TE WHANGANUI - A - OROTU CLAIM (WAI-55)
25 July 1990
A Preliminary Historical Report
Joy Hippolite
Waitangi Tribunal Division
TE WHANGANUI-A-OROTU, NAPIER INNER HARBOUR
The area under claim, Te Whanganui-a-Orotu, also called the
Ahuriri Lagoon, and known as the Napier Inner Harbour, is
purported to have been sold to Donald McLean in the 1851
Ahuriri purchase.
On 17 November 1851 Donald McLean, Land Commissioner,
completed the purchase of the Ahuriri Block from Tareha te
Moananui, Paoro Torotoro, Karanama te Nahu and others.
Approximately 265,000 acres were bought for £1,500, 1000 of
which was paid at the time. The rest, £500, was due on
November 1852. 1
Reserved out of the deed, amongst others, was the island in
Te Whanganui-a-Orotu named Roro-o-Kuri. Also reserved was a
portion of Mataruahou named Pukemokimoki. Provision for a
landing place for Ngati Kahungunu's canoes was also included
in the deed.
On 29 December 1851 Donald McLean, writing to the Colonial
Secretary, reported that;
Tareha and other Chiefs at Ahuriri were anxious to have several portions of valuable land reserved for them on both sides of the Harbour, especially on Mataruahau Island, which they had always considerable reluctance in transferring, from a fear that they might be eventually deprived of their right of fishing, collecting pipis, and other shell fish which abound in the Bay; these rights, so necessary for their subsistence, I assured them they could always freely exercise in common with the Europeans, and in order that they should be fully satisfied on this point a clause has been inserted in the deed to that effect. With reference, however, to the reservations for fishing villages and other purposes, I objected to all of them excepting one pa, in the occupation of Tareha, where some of his relatives are buried, and which he is to retain until such time as the Government may hereafter require the spot faI public improvements, such as deepening or reclaiming some portions of the Harbour. In lieu, however, of these reservations so much demanded by the Natives, and which would materially interfere with the laying off a Town,
1 Volume II, Turton's Deeds p491, Doc #A2.
2
I proposed to Tareha the he, as the principal Chief, on relinquishing all claims to such spots, should have a town section granted to him in any place he might select on the North Spit of the Harbour, which he has agreed to accept, and I hope that His Excellency will approve of this arrangement: I also informed the Chiefs that His Excellency had instructed public reservations to be made, which would most probably include a site for a church, hospital, market-ground, and landing place for their canoes, and that every facility would be afforded them of re-purchasing land from the Government. 2
On 26 February 1853 McLean wrote to the Civil Secretary
reporting:
I have the honour to report to you for the information of His Excellency the Governor-in-Chief that the second and last instalment of £500 for the Ahuriri District was paid to the Natives on the 8th of January last. 3
By a deed dated 13 November 1856 Mataruahou, or Scinde Island,
was purchased from Tareha and two others for the price of £50.
Twenty five of which had been paid by McLean on 11 April 1855 f
the previous year. The remaining £25 was paid on the day of
the purchase by G S Cooper, District Commissioner. Also as
part of the purchase price two Town sections in Napier were
granted to Tareha. 4
Ten years after the initial purchase of the Ahuriri Block
Cooper, in a letter dated the 20 June 1861 to the Chief
Commissioner, reported that Tareha maintained that the lagoon
had not been included in the purchase. According to Cooper,
Tareha stated that he had only sold the land as far as high
water mark, the rest was his property as it had been under the
2 Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives (hereafter AJHR) 1862 C-l, no.lO, Doc #AS(a).
3 MA series 24/16, Native Land Purchase Commissioner Outward Letters, National Archives, Wellington.
4 Vol. II. Turton's Deeds, p.509, see also Deed Receipt no.6 dated 11 April 1855, Mataruahou (Land Adjacent to), p.580, Doc #A8 (a), #A8 (b) .
