Tōia a Taranaki ki te wharau! - Mapping the way forward to reconnecting whānau and whenua

More than 320 roll plans of the Taranaki District, some dating back to the 1880s, are under the kaitiakitanga of Toitū Te Whenua/Land Information NZ (LINZ), which has made them accessible to the PKW Rau Titikura shareholder engagement team.

“We need to acknowledge the generosity of spirit and mātauranga the team at LINZ have shown by gifting us this taonga,” says Adrian Poa, PKW Te Rau Tātai Kura/ Shareholder Engagement Advisor. “They not only gave us access to Land Online, which is the electronic database of New Zealand’s land interests, but also digitised the roll plans so we could read the information they contained.”

“Previously the roll plans could only be seen by going in person to Wellington, where they are stored, so the commitment of the skills and resources to create highquality laser scan images for us was truly amazing.”

The experts created 686 images from the plans, which are essentially very large maps rolled up for ease of storage, as some plans turned out to have several sheets inside the roll. The maps held a very wide range of content across a considerable timeframe, including a 1963 Plan for New Plymouth Aerodrome.

The relationship between PKW and Toitū Te Whenua was a ‘beautiful unintended consequence’, as Adrian describes it, of the missing shareholders project with Auckland and Victoria Universities.

“Sydney Shep in Wellington reached out to many different organisations to access data for the project, which led to kōrero with Warwick Terry, Director Strategy at Toitū Te Whenua,” explains Adrian. “He was very enthusiastic about how they could help and brought Māori Business manager, Apanui Williams, and National Records Manager Alison Midwinter on board.”

“Nicola Short, Kaiwhakahaere Hononga, Customer Relationship Manager – Māori Land & Property, led the team, and it all went from there.” Adrian says although the team knew the maps were there, the level of detail they contain has been a revelation.

“When we saw them for the first time, it was amazing, just amazing, to see all the old names and outlines from across the years. It was a great feeling to be able to reconnect with the whenua from across the years.”

“One map contained the names of all the different rapids on the Whanganui River, and we could track name changes, for example, the Te Oho block named in the 1963 Amalgamation order is now known as Section 370 Okotuku District.”

Above image: One of the intricately detailed maps of the original 212 Maori land blocks in Taranaki.

The information means that PKW will be able to bring whānau back through history to reconnect with their whenua once more, showing them the changes across the years and taking them to stand once again on family land.

“They will be able to share their raupatu kōrero, the impact that it had on them and their whānau and begin to rebuild those essential connections once more.” says Adrian.

The PKW Rau Whakauruora taiao team has already been able to look at the digitised files, and their response was a pivotal part of the journey as uri o Taranaki, says Adrian.

“The whenua they are responsible for and know so well took on an added dimension for them when the depth of its history was laid out before them.

“I am looking forward to sharing these maps with whānau and seeing their reactions.”

While the project is drawing to a close at the end of June, the partnerships that have been established between PKW, Toitū Te Whenua and Auckland and Victoria Universities will remain.

“Building networks and partnerships such as these are the key to uncovering more information and knowledge on behalf of our Rau Titikura shareholders and whānau, and discovering how best to use it.” says Adrian.

Team leader Nicola said: “Toitū Te Whenua is inspired by the work that PKW and the project team are doing. To connect Adrian with survey records that contain a full and rich set of information to assist with reconnecting whānau and whenua has been very rewarding. We look forward to an enduring and lasting partnership with PKW.”