"If you look at the definition of stolen, then no it wasn't stolen but in saying that it was done in a way that morally a lot of people would dispute now.
"The Heretaunga purchase had nothing to do with McLean it was Thomas Tanner who was involved in those parts.
Tanner was a 19th Century Member of Parliament who represented the Waipawa electorate from 1887 to 1890.
Mr Fowler said there was, however, a lot of coercion and pressure to sign the Heretaunga purchase.
"They used a lot of debt to force Maori to sell the land. They ran up the debts and said you owe us this much and if you sell us the land your debt will be paid."
Massey University's lecturer in Maori history Peter Meihana was unsure if one province could be called more historically racist than another.
"I know of certain pockets in my own tribal area that would give Hawke's Bay, or any other province for that matter a run for their money."
He said Hawke's Bay is significant because it was one of the first areas in which the Native Land Court began operating.
"This allowed the settlers to formalise leases which in turn led to the alienation of land. Maori of course were quite happy to lease. Hawke's Bay Maori were soon petitioning parliament to investigate the court and the unscrupulous way in which it was being used to acquire land."
He said the 1872 Hawke's Bay Land Alienation Commission found that there were "irregularities" and some "dodgy land sales".
"According to the Commission, 'a court of conscience', it was in nobody's best interest to overturn dodgy land sales even though a court of law would have, which the commission acknowledged.
"I think in this instance it is fair to say the settlers were privileged over and above Maori."
He said there was a belief among the settlers and the settler government that too much land was detrimental to Maori.
"Maori couldn't bring it into production and letting them lease it would engender laziness, thus, it was better to take the land from them.
"This was policy. The cultural maxim that 'New Zealand was built on the back of sheep' falls someway short of the truth if you ask me."
He said all of this was not peculiar to Hawke's Bay, but the region's settlers were quick to take advantage of native land legislation at the expense of Maori.
Mr Fowler said it was mostly Irish, English and Scottish that had settled, not the influx of Chinese settlers that were seen in Otago during the gold rush and thus said he was unaware of any prejudice towards other ethnicities.
Mr Fowler said he was sure there were bad instances of Maori being ill treated particularly at the dawn of the 20th Century.