3
sea when he sold the Ahuriri Block.s
On 16 August 1866 Te Pahou (a peninsular), Te Roro-o-Kuri (an
island reserved out of the 1851 Ahuriri purchase), Te
Ihuoterei and Parapara (islands in the Ahuriri Lagoon) were
investigated by the Native Land Court. An order was made that
a Crown grant be issued to:
l. Paora Torotoro
2. Turuhira Te Heitoroa
3. Maihi Raukapua
4. Hama Paeroa
5. Te Waka Takahari
6. Pera Te Rl..lakowhai
7 . Matiu Te Manuhira
8 . Morehu
9 • Te Waka Kawetini
10. Hoera Paretutu
for Te Ihuoterei, Parapara and Te Roro-o-Kuri islands. This
was issued on the 3 October 1866. 6
In 1869 Te Whare-o-Maraenui Block, that portion of the Inner
Harbour whose boundaries were outside the boundary of the
Ahuriri Block, was purchased by the Crown. 1818 acres were
purchased on 22 December 1869. 7 Ten acres were reserved for
Tareha in the deed.
In 1872 Pukemokimoki (the hill where the moki moki grew) was
removed to make room for a railway.s According to Wilson this
hill was especially reserved when the Ahuriri was sold in 1851
because the moki moki (sweet-scented fern) was much prized by
5 AJHR 1862 C-1, no.74, Doc #AS(a).
6 AAMK 869/202b National Archives, Doc #A7(a).
7 MA-MLP series 6/3 Copies of deeds of sale, Hawkes Bay, National Archives.
8 J G Wilson, History of Hawkes Bay, (A H & A W Reed, Wellington, 1939), p.418.
4
the tribes for miles around. 9
Under the Napier Harbour Board Act, 1874 10 the Ahuriri Lagoon
was vested in the Napier Harbour Board. This Bill was debated
in Parliament (Legislative Council) while Donald McLean was
Native Minister and Member for Napier.
The Hon Mr Stokes, Hawkes Bay explained the bill as;
A Bill to endow the [Harbour] Board with certain lands that might give them some means of improving the harbour as it at present existed. Those endowments were contained in the schedule. There were sundry small blocks of land which had already been voted by the Provincial Council for that purpose and a block containing about 1,781 acres [Whare-o-Maraenui] which had been purchased by the province. There were two other blocks, which he supposed an American would designate as being land possessing extensive water privileges, as the land was at present under the water and would be of little use to the Harbour Board unless a considerable sum was spent in reclamation ... In the early history of the province, when land sales were extensive, and the Provincial Council was first constituted ... in their desire to spend money as fast as they could, they attempted to make improvements in the port of Napier, which was called the Iron Pot. They spent about €10,OOO in improving the Pot, and after they had done so they found that the last state of the Pot was worse than the first. 11
In 1876 further land was vested in the Harbour Board by the
Napier Harbour Board Act, 1876, an act to reserve land as an
endowment for the Harbour of Napier. 12
Following a request from the Harbour Board that land excluded
by Gazette notice from sale for public purposes (Hawkes Bay
Gazette 20 June 1872 and 5 May 1873) be vested in the Board
10 Doc #A4 ( a) .
11 New Zealand Parliamentary Debates 1874, 14 August 1874, pp.592-594.
12 Doc #AB ( c ) .
5
the Napier Harbour Board Amendment and Endowment Improvement
Act, 188713 was passed. 14 This Act amended the description
of the boundaries of the Ahuriri Lagoon Block and gave power
to the Napier Harbour Board to carry out certain works and
improvements upon the reserve. The Act authorised the Harbour
Board to fill up and reclaim the reserve known as Te Whare-o
Maraenui and part of the Ahuriri Lagoon.
The Napier Harbour Board Amendment and Further Empowering Act,
188915 amended the Napier Harbour Board Amendment and
Endowment Improvement Act, 1887 and gave greater powers to the
Harbour Board to provide for the payment on any loans raised
for the improvements.
