Small Objects Tell Big Stories At This Year’s Te Waimate Show

The power of small objects to tell big stories will be on display at this year’s Bay of Islands P&I Show at Waimate North (November 9).

Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga will use a number of historic military buttons, found in the cellar of Te Waimate Mission close to the Waimate North showgrounds, to tell the story of war in the area.

Te Waimate Mission is cared for by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga and is a Tohu Whenua.

“Te Waimate Mission has a history of being impacted by conflicts over the years, and this history is represented by several military buttons found at the site of the mission,” says Property Lead Te Waimate and the Hokianga, Lindis Capper-Starr.

“The buttons are a great example of how small, everyday objects tell much bigger stories.”

The buttons were found in a box in the mission house cellar some years ago, and recently underwent conservation cleaning by Heritage New Zealand volunteer and military specialist Jack Kemp.

After careful cleaning and research by Jack, one of the buttons was identified as that of a 58th Regiment soldier’s uniform – a tangible reminder of the impact survivors of the 58th, 96th and 99th Regiments had on the mission when they were billeted there following the catastrophic attack at Ōhaeawai in June 1845.

Other buttons include a Naval uniform button from the same era, New Zealand military service buttons from either World War I or II, and a series of buttons depicting thistles – a World War I-era Royal Scots Guard pipers uniform.

“Te Waimate Mission and the wider Waimate North area have been impacted by war over the years – first by the Northern Wars in 1845, then later World War I and after that World War II during which Waimate North was a central part of Northland’s defence network,” says Lindis.

“Although these are simple objects in themselves, the buttons represent big historical themes like colonial expansion and global conflict in the 20th Century. We look forward to sharing some of these stories at the Bay of Islands P&I Show.”

Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga is also sponsoring the Heritage Prize for the best Heritage exhibit at this year’s Bay of Islands P&I Show.

See War and Peace at Te Waimate at Site 41.

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