Nelson Provincial Museum facts for kids
The Nelson Provincial Museum, also called Pupuri Taonga O Te Tai Ao, is a special museum in the city of Nelson, New Zealand. It shows the history of the Nelson and Tasman regions. You can learn about everything from how the land was formed to the stories of local people and families.
The Nelson Provincial Museum has more than 1.4 million interesting items. These have been collected over the past 160 years! The museum's main exhibits are in a modern building that opened in 2005. This building cost NZ$5 million to build. Many groups helped pay for it, including the community, private donors, local councils, and the government. The museum's collections, expert staff, and research services are kept in an older building. This building is located in Isel Park, Stoke.
Contents
History of the Museum
How the Museum Started
The idea for the Nelson Provincial Museum began way back in May 1841. This was even before the first settlers arrived in Nelson! Officers of the Second Colony expedition started a group called the Literary and Scientific Institution of Nelson. They were on ships called Whitby and Will-Watch in the Bay of Biscay.
Before their ships reached Tenerife, the officers collected some money. They sent it back to England to buy "useful" books. These books would become the start of the Institution's library.
Many books were bought and collected by friends of the Colony. The group also wanted other items. They asked for maps, charts, drawings, paintings, and objects from nature. These items would be put in the Institution's Museum. They promised to record the names of everyone who donated something.
In late 1842, the Literary and Scientific Institution of Nelson opened on Trafalgar Street. It first started as a library with a museum storage area. Soon after, the museum part also opened. By 1844, the Institution had sixty members.
Moving and Rebuilding
By 1861, the Institution had grown too big for its Trafalgar Street building. It moved to a wooden building on Hardy Street. Sadly, a fire broke out there in 1906. Most of the collection was saved, but they decided to rebuild. A new brick building opened in 1912. Until 1963, the museum was on the second floor of this building. The Nelson Library was on the first floor.
The museum became more independent in the 1960s. It first moved to Isel House, which was the former home of the Marsden family. Later, it moved into a new concrete building. This building was designed by Alex Bowman and opened in 1973.
A special gallery about Māori history opened in 1983. The teaching area was updated in 1984. A new workshop, storeroom, and darkroom were finished in 1986.
Today, the Nelson Institute, Nelson Public Library, and Nelson Provincial Museum are the modern versions of that first Literary and Scientific Institution of Nelson.
New Management and Location
Since 1965, different groups have managed the museum. These groups represented the councils that helped fund it. In 2000, a new group was formed called the Tasman Bays Heritage Trust. This was a big change! The Tasman District and Nelson City Councils worked with the Iwi Trust Authorities of Te Tau Ihu (local Māori tribes). They wanted the museum to be run by an independent Trust Board.
In 2001, the Tasman Bays Heritage Trust bought a new site. It was on the corner of Hardy and Trafalgar Streets in Nelson. This spot was part of the original Town Acre 445 block. In 2002, the Trust chose Andrew Irving as the architect for the new project. In 2004, Wilkes Construction, a local family company, won the bid to build it. With lots of support from local and national groups, the new museum opened in 2005. This was on the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar.
The old 1973 building in Isel Park is still used today. It serves as a research facility for the museum.
Amazing Collections
The Nelson Provincial Museum has many incredible collections. Here are some of them:
- Kingdon-Tomlinson Family Silver Collection: This collection has over 140 pieces of silver. They date from 1594 to 1800! Julie Annie Tomlinson gave this beautiful collection to the people of Nelson in 1959.
- Bett Collection: This is a huge collection of historical books and archives. Dr. Francis Arnot Blackader Bett (1873–1957) loved collecting things. He gathered books, photos, maps, documents, and paintings. All of these items are about the Nelson region.
- Marsden Collection: This collection has rare and beautiful antique furniture, plates, glassware, and porcelain. Some of the porcelain comes from famous places like Sèvres, Dresden, and Worcester. The museum also holds the Marsden Book Collection. These books are from 1773 to the early 1920s. They are about natural history, discovery, and exploring the Pacific.
- Tyree Studio Collection: This is one of the most complete collections of social history photos in New Zealand! It has more than 105,000 photographic negatives. William Tyree (1855–1924) and Frederick Tyree (1867–1924) were brothers from England. They came to New Zealand in 1871. William started the Tyree Studio in Nelson in 1878. His younger brother Frederick and Rosaline Frank worked with him.
William Tyree carefully recorded the social history of the region until 1895. When he moved to Sydney in 1910, Rosaline Frank managed the studio. Frederick Tyree started his own photo business in Tākaka, Golden Bay. He continued his photography until he died in 1924. The Tyree Studio kept running until 1947 under Rosaline Frank's ownership.
- F.N. Jones Collection: This collection has over 10,000 negatives. They show important public events from around the Nelson region. Frederick Nelson Jones was thought to be one of the first photojournalists of his time.
- The Nelson Mail Photographic Collection: This collection has images from 1979 to 1994. It includes more than 205,000 individual negatives and is still growing!
- Other Collections: The museum also holds many other important collections. These include the Geoffrey C Wood Collection, Manson Collection, Prouse Collection, Nelson College Collection, and more. They also have newspaper collections like The Examiner and The Colonist.
Special Projects
The Glass Plate Negative Project
The museum launched the Glass Plate Negative Project on November 24, 2010. This project aims to move over 150,000 old glass plate negatives. They are being moved from old shelves into special storage that meets modern standards. Before they are packed away, each negative is digitally photographed. This allows them to be used in the museum's online collection database.
Funding for this important project came from the New Zealand Lottery Grant Board, private donors, and the Tasman Bays Heritage Trust. So far, over 100,000 glass plate negatives have been digitized and moved thanks to this project!
