He Panui

A word from our Director of Museum and Heritage – Anne Blyth.

Tēnā koutou katoa,

Due to unforeseen circumstances, the Museum will be temporarily closed from Friday 21st October 2022, and will remain closed while we work through the results of a Seismic Assessment Report.

Museum staff are currently working from alternative locations.

Education Programmes are still operating utilising alternate sites and our education handling collection – contact the Museum Educator Kerrin Carr email LEOTC@waipadc.govt.nz or phone 07 984 7310.

For all other Museum enquiries please phone 07 872 0085 and your call will be directed to the appropriate staff member, alternatively you can email museum@waipadc.govt.nz.

Rest assured we are regularly checking the Museum to ensure the collection/taonga remains safe.

For regular updates you can also check out the Waipā District Council and the Museum Facebook Pages.

Further Information regarding the closure can be found here:

In the meantime there are a number of things to do and check out!

Our collection on-line https://collection.tamuseum.org.nz/explore
Out the front of the Museum we have some FREE whānau activity brochures – Te Ara Wai Journeys and Clue Gos to activate your family’s knowledge about local history
Visit the Waipā District Council foyer to see one of our amazing Museum collection displays
Check out Te Ara Wai Journeys online at www.tearawai.nz and head out to some of the sites of heritage significance in the District

We recommend schools and ECE contact the Museum Educator Kerrin Carr for information about education programmes either email LEOTC@waipadc.govt.nz or phone +64798 47310.

For all enquiries contact museum@waipadc.govt.nz and also check out the council and Museum FB pages for updates. Information can be found here: https://bit.ly/3MJCTXs

In the meantime, there are a number of things to do and check out!

Collections online here: https://collection.tamuseum.org.nz/explore
Out front of the Museum we have some FREE whānau activity brochures like – Te Ara Wai Journeys and Clue Gos.
Visit the Waipā District Council foyer to see one of our amazing Museum collection displays.
Check out Te Ara Wai Journeys online at www.tearawai.nz

Ka kite anō

Anne Blyth

Tui & Tama Great Bat Trail 2022

Welcome one and all to the spookiest time of the year!

It’s the Tui & Tama Great Bat Trail 2022! Join us in the Museum as you work your way around to find the amazing coloured bats, hiding amongst some of the galleries. Find all the bats in the activity sheet and receive a Pekapeka badge!

The Great Bat Trail starts 22nd October, running through to 5th November!

We are sincerely sorry, but this event is postponed for now. Check back for updates soon!

Tama’s Dinosaur Hunt

FREE fun here at the Museum with Tama’s Dinosaur Hunt!

You get an activity book to do either in the Museum or take it home.

Find all the hidden dinosaurs in the Curioseum, do the word search and colour in your dinosaurs. Lots of fun things to do, see and learn at the Museum.

We are sincerely sorry, but this event is postponed for now. Check back for updates soon!

Pekapeka FREE Activities

Join in the fun of our Pekapeka Bats FREE Activities. Make an amazing flapping or hanging bat! Put them on our Halloween tree in the Museum foyer!

All Tui & Tama Cub members receive a special Pekapeka badge!

All this and more at your Museum!

October School Holidays

New Zealand Land Wars

“E hoa! Ka whahwai tonu mātou, mō Ake, Ake Ake!”

When called upon to surrender by the British Troops at Ō-rākau Pā in 1864, Rewi Maniapoto uttered those famous words translated into English – “Friend! We will fight on for ever and ever!” Ō-rākau Pā was sacked 2nd April 1864, the last of a trail of battles littered across the Waipā district between February – April 1864 by British soldiers. These events at Ō-rākau were largely unknown until a monument was erected at the Pā site in 1914 for Māori heroism, 50 years after the siege. Since then the most prominent memorial event was held in the Waipā at Ō-rākau in 2014, 150 years after the sacking of the pā. Local and national interest grew to ensure local history be included in the education curriculum. In 2017, students from the Ōtorohanga High School, sought through a public petition, to have local history taught in schools with the main aim to create a day of remembrance of the New Zealand Land Wars.

On the Front Porch Gallery this month highlights He Rā Maumahara: National commemoration of the New Zealand Land Wars. The flag created to highlight this event in the Waipā reminds locals and visitors of this incredible time in history. On show are projected images of the graphic novel as seen on Te Ara Wai Journeys, archival photographs and objects from the Museum collection pertaining to the 1863-1864 Waikato Wars. In the display case is a map and ephemera from past commemorations held at Ō-rākau.

For more information on He Rā Maumahara, and Waikato Wars click the links below:

New Zealand Government

NZ History online

Te Ara Wai Journeys

Front Porch Gallery

October 2022

Pekapeka in Aotearoa New Zealand

Did you know?

Aotearoa New Zealand has two living species of endemic bats, found here in Aotearoa. The short-tailed pekapeka is endangered, at risk and declining. The long-tailed pekapeka is also endangered and classified as nationally vulnerable. A third species; the greater short-tailed bat is thought to be extinct. Pekapeka are known to habitat in the Waipā, however, with Waikato undergoing rapid development bat habitats are decreasing due to loss of roost trees, increase in street lighting and an increase in predators like domestic cats.

Find out more information on these amazing mammals in the display on the Back Porch Gallery. Lots of information, images and activities. Part of this exhibition is in collaboration with local school Pekapekarau. As part of their learning about the local curriculum, they connection with Project Echo to find out more about pekapeka and the original name of the school which led to a hui with local Māori that signalled a change their school name to Pekapekarau – multitude of bats! We have some great artwork from pupils and some amazing videos showcasing pupils stories about pekapeka.

On display from October 2022 – January 2023.