Kauri Museum Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Kauri Museum at Matakohe
Kauri Museum at Matakohe Location in Northland Region

This powerful 1929 Caterpillar tractor is on display at the Kauri Museum. It was one of the first five brought to New Zealand in 1930 to help pull logs, replacing many teams of bullocks.

The Kauri Museum is a special place located in Matakohe, a small village on the west coast of Northland, New Zealand. It's like a giant history book that tells the amazing story of how early European settlers lived and worked in this area. They focused on collecting kauri timber and kauri gum from the huge kauri forests.

The museum is found south of the famous Waipoua Forest. It has many exhibits that show what life was like during the pioneering days. These were the times when people first started to settle and build communities in this part of New Zealand.

Exploring the Kauri Museum's Collections
- Amazing Kauri Furniture and Homes
- Giant Trees and Sawmills
Learning About Kauri Conservation
External links
See also

Exploring the Kauri Museum's Collections

The Kauri Museum has a huge indoor space, over 4000 square meters, filled with incredible displays. It holds the largest collection of kauri gum in the entire world. Kauri gum is like fossilized resin from kauri trees, used for many things in the past.

Amazing Kauri Furniture and Homes

You can also see the biggest collection of furniture made from kauri wood. The museum features a detailed model of a kauri house from the 1900s. This model house is complete with furniture and small figures dressed in the clothes people wore back then. It helps you imagine what life was like over a hundred years ago.

Giant Trees and Sawmills

On the walls, there are outlines showing how big some of the kauri trees used to be. One outline is 8.5 meters around, which is even bigger than Tāne Mahuta, one of the largest kauri trees still alive today. The museum also has a working model of a steam sawmill. This shows how logs were cut into timber using steam power.

Learning About Kauri Conservation

The Kauri Museum helps people understand why it's so important to protect the remaining kauri forests. It has a special display of photographs by Stephen King, a conservationist. This display was created with the Waipoua Forest Trust. It helps raise awareness about keeping these ancient forests safe for the future.