In 1896 the Harbour Board requested Certificates of Title to
the area. The Under-Secretary of Lands replied to the
Secretary to the Harbour Board that the Act of 1874 vested the
land mentioned in that Act in the Board without conveyance;
and the Act of 1887 only amended the description of one of the
areas reserved. 16
W R Jourdain writing on his Reminiscences of a Civil Servant
recalled a flood in Easter 1897. According to Jourdain three
days of heavy rain had brought down a great flood and;
the outlet at Port Ahuriri being partly blocked by heavy seas the lagoon and adjoining land were covered with flood waters and for miles to the south a huge sheet of water was formed ... The flood waters grew in extent so much that on the night of Good Friday, the land spit five miles to the south of Napier gave way to the pressure and the flood waters swept through the embankment to the sea to a width of seventy yards ... When the flood waters had drained away by the next week it was found that the silt deposited by the flood waters
13 Doc #A4 (b) •
14 L&S 29057, Napier Harbour Board, 1887-1936, National Archives, Doc #A8(d).
15 Doc #A4(c).
16 L&S 29057, Doc #A8(d).
6
had filled the Inner Harbour and reclaimed the swamp area, and with a certain amount of filling in, the new suburb of Napier South was formed with streets, houses, parks, etc., over what was once a lagoon and swamp.17
The Napier Harbour Board Amendment and Endowment Improvement
Act, 189918 amended the 1887 and 1889 acts and gave further
powers to the Harbour Board to deal with the lands described
in those acts. The Napier Harbour Board was empowered to sell
part of the land of Te Whare-o-Maraenui Block and the Ahuriri
Lagoon in order to pay for reclamation and improvements to the
area.
The Napier Harbour Board Exchange of Lands Empowering Act,
190619 enabled the Harbour Board to exchange certain lands
vested in them for other lands.
The Napier Harbour Board Amendment and Endowment Improvement
Act, 191220 amended the 1887, 1889 and 1899 acts and gave
further borrowing powers to the Harbour Board for reclamation
and improvements.
The Napier Harbour Board Empowering and Loan Act, 191421
enabled the Harbour Board to carry out harbour-works in the
inner harbour.
The issue concerning Te Whanganui-a-Orotu appears to have
first been brought before the Native Land Court in 1916 for
investigation of title. 22 The Court decided that under
17 W R Jourdain, Reminiscences of a Civil Servant by "George, It (1938) (Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington) ppll-12.
18 Doc #A4 (d) .
19 Dco #A4 (e) .
20 Doc #A4(f).
21 Doc #A4(g) .
22 AJHR 1948 G-6A, p.l, Doc #A5 (m) .
7
section 432 of the Native Land Act, 1909 it had no
jurisdiction to investigate the title to the area, as it had
been vested in the Harbour Board before 1892. The application
was dismissed. It was assumed however, by the Court, that Te
Whanganui-a-Orotu had been sold to the Crown. 23
On 9 May 1916, Waha Ponga, Aporo te Huiki, and Hiha
Ngarangioue appealed against the decision of 13 April 1916. 24
They approached a Mr C B Morison to represent them in the
Appellate Court, who contacted the Lands Department requesting
to see the deed and plan of the Ahuriri purchase. 25 This
prompted discussion between the Solicitor-General in
Wellington and the Under Secretary for Lands. In a memorandum
dated 25 August 1916 to the Solicitor-General the Under
Secretary stated that the boundaries were described in the
deed to which a map was attached. "This map shows the inner
harbour as being included in the purchase, but from the
description in the deed, it would appear that the inner
harbour is not so included." However he concluded as "the
waters of the inner harbour are unquestionably tidal, the
inconsistency does not seem to be of much importance. ,,26
The Solicitor-General was in agreement. On 28 August 1916 he
replied;
On examining the Deed of Purchase from the Natives of the Ahuriri Block, it would seem clear that the purchase does not include the inner harbour. The description in the body of the deed shows the boundary as following the interior of the harbour. It is true that the plan attached to the deed would, by its colouring, indicate the inclusion of the inner harbour. This, however, I take to be an error and the exterior red line on the plan must be taken to refer merely to the spit of land
23 Native Land Court, Napier Minute Book no.66, p.235, Hastlngs 13 Aprll 1916. COpl~S on mlcrotllm held by Natlonal Archives, Wellington.
24 AJHR 1948 G6A, p27, Doc 4/=A5 (m) .
3 L&S 29057, Doc 4/=A8(d).
26 ibid.
8
lying between the inner harbour and the sea. however that the question is_> of no importance. 27
I agree, practical
He was definitely of the opinion that the "Natives" had no
title to the land citing the Court of Appeal case Waipapakura
v Hempton 33 NZLR 1065 as his evidence. Mr Morison was to be
allowed to see the deed and plan but he was not allowed to
take a copy of the deed or list of signatories.
In 1918 application for investigation of title to the Urewiri
and other islands in the lake was made. The matter came
before Judge Jones at Napier on the 12 February 1918 but could
not be proceeded with because no survey had been made of the
islands. 28
The matter appears to have been brought before Parliament in
1918. 29 According to the petitioners they were advised by Mr
Herries, Minister of Native Affairs, to meet with the Harbour
Board. The meeting with the Napier Harbour Board, which took
place on the 10 May 1918 I was reported in the Hawkes Bay
Herald 24 May 1918. 30
Wahaponga advised the Harbour Board that what they were
concerned with was the land under the water, which formerly
was owned by the ancestors of those representing Ngati
Kahungunu, but now was the property of the Board. He referred
to statements of his ancestors with regard to Te Whanganui-a
Orotu: "You have the water, I will hold the land." He then
went on to relate that the
27 ibid.
28AAMK 869/202b, Doc :/fA 7 (a) .
29 see petition no. 365/1919, Mohi Te Atahikoia, AJHR 1948 G6A, Doc :/fA 6 (f) and no. 419/1924, Waha Pango, AAMK 869/202b Doc :/fA6 (i) .
30 Doc :/fA8 ( e) .
9
... pipis, kuku, and fish, these are for both pakeha and Maori, and if the Government should at any time desire to make a road across this area, let the matter be dealt with by both parties before action should be taken. We have dealt with the subject for some time, but so far without tangible results. We therefore now approach the members of the Harbour Board as we have ascertained that they are in possession. We have no doubt in our minds that we own the land in the Inner Harbour but we wish to approach the Harbour Board in a friendly spirit so that this difficulty can be adjusted. We know that the Government and the Harbour Board claim that the King is the owner of the tidal waters. The Pakehas arriving in New Zealand found the salt water in the district - it was not fetched by the pakehas. 31
Mohi te Atahikoia maintained that the "Whanga-nui-o-rotu"
referred to the land under the water as well as to the waters
and that when their ancestors sold lands in the district this
particular piece was not sold. "Our ancestors," he said,
realised that "their descendants would require this portion
for their food supply." He went on to add that they had only
just discovered that Te Whanganui-a-Orotu had been vested in
the Harbour Board in 1874. Apparently they were the owners
of the islands in the lagoon only, but even there they were
not consul ted when the Harbour Board took an is land for
railways purposes or built a lighthouse on Urewiri Island.
He referred to Article 2 of the Treaty of Waitangi, which he
maintained guaranteed to the Maori their food supply areas,
and pointed out that New Zealand was at this stage fighting
a war over the nullifying of a treaty. The Harbour Board
therefore should consider their rights under the treaty and
consult with the Maori on things affecting their land. 32
Te Roera Tareha confirmed Atahikoia's assertion that they had
only heard recently that the area was vested in the Harbour
Board. He was the son of Tareha who had arranged most of the
sales in the area from 1851-1874 and maintained that his
father would have been "one of the first to protest against
31 Hawkes Bay Herald, 24 May 1918, p.6, Doc #A8(e).
32 ibid.
