‘A spring of memory’: Māori Battalion history preserved in new Putiki dining hall reconstruction

Putiki leaders (from left) Tamahau Rowe, Pipiana Rowe and Hone Tamehana outside the rebuilt Aotea wharenui. Photo / Noam Mānuka Lazarus

Whanganui iwi have celebrated the reopening of their reconstructed historical Aotea wharekai (dining hall) on Putiki Marae.

Putiki leader Pipiana Rowe said it was an emotional experience seeing it again.

“This is a long dream of ours as a collective, as a hapū, as an iwi,” she said.

“It will last for the rest of our lifetime, and then our kids and our mokopuna. Beyond that, well ... the taiao (environment) will tell us.”

About 250 people gathered for the opening on Sunday.

The building was originally constructed in 1919 as a hall for returning Māori Pioneer Battalion soldiers from World War I.

Some Māori soldiers weren’t allowed in RSA spaces even after their return, Putiki leader Tamahau Rowe said.

“The history sits in this house.”

He said that, while the project set up the wharekai for the future, it would acknowledge the past by housing memorabilia from the Māori Pioneer Battalion and the 28th Māori Battalion, which was established in 1940.

“Because the true intentions for this part of the dining room to be built were to never forget.

“This is not just a house, it’s a spring of memory that we’re able to tap into and remember our identity, the integrity of that identity, and never lose it.”

The original roof from the 1919 soldiers’ hall has been preserved.

The Putiki Marae wharekai interior, featuring the preserved roof from the hall that welcomed returning soldiers from World War I. Photo / Noam Mānuka Lazarus

“I’ve grown up, seeing that my entire life. So, having kept that is a reminder,” Pipiana Rowe said.

An old pare (doorway ornament) from the house of Mete Kīngi Te Rangi Paetahi in the 19th century sits above the entrance.

Paetahi was one of the first four Māori elected to Parliament in 1868.

Old images featuring the return of the 28th Māori Battalion to Putiki after the war are printed on the outside of the new windows.

Various taonga are featured around the wharekai, including a gifted carving gifted by the RSA recognising Māori soldiers.

A memorial rests on the marae gates for Whanganui soldiers, including pilot Porokoru Patapu “John” Pohe, who died in 1944 during the Great Escape.

Putiki leader Hone Tamehana said the house was used by neighbouring iwi, upstream hapū, and non-Māori entities too.

“Right through to the consecutive royals coming through, they all came through here.

“So it’s making sure that this is prepared for that same thing.”

The construction took about 15 months and includes an L-shape extension bringing the wharekai from 344 square metres to 591.

Meeting requirements for weather and river conditions were the biggest hurdles.

Tamahau Rowe said the building and ablution block were submerged under a metre of water during the 2015 flood.

“Even before the peg went in, there was some really crucial planning around the fast cycle of floods, weather events that the house had to be ready for.”

The pātaka was always safe during floods, Pipiana Rowe said.

Tamehana acknowledged their kuia Rere-ō-maki, one of only five women to sign the Treaty of Waitangi, who rests in the Pihaia hill urupā beside where the airport has since been constructed.

He said future generations would benefit from the project.

“We’ll keep it warm for them ...

“We want to make mention of our Ngāti Rangi whānau, coming in and opening that for us was extremely significant.”

Construction for this project was funded by the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) and Oranga Marae through a grant process, as well as a portion from Putiki.

He said Maggie Regan, Monty Gurnik of DIA and the late Wiki Mulholland of Te Puni Kōkiri were “very instrumental” in securing funding.

There were still sign-offs to complete before it could be used and hired out.

Ngāti Rangi will celebrate the reopening of their own wharekai, Hohourongo, at Maungārongo Marae in Ohakune this weekend.

Noam Mānuka Lazarus (Ngāti Whātua o Kaipara) is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle.