New Zealand’s new national museum, the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, was officially opened on Wellington’s waterfront after a decade of planning and construction.
Wellington City
Events In History
23 November 1986
The first and so far only visit to New Zealand by a Bishop of Rome was significant for both Catholics and the wider community.
15 February 1978
Chasing 137 for victory in the first test at the Basin Reserve in Wellington, England was bowled out for 64, with Richard Hadlee taking 6 for 26.
2 May 1964
Tram no. 252, displaying the message ‘end of the line’ and driven by Wellington Mayor Frank Kitts, travelled from Thorndon to Newtown zoo. Large crowds lined the streets to witness the end of electric trams in New Zealand.
3 April 1943
Soldiers and civilians slugged it out on the streets of Wellington during the ‘Battle of Manners Street’, the best-known clash between New Zealanders and American servicemen during the Second World War.
8 November 1939
More than 2.6 million people visited the New Zealand Centennial Exhibition, which ran for six months at Rongotai, Wellington. It was the centrepiece of the centennial of the signing of the Treaty of the Waitangi.
17 July 1939
Paddy, a ginger and brown Airedale terrier, became a national celebrity because of his exploits on the Wellington waterfront and beyond during the 1930s.
2 February 1939
A massive fire destroyed the nearly completed three-storey Social Security building. Just seven weeks later, a replacement building was opened by Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage.
16 June 1923
A generation after the hanging of the infamous Minnie Dean, the murder trial of Daniel and Martha Cooper revealed that ‘baby farming’ and illegal abortion were still regarded as solutions to the problem of unwanted children in New Zealand.
7 June 1921
A local Rotary club was established at a luncheon in Wellington’s YMCA, with Alexander Roberts elected as the first president.
16 October 1914
Thousands of Wellingtonians rose before dawn and crowded vantage points around the harbour to watch as 10 grey-painted troopships, escorted by four warships, sailed to war.
5 November 1913
The ‘Battle of Featherston Street’, in downtown Wellington, saw some of the most violent street fighting of the 1913 Great Strike.
9 June 1909
Prime Minister Sir Joseph Ward opened the Public Trust Office Building in Lambton Quay, Wellington. The occasion was marked by a lunchtime banquet and a concert and dance that evening
24 September 1905
The murder of retired miner Joe Kum Yung by white supremacist Lionel Terry in Wellington’s Haining Street highlighted the hatred some felt towards New Zealand’s small but long-established Chinese community.
27 August 1904
Victoria College (now Victoria University of Wellington) was founded in 1897 to mark Queen Victoria's 60th jubilee. Until the opening of the Kelburn building in 1906, classes were taught in rented rooms.
22 March 1902
Victoria College’s first professor of modern languages joined the fledgling institution’s four foundation professors.
22 May 1884
The first representative New Zealand rugby team played its first match, defeating a Wellington XV 9-0 before embarking on a tour of New South Wales.
24 August 1878
The governor, the Marquess of Normanby, formally opened the new service, which was said to be the first in the southern hemisphere.
26 July 1865
The capital moved from Auckland to more centrally located Wellington on the recommendation of an Australian commission. The former Wellington Provincial Council chamber became the new home for Parliament.
23 January 1855
The magnitude 8.2 earthquake had a profound impact on the development of Wellington city.
26 February 1844
William Brewer died of wounds received during a pistol duel with another Wellington lawyer, H. Ross, on 26 February 1844. The duel followed a quarrel over a case in the Wellington County Court.
31 July 1843
Laying the foundation stone for the Royal Victoria Theatre on Manners St, Wellington, Alderman William Lyon welcomed the new amenity – ‘a theatre [was] a necessary concomitant of an advanced state of civilization.’
18 April 1840
The first newspapers published in New Zealand were printed by Samuel Revans a month after he arrived in Port Nicholson (Wellington).
22 January 1840
The New Zealand Company's first settler ship, the Aurora, arrived at Petone to found the settlement that would become Wellington.
Articles
Wellington cafe culture
Café culture has become integral to Wellington's identity. This culture began in the 1930s with the emergence of the milk bar, followed by coffee houses in the 1950s. After a period of decline in the 1960s and 70s, the city's café scene has grown in spectacular fashion over the last 20 years. Read the full article
Page 1 - Wellington cafe culture
Café culture has become integral to Wellington's identity. This culture began in the 1930s with the emergence of the milk bar, followed by coffee houses in the 1950s. After a
Page 2 - Overview
Wellington city centre is renowned for its flourishing café scene and the culture it inhabits. But it was nearly 1950 before there was much sign of the sparkling capital that
Page 3 - Immigration and Society
The rise of coffee houses in the 1940s, 50s and 60s was not a phenomenon confined to Wellington, or indeed to New Zealand. The connection between the history of cafe culture and
Page 4 - Design and technology
New construction materials and equipment fashioned the cafe culture rising in the 1950s. Wellingtonians were introduced to the espresso machines as European styled cafes
Page 5 - Music and cafe culture
Entertainment generally and music in particular have always been a part of the Wellington cafe scene.