10
the present arrangement had he been aware that our title to
those ancestral fishing grounds would have been taken from
us." He asked that the title to the lands under the water be
returned to them. 33
According to the petitioners the Chairman of the Harbour Board
stated "that it is to be admitted that the Lake belonged to
the Maories. ,,34
The Napier Harbour Board and Napier High School Empowering
Act, 191835 provided for the acquisition by the Napier High
School Board of a portion of Te Whare-o-Maraenui reserve for
a site for a Boys High School.
The appeal concerning the investigation of title to Whanganui
a-Orotu was held in Hastings on the 11 April 1919. Wahapango
and Aporo appeared and withdrew their appeal. The appeal was
dismissed. 36
The same year Mohi te Atahikoia and 47 others petitioned
Parliament claiming a portion of the sea called Te Whanganui
a-Orotu and the land known as the Puketitiri Reserve.
According to this petition the tribe had arranged with McLean
that the land under the water should not be taken as well as
the water because of the food in the sea, an important food
resource for the tribe. 37
This petition was referred to the 1920 Native Land Claims
Commission.
33 ibid.
~ petition no. 419/1924, Doc #A6(i).
35 Doc #A4 (h) .
36 Napier Minute Book no.63, p.212.
TI Petition no. 365/1919, Doc #A6(f).
11
The Native Land Claims Commission although sympathetic to the
Maori claimants found that the lagoon had been included in the
original purchase. 38 The Commission maintained that "it was
made clear to the Natives that the Crown was buying the land
and their interests in the harbour. ,,39 However the
Commission also stated that by the deed "dated the 17th
November, 1851, the Natives sold to the Government the land
bordering on the harbour. The boundaries as shown in the deed
skirt along the interior line of the harbour, but do not
include it. ,,40 Despite this the Commission concluded that the
area had been sold, but doubted whether the Maori appreciated
the full effect of the dealing, or its "effect on the fishing
rights they were so anxious to retain. ,,41
On 20 February 1922 application to the Native Land Court for
investigation of title was made in respect of: Matawhero;
Tuteranuku; Te Awawaka; Te Roro-o-Kurii Poroporo and
Tirohangahe; Urewiri or Kouriwiri Islands in Te Whanganui-a
Orotu. 42
This application came before Judge Gilfedder on the 5 August
1924. It was found that Roro-o-Kuri island, reserved for
Ngati Kahungunu out of the original deed, was now owned by
David Milne CT 38/550.~
In the same year, 1924, Waka Pango and 18 others petitioned
Parliament alleging that the Whanganui-a-Orotu Lake had
wrongfully been included in the sale of the Ahuriri Block and
praying for restitution. According to the petitioners the
38 AJHR 1921 G-5, Doc #A5 (1) .
39 ibid, p.14
40 ibid, P .12.
41 ibid, p.14.
42 AAMK 869/202b, Doc #A7(a) .
43 ibid, Napier Minute Book, no.72, p.209.
12
Lake had been a means of support for the tribe from the time
of their ancestors right down to the present. It had been the
custom to obtain eels, pipis and other fresh water food from
the Lake. The petitioners claimed that the Lake had
inadvertently been included in the sale but upon application
to McLean had been excluded from the deed of sale. 44 This
petition was referred to the Government for consideration by
the Native Affairs Committee. 45
In 1929 a certificate of title under the Land Transfer Act was
issued to the Napier Harbour Board for the area called Te
Whanganui-a-Orotu and known as the Napier Inner Harbour. 46
On the 3 February 1931 an earthquake hit the region. The
earthquake had the effect of raising the level of the bottom
of the Ahuriri Lagoon. The area covered by water was
converted to an area of dry land.
Following the earthquake the Napier Harbour Board Empowering
Act, 1932-3347 was passed to give control of land, which was
formerly islands in the lagoon, to the Harbour Board. The
majority of these islands were Native land the title to which
had never been investigated, ascertained, or determined. They
were Uruwiri, Poroporo, Tirowhangahe, Tuteranuku, Awa-a-waka
and Matawhero. The remaining three were Roro-o-Kuri, now
owned by Europeans, and Te Ihuotikei and Parapara, both now
owned by the Napier Borough Council, the Hastings Borough
Council and the Hawke's Bay County Council. The Act gave the
Harbour Board power to either buy the islands or to take them
under the Public Works Act, 1928.
