Te Waimate Mission facts for kids
The Te Waimate Mission was a very important place in early New Zealand history. It was the fourth mission station built by the Church Missionary Society (CMS). It was also the first settlement built inland, away from the coast, in the Bay of Islands area.
The people chosen to start Te Waimate Mission at Waimate North were Reverend William Yate and other members like Richard Davis, George Clarke, and James Hamlin.
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Starting the Te Waimate Mission
Around 1830, a man named Samuel Marsden had an idea. He wanted to build a special farming village for Māori people at Te Waimate. The Church Missionary Society (CMS) bought land from the Ngāpuhi tribe to make this happen.
In 1830, Richard Davis, who was a farmer and a CMS member, started a farm at the Waimate Mission.
Later, in 1835, William Williams, his wife Jane, and their family moved to Waimate. William Williams continued his important work there, translating the Bible into Māori.
The boarding school for the sons of CMS missionaries also moved to Te Waimate Mission from Paihia. In September 1839, Richard Taylor became the new head of the Waimate Boys’ School.
A famous visitor came to Te Waimate Mission on December 23 and 24, 1835. It was Charles Darwin! His ship, HMS Beagle, spent ten days in the Bay of Islands.
The village had three wooden houses for the missionary families. It also had a flour mill, a printery, a carpenters' shop, a brickworks, a blacksmith, a school, and of course, a church.
Marsden hoped that Māori people would learn about European culture here. He also wanted Te Waimate Mission to make money by selling goods to European ships and local Māori people through the Stone Store at Kerikeri. However, this idea of teaching European culture and using the students as workers did not attract many Māori. So, the mission station slowly became less active.
St. John the Baptist Church
The building of St. John the Baptist Church began in May 1831. It was finished very quickly, in just six weeks! The church was named St. John the Baptist because his special day is June 24. This first church building was also used as a school room.
The very first child to be baptised at the church was Edward Blomfield Clarke on July 10, 1831. The first wedding between two Europeans in New Zealand happened here on October 11, 1831. It was between William Gilbert Puckey (who was 26) and Matilda Elizabeth Davis (who was 17).
The church building you see today, which is still called St. John the Baptist Church, was built later in 1871.
St. John’s College at Te Waimate Mission
In June 1842, Bishop George Selwyn came to live at Te Waimate Mission. Some of the mission buildings were changed to be used for St. John’s College. This college taught theology, which is the study of religious faith, to people who wanted to become priests in the Anglican Church.
Some of the people who became deacons (a type of church leader) here were:
- Richard Davis (June 11, 1843)
- Seymour Mills Spencer, William Bollard, and Henry Francis Butt (September 24, 1843)
- William Colenso, Thomas Chapman, James Hamlin, Joseph Matthews, and Christopher Pearson Davies (September 22, 1844)
On September 26, 1844, Bishop Selwyn led the first Synod (a church meeting) ever held in New Zealand. Later in 1844, Bishop Selwyn moved his home and St. John’s College to Auckland.
Te Waimate Mission After 1845
During the Flagstaff War, soldiers from the 58th and 99th Regiments were buried in the graveyard of St. John the Baptist Church. These soldiers had died in the Battle of Ohaeawai in July 1845. Among them were Captain Grant and Lieutenant George Phillpotts from HMS Hazard.
The mission station was used as the main base for the British army from June 15, 1845, to October 6, 1845. After this, the mission lost support from many Māori people. The mission station slowly fell apart, and its buildings were later put up for sale.
Today, the only original building left at the site is the house where George Clarke lived. It is now looked after by Heritage New Zealand and is a museum. One of the other original houses is now at the Butler Point Whaling Museum. A third building was sold and moved to Kerikeri, where it is still used as a home today.
Important People at Te Waimate Mission
Many members of the Church Missionary Society worked at Te Waimate Mission:
- William Yate: He arrived in 1828 and was chosen to lead the mission in 1830.
- George Clarke: He arrived in 1824 and worked as a blacksmith. He taught Māori students at Te Waimate Mission from 1830 to 1840.
- Richard Davis: A farmer who arrived in 1824. He started the farm at Waimate Mission in 1830 and stayed until 1845. He returned to the mission from 1854 to 1863.
- William Gilbert Puckey: He worked at Te Waimate Mission before starting the Kaitaia Mission in 1834. He was very good at translating the Māori language.
- James Hamlin: He arrived in 1826 and worked at Te Waimate Mission from 1830 to 1834. He then left to start a mission station at Puriri.
- William Williams: He moved to Te Waimate Mission in 1835. He was the head of the Waimate Boys’ School and kept working on translating the Bible into Māori.
- Richard Taylor: He arrived in 1839 and became the head of the school at Te Waimate Mission until 1842.
- William Colenso: He arrived in 1834 as a printer. In 1843, he came to Te Waimate Mission to study to become a church leader.
- Robert Maunsell: He arrived at Te Waimate Mission in 1835. He later became an expert in the Māori language and helped revise the translation of the Old Testament into Māori.
- Robert Burrows: He was in charge of St. John the Baptist Church from 1844 to 1854.
- Henry Williams: He was a senior church leader (Archdeacon) at Te Waimate from 1844 to 1867.
- Edward Blomfield Clarke: He was the son of George Clarke. He was in charge of St. John the Baptist Church from 1863 to 1884 and later became the Archdeacon of Te Waimate.
