Historic minute book brought home

Far North District Council community and customer service manager Jacine Warmington carefully carrying the Bay of Islands Runanga Commission minute book back to where it belongs, accompanied by Kaikohe Pioneer Village Heritage Park volunteers, council colleagues, councillors and descendants. Photo / Debbie Beadle

An historic book has been returned to its 'home', the Waimate North courthouse, which is now part of the Kaikohe Pioneer Village Heritage Park.

It is the minute book of the Bay of Islands Runanga Commission, which sat at the courthouse, built for that purpose in 1862.

It was the first runanga in New Zealand, established under Governor Grey's Native Administration, with Edward M Williams as the resident magistrate.

The building was used several times as accommodation for new immigrants and Okaihau settler families, but was closed in 1913. Later it was used as a farm cottage, with the minute book remaining there.

In 1974 it was saved from demolition, purchased and delivered to the Kaikohe Pioneer Village Heritage Park by the Kaikohe Rotary and Rotaract clubs.

In 1976 the Village received a letter, and the minute book, from a Mrs Martin, a descendant of a family who had lived in the courthouse, and in 2005 it was sent to the Alexander Turnbull Library for safe keeping.

Four years later it was returned, and found its way to the Kaikohe Library, where it was recently rediscovered in the course of staff clearing out some of the old books.

And on Thursday it was formally returned to its original home, at the Pioneer Village.

Sid Tau, who was part of last week's ceremony, said the occasion was hugely significant and emotional. He had felt the presence of his ancestors around him, people who had used the tools available to them at the time to benefit the Maori nation.

He had paid homage to his ancestors, who had had much to do with the book, and acknowledged their and their Treaty partners' presence.

It had been an extraordinary time, he added. Maoridom had had 96 six ships trading across the globe, and thousands of acres of wheat and corn.

"We were sent to England to learn agriculture; Rawiri Tautonga, who was the very first commercial farmer, came from Kaikohe," he said.

"When Ngapuhi comes together and builds their museum, I would like to see us sharing taonga like this. It's all about unity and sharing and bringing our taonga out to share and view and understand," Mr Tau said.