" Petition no.419/1924, Doc #A6(i).
45 AAMK 869/202b, Doc #A7(a).
46 AJHR 1948 G-6A, p.1, Doc #AS(m).
47 Doc #A4 (k) .
13
The same year Hori Tupaea and others petitioned Parliament for
redress in respect of the area in light of the earthquake.
The petitioners claimed the boundaries of the block of land
sold did not include, but skirted the shores of the lagoon.
The Native Affairs Committee referred the petition to the
Government for inquiry. 48
Under section 27 of the Maori Purposes Act 1933 Hori Tupaea's
petition was referred to the Native Land Court for inquiry and
report. The Chief Surveyor in a letter to the Under Secretary
for Lands wondered whether the Crown and the Harbour Board
should "join forces in presenting a reply to the petition. ,,49
He was of the opinion that with regard to the deed in Turton's
volume there appeared little doubt as to what the owners
intended. Although, he admitted, "in following the place
names, as given in the description, on the plan the boundary
of the land passes along the back boundary of the Whanganui-o
roto." This however was unimportant because, "further on in
the deed it is recited that the lands were given up with their
seas f rivers, etc. ,,50 According to him the case did not
appear to be a difficult one and rested on two main issues:
( 1 )
( 2 )
Does the deed make it clear beyond doubt that the owners parted with their rights to Whanganui-o-roto provided they take equal rights with Europeans to fish from the waters and take shell fish from the beds etc? I think it does. That being so, then the Crown's authori ty for vesting Whanganui-o-roto in the Harbour Board is Halsbury's Laws of the England second addition volume section 973/975.
The Crown Solicitor was not so sure. The Parliamentary title
to the bulk of the land vested in the Harbour Board by the
Acts of 1874 and 1887 was he agreed "impregnable." The nine
islands excluded from the endowment were a different story.
~ Petition no.240/32, Le 1/1948/301, National Archives, Doc #A6(j).
~ 7 March 1934, L&S 29057, Doc #A8(d).
50 ibid.
14
Three had been Crown granted in 1866. The remaining six were
of;
small value and the Crown would not be greatly concerned to lose them, if no greater issue were involved. What is sought by the petitioners however is not so much a declaration of present right to land as a decision which will ground some strong moral claim against the government for compensation for the loss of land the native rights in which as they maintain their ancestors had never agreed to surrender.
He continued;
with all respect to the late Solicitor-General's opinion, I doubt if Waipapakura v Hempton (1914), 33 NZLR 1065, goes as far as he suggests; once the law has recognised the assertability of Native rights in the demesne lands of the Crown, which no doubt it has done -Nireaha Tamaki v Baker (1901) A.C561 - it is difficult to find a good ground for excluding any land over which the Crown has imperium, dominium, and mesne ownership and which it might grant to a subject, whether it be land covered by air or covered by water, whether the covering water be river, lake, or sea, whether tidal or not, and whether the land be above, within, or below the foreshore strip. 51
He just trusted that "such important issues [would] not be
raised on the present reference." He did not think "the risk
that the Judge may grant the Petitioners a favourable report"
very great. Such a report would have to run counter to the
findings of the 1920 Commission.
The inquiry commenced on 19 April 1934, being heard before
Judge Harvey. 52
The Court directed its attention to two main questions. The
first issue was whether the area had been included in the 1851
sale of the Ahuriri Block. The Crown's case was that it was
included in the deed of sale made on 17 November 1851.
51 15 March 1934, L&S 29057, Doc #A8(d).
