative, Hori Ngakapa led a large taua (war party) of
several hundred warriors which landed on the beach at Waipapa, where it was met by
Governor George Grey’s intermediary, the Commissioner of Police. He ordered them to leave
- threatening them with the guns of the frigate HMS Fly standing to in the bay and the
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artillery of overlooking troops stationed on the high ground to the west (Te Reuroa). After
much deliberation, and in light of the advantageous military position enjoyed by the
forewarned Government forces, they acceded. Meanwhile, the tide had gone out and they
were forced to drag their waka back through the mud to the sea – a toangaroa (‘long drag’)
indeed. The support this erstwhile attacking force had sought from Ngāti Whātua and
Waikato had not been forthcoming – representatives of these groups instead confirming their
allegiance with the Governor [Monin, P. Hauraki Contested 1769-1875. Bridget
Williams.Wellington. 2001. P136-9].
The mere Hinanui o te paua was subsequently presented to Grey by Hauraki chiefs “as a
token of a desire to keep peace with the pakeha from that time” [Graham, G. A Legend of
Old Mahurangi, citing Mereri of Kawerau. The Journal of the Polynesian Society. Vol 27, no.
106. 1918.
http://www.jps.auckland.ac.nz/document/Volume_27_1918/Volume_27%2C_No._106/A_Le
gend_of_old_Mahurangi%2C_by_George_Graham%2C_p_86-
89/p1?page=0&action=searchresult&target=].
The former hostel land is located at the junction of Stanley St, Parnell Rise and Beach Rd but
the beach that once fronted it has been reclaimed and is only remembered in the name of the
road [Op cit Simmons, P41]. The Māori Trustee confirms that it still holds land to provide
hostel accommodation for Māori – leasing some other parts to fund this activity [email
correspondence, 15/6/10].
Waipārūrū
“”Shady or gloomy creek”. (Grafton) Cemetery gully stream. Joined with Waipapa and Te
Ako o Te Tui” [Graham, G. Maori Place Names. Rec. Auckland Inst. Mus. 16: 1-10. 1980.
P37].
Waipapa
""The waters of the flats". The name of a tidal creek which formerly flowed down Stanley
Street" [Simmons, D. Maori Auckland. The Bush Press. Auckland. 1987. P90].
Te Ako o Te Tui
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“The teaching of the tui”. A bush creek and waterfall running through the Auckland Domain
and joining the Waiparuru and Waipapa Creeks [Graham, G. Maori Place Names. Rec.
Auckland Inst. Mus. 16: 1-10. 1980. P11]. It is fed from natural springs that bubble up in
what is now the duck pond. Teaching tui to talk was a traditional practice and the process was
understood to be facilitated at places where other external noises were drowned out – such as
next to the steady noise of a cascade.
POSSIBLE NAMES / NAMING THEMES FOR USE WITHIN WATERFRONT
DEVELOPMENTS
In some places it will be suitable to commemorate historic names such as those discussed in
the preceding sections, by applying them to new features in those locations, eg. Te Pāpaku a
Whai and Te Onemaru a Huatau at Westhaven Marina, Tangihangapūkāea /
Rerengaoraiti where Point Britomart once stood or Te Routu o Ureia off Pt Erin. As much
of the waterfront however is reclaimed land, often completely new suits of names can be
considered.
Tāmaki Herenga Waka: Describes Tāmaki as a meeting place of waka, and metaphorically,
their peoples - reinforcing the concept of Tāmaki as a 'makaurau', a place desired by many.
This could be a theme across the waterfront - the place where over the centuries so many
different waka and ships have arrived bringing new peoples to contribute to the melting pot
that is contemporary Auckland. Auckland's existing wharves have been named to honour
historic figures - Queen's, Prince's, Marsden, Wynyard etc. This trend could be continued in
the naming of new wharves / jetties that are developed (or indeed other elements such as
streets, plazas, parks etc) but could be focused on maritime figures associated with some of
the key waka / ships that brought settlers to Tāmaki, eg. Hoturoa (captain of Tainui),
Tamatekapua (captain of Te Arawa), Hobson (the first Governor, who came in his ship the
Herald) etc. Alternatively the names of some of the vessels themselves could be used, eg.
ancestral waka such as Aotea, plus the names of some of the ships that brought the fencible
soldier settlers to Auckland in the mid 1800s (eg. the Ramillies and Minerva), the Balkan and
Middle Eastern wine growers of the later 19th / early 20th Centuries, post World War Two
migrants from Europe (eg. the Captain Hobson), Pacific Island settlers in the 1960s and 70s
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and perhaps more latterly, migrants from Asia and elsewhere (although of course air travel
has supplanted sea in recent decades).
This theme could be enhanced by adding 'components' of waka that could be used as names,
eg. taurapa (stern), tauihu (bow), tīheru (bailer) or navigational aids associated with
voyaging (eg. stars/whetū such as Māhutonga - the Southern Cross).
Design elements along the waterfront could also reflect this theme, depicting in different
locations through structures or artworks the vessels which have made their landfall here.
It is one possibility for the 'gateway' plaza that is the key arrival point into the Wynyard
Quarter from the Viaduct. "Tāmaki Herenga Waka Plaza" (or "Herenga Waka Plaza" or even
just "Herenga Plaza") - the place where people come together.
Alternatives for this space could be "Nau Mai", "Manaakitia" or "Karanga" Plaza. The first
two express the desire that it be a welcoming, hospitable place that hosts people coming to
the Quarter, the last a response to the area that faces it across the water - Te Wero
('Challenge') Island. If Te Wero is the respectful challenge that confronts ships entering the
viaduct, then "Nau Mai" could be the plaza that welcomes people from the viaduct to the
Wynyard Quarter, heeding the karanga (call) to go there.
Should "Nau Mai" be selected as we recommend, then this could leave "Manaakitia" free for
use on the other side of Te Wero, at the 'Eastern Viaduct'. This has become the social hub of
the Viaduct, where cafes, bars and restaurants are concentrated, and so such a name would
also be appropriate there. An alternative could be "Ngāhau" ("Celebration") Viaduct. All of
these possible names play on different parts of a formal pōwhiri - the wero, karanga and then
the hospitality offered to manuhiri once ceremony has been completed. They continue the
theme that was started with the previous re-development of the Viaduct, when Te Wero
Island's name was bestowed.
Another possible theme derives from the whakatauki 'Te pai me te whai rawa o Tāmaki', by
recalling the natural bounty traditionally found along our waterfront. Kokotā (shell fish - as
reflected in the traditional name for Freemans Bay), tāmure (snapper), mangō (shark),
pātiki (flounder) etc etc all celebrate the larder of Tangaroa (the deity of the ocean) that was
and is the Waitematā. Commercial fishing is to remain a key activity based in the Wynyard
Quarter.
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This theme could be employed as regards the specific opportunity to have names placed into
the paving of Te Wero Island, which already displays representations of pātiki. Another
possibility acknowledges its history as the focus for the 2000 America's Cup defence. The
names of crew members (such as Sir Peter Blake and Russell Coutts) and their boat (NZL60)
could be inscribed as a reminder of those heady days, their achievements and the public
celebrations at the Viaduct. Lucky red socks anyone?
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