Pākaraka: ‘We didn’t pull the trigger, we didn’t swing the bayonet. But together we should all move on’

Rauru Broughton speaks at Pākaraka Pā at the blessing and installation of the Pākaraka signs. Photo / Moana Ellis

The hapū of Ngāti Maika and the farming community of Pākaraka, near Whanganui, are still waiting for new name signs to go up after the first ones were mown down just hours after they were installed.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency says it recognises the importance of the signs to the hapū and community, having worked with Whanganui District Council and Ngāti Maika since late last year to install signs carrying the name Pākaraka.

The Pākaraka signs at either end of the settlement previously known as Maxwell were bowled over shortly after hapū, iwi and community representatives came together to bless and install them two weeks ago.

Waka Kotahi system manager Rob Service said the ceremony to unveil the signs on State Highway 3, 22km northwest of Whanganui, was well supported.

“We were honoured and privileged to be a part of that ceremony.

“We understand the community will be disappointed about the damage to the signs, and we are too.

“We are working closely with the council and iwi again to ensure new signs are installed as soon as possible. We don’t yet have an exact date for this.”

Ngāti Maika kaumātua who picked up the broken signage were devastated by the vandalism, and Whanganui Mayor Andrew Tripe said the destruction was “deeply disappointing even if somewhat predictable”.

Tripe said it came after a joyful and moving ceremony at Pākaraka Pā, which he attended along with several councillors and community board representatives.

“The name change from Maxwell to Pākaraka was about redressing an horrific history and making things right.

“It is also about looking into the future.

“I think it is about education to take this forward. The other option is engagement. However, those who are against the change will likely not engage anyway. Hopefully, the change will become normalised over time and acceptable to all.”

Maxwell was named after George Maxwell, a young Scotsman who in the 1860s helped found a settler militia, the Kai-Iwi Yeomanry Cavalry volunteers.

In 1868, the militia used sabres in an attack on a group of unarmed Māori children, aged between 6 and 12. Two of the tamariki were killed and others maimed. The incident took place near Handley’s woolshed on the Nukumaru flats.

Maxwell was killed two years later. Settlers in the area then named the small farming community Maxwelltown, and in 1927 it was renamed Maxwell.

The hapū has for generations carried the painful association with the name Maxwell.

Kaumatua Ray Hina worked for many years with his wife Ruta Broughton to remove the name Maxwell and bring back the name Pākaraka. He acknowledged previous Whanganui mayor Hamish McDouall and his council for their support throughout the name-change process.

Hina said remembering the past would always be important for Ngāti Maika.

“It’s just about not forgetting what happened back there – it’s about letting our people, especially our young people, know what happened, remembering that incident.

“You can’t change history, but what we did do is change the name of our area here back to Pākaraka. It has always been Pākaraka.”

A new sign at the settlement after the ceremony and celebrations at Pakaraka Pa. Less than eight hours later, they lay in pieces at the side of the road. Photo / Moana Ellis

Photo / Moana Ellis

Kaumatua Rauru Broughton said there was a mix of emotions at Pākaraka Pā when the new signs were installed.

“There’s a number of different feelings: great happiness, joy, and there’s a bit of sadness too. When we look back at the events of 1868, yeah, it’s a bit emotional as well.

“We need to teach our children. We need to keep this information flowing, it needs to be natural and also written down. The onus is on us to carry those stories on.

“I’d like to acknowledge the council, Waka Kotahi, the various people over 20-plus years that have supported the journey. Much appreciated, tēnā koutou.”

The hapū worked with South Taranaki iwi Ngā Rauru Kiitahi and Whanganui District Council to get the name change recognised and the NZ Geographic Board approved the change in February 2022.

In Treaty Settlement negotiations, Ngā Rauru was determined to have the Handley woolshed incident recorded and acknowledged. It was successful.

In 2005, the Ngā Rauru Deed of Settlement recognised the incident and encouraged discussions with Whanganui District Council about changing the name.

Ngā Rauru negotiator Marty Davis said it was important for the Handley woolshed incident to be recognised in legislation.

“The drivers for settlement for Ngā Rauru were telling our story, the history of the events that occurred here in Ngā Rauru – very similar to the rest of Taranaki and Whanganui – and providing a future for our tamariki mokopuna. Those were the two planks for settlement.

“To tell your story you’ve got to go and do the research. We uncovered several incidents; this is but one of them.

“Maxwell had been widely celebrated for his deeds and that story needed to be told. You couldn’t read about it, you couldn’t educate your kids about it. There wasn’t enough information there.

“So we came back to Pākaraka, we came back to Ngāti Maika, and said to them how do you want to progress this?”

Davis said Ngā Rauru simply raised the issue on behalf of Ngāti Maika.

“I’m just grateful for the ones who pursued it relentlessly once we got it into legislation,” Davis said.

“Whānau here have waited 17-plus years for this day. There were a number of processes they had to go through to get to this stage and that took time.”

Di Handley is a great-great-grandniece of the man who owned Handley’s woolshed where the horrific attack happened.

Ngāti Maika honoured Handley as a special guest during the blessing and installation of the Pākaraka signs – in fact, she was asked to be one of the small group that left the pā to put up the signs, returning later to rejoin the celebration.

“When the signs were blessed it was ... roimata [tears], just roimata. It was just so simple and so perfect,” Handley said.

“It was such a huge celebration for the whānau and for the whole iwi. They’ve been patient and I feel at times that they’ve nearly got there and haven’t got there. So yes, wonderful.”

Handley has strongly supported the name change, writing one of 189 submissions received by Whanganui District Council in support of changing the name to Pākaraka. Another 58 submissions opposed.

“I think it was the very first submission that went in. I got it in that day that I received the invitation to submit. Just to support, because I agreed with it wholeheartedly.”

She said she was told little about the incident as a child.

“It was only James Belich’s book I Shall Not Die that was the revelation for me, Dad never having said anything.

“It was really something when I first put the whole thing together. I was mortified, and from that time on I’ve always been very conscious of what happened.”

News of the vandalism shortly after the signs went up came as a shock and a huge disappointment.

She referred to it as a ram raid.

“It’s always sad when that sort of thing happens. It’s a shame that there’s not some way that there can be a reconciliation between everyone.”

Handley attended one or two community meetings during the consultation phase of the name-change process.

“I was surprised at the extent of opposition towards the name change. It definitely hasn’t been an easy time for the community.”

Another member of the community, Richard White, said he had been involved in some of the meetings about the proposed change.

He told those at the pā that with the name change implemented, it was now time for the community to move forward as one.

“None of us here were there then – we didn’t pull the trigger, we didn’t swing the bayonet. But all I say today is together we should all move on.”

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