52 However the Judge's report was not received until 1948, AJHR 1948 G-6A, Doc #A5(m).
15
The Court in its report dealt at length with this question and
concluded that most of the area was never sold by the tangata
whenua. 53 In reaching that conclusion the Court differed from
the view of the 1920 Native Land Claims Commission. The 1851
deed was in Maori and the Judge suggested that the 1920
Commission's finding may have been based on a bad and
incorrect translation. The Judge also pointed out that the
Counsel for the claimants in 1920 was not allowed to make a
copy of the original deed.
The Court then dealt with the second issue. If it was
established that most of Te Whanganui-a-Orotu had not been
included in the sale to the Crown, did the tangata whenua have
any rights in the area when it was vested in the Harbour
Board? In Judge Harvey's view this depended on whether the
area was an arm of the sea or whether it was inland non-tidal
water. If it was the former, as the Crown asserted, then it
would belong to the Crown, "subject perhaps to fishing and
possibly other rights of the Maoris ... 54 In the latter case,
it would have belonged to the Maori as part of their tribal
territory.
Due to lack of evidence the Court felt unable to decide on
this issue. It concluded that the Maori had some just and
equitable rights at the time it was vested in the Napier
Harbour Board, but they had failed to establish just what
those rights were to the Court's satisfaction. The Chief
Judge proposed therefore that the petition be referred to the
Government "for further consideration."
In 1934 an agreement was entered into between the Small Farms
Board and the Harbour Board for the development of the area.
UndeI the Small Fanus Act, 1932 33 the NapieI Harbour Board
and the Crown (acting through the Minister of Lands) arranged
53 "bOd 2 1 1 , p. .
54 "b" d 2 1 1 , p. .
16
for the development of the Ahuriri Lagoon Reclamation of 7,500
acres, for the purposes of the Small Farms Act. The
Commissioner of Crown Lands, Napier was to supervise the
development work for the Small Farms Board. The Small Farms
(Relief of Unemployment) Amendment Act, 1933,55 section 2
allowed for the Ahuriri Lagoon area to be developed for
subsequent letting in small subdivisions to small farmers.
The agreement took the form of a lease (dated 3 May 1934)
whereby the Harbour Board leased the Lagoon area,
approximately 7,500 acres, to the Crown at a "peppercorn"
rental (1/- per acre) for a term of 21 years (from the 31
March 1934) with a right of renewal for a further term of 21
years. The Crown was to develop the land for small farms
purposes 1 the Harbour Board being charged with all expenditure
by the Crown on the development work together with any
interest, the Harbour Board then being allowed credit for all
revenues derived by the Crown from the lands. The Crown could
not be dispossessed of any part of the lands until it had been
reimbursed of its expenditure on development either by
revenues received from the lands or by payment from the
Harbour Board. 56
On 17 June 1936 Sainsbury, Logan and Williams, Solicitors,
wrote to the Secretary of the Napier Harbour Board advising
that on 8 June 1936 orders of the Native Land Court were made
under section 6 of The Napier Harbour Board Empowering Act,
1932-33. 57 These orders on maturity, six weeks from 8 June,
were to have the effect of vesting the legal estate of the six
islands - Urewiri r Tirowhangahe, Tuteranuku, Awa-a-waka and
Matawhero - in six persons as trustees. They were;
1. Te Roera Tareha
2. Puke puke Tangiora
55 Doc #A8 ( f) .
56 T 52/804, National Archives.
57 L&S 29057, Doc #A8 (d) .
17
3. Mepera Makuiterangi Erihana
4. Paora Kurupo
5. Hori Tupaea
6. Keita Pahi
The Board had the power under the 1932-33 Act to take the
islands under the Public Works Act. The solicitors
recognising that these islands had appreciated in value as a
result of the earthquake and that the Board had been
"instrumental in moving that Trustees should be appointed,"
recommended that the Board should negotiate with the Trustees
over the islands. 58 In the event the islands were taken under
the Public Works Act in 1939. 59
In 1945 Paneta Maniapoto Otene and 13 others petitioned
Parliament praying for inquiry into their rights in respect
of the Ahuriri Lagoon following the Earthquake of 1931. The
petitioners outlined that the Maori had never given up their
rights to the lagoon. They then went on to say that now that
the lagoon had become dry land of "enormous potential value"
they were entitled to recognition in the value of land which
they had never alienated. 6o As the Judge for the Native Land
Court inquiry was still preparing his report this matter was
'sub judice' and the Native Affairs Committee had no
recommendation to make.
The Napier Harbour Board and Napier Borough Enabling Act,
194561 enabled the Napier Harbour Board and the Napier
Borough Council to enter into an arrangement for the
development and subdivision of certain lands belonging to the
Board for the purpose of providing areas for housing and the
59 New Zealand Gazette 1939, p.2673, Doc #AS(g).
w Petition no.82/1945, Le 1/1945/12, National Archives, Doc #A6(k).
61 Doc #AS (h) .
18
expansion of the borough of Napier. Some land in the Ahuriri
Lagoon was involved. 62
In 1948 Ahere Hohepa and others petitioned Parliament
regarding the Ahuriri Lagoon, now dry land. They asked the
Government to pass legislation vesting the area in them and
their people. 63 The Native Affairs Committee recommended that
the petition be referred to the Government for
consideration. 64
In 1950 the Reserves and Other Lands Disposal Act, 1950,M
under section 31, allowed for the partition of land, which was
formerly part of the Ahuriri Lagoon, between the Crown and the
Napier Harbour Board.~
Following the presentation of Judge Harvey's report on the 25
June 1948, Ihakara Rapana and 121 others petitioned Parliament
in 1965, citing the Judge's report as further grounds of
protest. The petitioners asked that the Government would
restore the Te Whanganui-a-Orotu land to the Maori people.
The Native Affairs Committee reported, with Sir Eruera
Tirikatene dissenting, that they had no recommendation to
make. 67
On the 17 March 1988 a claim was filed with the Waitangi
Tribunal by Te Otane Reti and four others representing the
62 L&S 29057 { Napier Harbour Board, 1936-1974{ National Archives.
63 Petition no.26/1948 r Le 1/1948/18, National Archives, Doc #A6 (1) .
64 AJHR 19 4 8 1-3, p. 7 .
65 Doc #A8 ( j ) .
~ see also AAFD 811/62b Land Development, Ahuriri Lagoon, National Archives.
~ Petition no.1965/48, Le 1/1965/13 r National Archives r Doc #A6 (m).
19
various hapu of Ngati Kahungunu. They claimed that they were
prejudicially affected or likely to be prejudicially affected
by legislation concerning Te Whanganui-a-Orotu. The claimants
asked that the title and rights to Te Whanganui-a-Orotu be
restored to the hapu represented by them.
The Hawkes Bay Harbour Board Empowering Act, 1989 was assented
to on 28 September 1989.
This Act allowed the Hawkes Bay Harbour Board to sell any
land, or interest in any land, vested in it pursuant to the
Napier Harbour Board Act 1874 or Napier Harbour Board Act
1876.
Local Government restructuring has seen the transfer of Hawkes
Bay Harbour Board assets to the Hawkes Bay Regional Council,
Napier City Council and new port company.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
A. Primary Sources
1. Official files held by National Archives Wellinton
Maori Affairs-Head Office files
Maori Affairs-Land Purchase Department files
Lands & Survey files
Legislative Department files
Treasury files
Native Land Court-Napier Minute Book
2. published
Appendices to the Journals of the House of Representatives of New Zealand
New Zealand Gazette
New Zealand Parliamentary Debates
New Zealand Statutes
Turton, Henry, Maori Deeds of Land Purchase in the North Island of New Zealand, Vol II.
Hawkes Bay Herald
B. Secondary Sources
Jourdain, W R.,
Wilson, J G,
(Alexander Wellington)
Turnbull Library,
Reminiscences of a Civil Servant by "George" (1938) (Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington)
History of Hawkes Bay (A H & A W Reed, Wellington, 1939)
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