Page 6 - Personalities
New Zealand in the 1940s and 1950s has been described as a drab and uniform place. From the late 1950s, however, a café culture was established throughout the
Page 7 - Further information
Sources on Wellington cafe
US Forces in New Zealand
The first American soldiers landed on New Zealand soil in June 1942, beginning an 'invasion' which would have a profound impact on both visitors and hosts over the next 18 months. Read the full article
Page 3 - Arrival
The ‘invasion’ began in Auckland on 12 June 1942, when five transport ships carrying soldiers of the US Army sailed into Waitematā Harbour. Two days later, Marines landed in
The House of Representatives
New Zealand's Parliament dates back to 1854, just 14 years after the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi and the beginning of the European settlement of the country. For most of its history as a nation state, New Zealand has had some form of elected government. Read the full article
Page 5 - First sitting, 1854
It started with a bang – 21 in fact, fired from the guns at Auckland's Fort Britomart. As soon as the smoke had cleared, New Zealand's first Parliament was under
Parliament Buildings
Parliament buildings have been modified, destroyed by fire, half-built and restored; the parliamentary places and spaces have formed an important part of New Zealand's history. Read the full article
Page 1 - History of Parliament Buildings
Parliament buildings have been modified, destroyed by fire, half-built and restored; the parliamentary places and spaces have formed an important part of New Zealand's
Page 2 - First Parliament buildings
Auckland was a bustling place in 1854 when Parliament met there for the first time. The buildings were located in paddocks on what was then the edge of town, Constitution Hill,
The Beatles in New Zealand
When four young Liverpool musicians landed in Wellington on a lazy Sunday afternoon in June 1964, seven days of pandemonium erupted. Young New Zealanders flocked in their thousands to hear or just catch a glimpse of the famous 'Fab Four'. Read the full article
Page 1 - The Beatles in New Zealand
When four young Liverpool musicians landed in Wellington on a lazy Sunday afternoon in June 1964, seven days of pandemonium erupted. Young New Zealanders flocked in their
Page 3 - Wellington
Seven thousand screaming fans waited as The Beatles touched down at Wellington airport on 21 June 1964. As the band stepped off the plane, the fans' shrieks drowned out the noise
Wahine disaster
This April marks the 45th anniversary of the sinking of the ferry Wahine. With more than 50 lives lost, this was New Zealand's worst modern maritime disaster. The Wahine’s demise on 10 April 1968 also heralded a new era in local television, as pictures of the disaster were beamed into living rooms around the country. Read the full article
Page 1 - The Wahine disaster
This April marks the 45th anniversary of the sinking of the ferry Wahine. With more than 50 lives lost, this was New Zealand's worst modern maritime disaster. The Wahine’s demise
Page 2 - Timeline to tragedy
The events that led to the drowning of 51 people in the Wahine disaster of 10 April
Page 3 - Co-ordinating the rescue
The police, emergency services and civilians rescued passengers and crew from the inter-island ferry Wahine in Wellington Harbour in April
War in Wellington
In 1846 fighting broke out in the Wellington region when Ngāti Toa chief Te Rangihaeata backed local Maori opposed to European settlement in Hutt Valley. The campaign claimed few lives but effectively ended Ngāti Toa resistance in the region. Read the full article
Page 1 - War in Wellington
In 1846 fighting broke out in the Wellington region when Ngāti Toa chief Te Rangihaeata backed local Maori opposed to European settlement in Hutt Valley. The campaign claimed few
Page 2 - The Port Nicholson purchase
In September 1839 William Wakefield, the principal agent for the New Zealand Company, met Te Ātiawa chiefs Te Puni and Te Wharepōuri at Pito-one (Petone), on the northern shore of
Page 3 - Return to Hutt Valley
It was soon apparent that Wellington did not have enough flat fertile land. Attention turned back to the lower Hutt Valley as the best location for an agricultural
Page 7 - Political prisoners
Te Rauparaha became one of New Zealand’s first political detainees when he was seized during the fighting in Hutt Valley in
Regional rugby
The passion and parochialism of provincial rugby helped give the game a special place in New Zealand’s social and sporting history. Read brief histories, highlights and quirky facts about each of New Zealand's 26 regional rugby teams. Read the full article
Page 20 - Wellington rugby
History and highlights of rugby in the Wellington
Housing the Prime Minister
Almost 150 years after the government purchased the first official premier's residence on Tinakori Road, Wellington, the address of Premier House remains the same. But in the intervening years the building has been extended, renamed, abandoned and refurbished. Read the full article
Page 2 - The first premier house
Our first premiers had to find their own digs. That changed in 1865, when the government bought the premier a simple 22-year-old wooden cottage in Thorndon’s Tinakori
The 1913 Great Strike
The Great Strike of 1913 was in fact a series of strikes between mid-October 1913 and mid-January 1914. It was one of New Zealand’s most violent and disruptive industrial confrontations. Read the full article
Page 3 - Outbreak of the 1913 strike
The 1913 Great Strike was sparked off by two relatively small
Page 4 - The 1913 strike in Wellington
Because the strike threatened their livelihoods, rural men were keen to volunteer as special
Capital 150
Ever since 1865, Wellington’s identity has been inextricably linked to its role as the seat of central government. Read the full article
Page 1 - Capital 150
Ever since 1865, Wellington’s identity has been inextricably linked to its role as the seat of central
Stories in the land field trip
Page 2 - Stories in the land field trip
Field trips are a fantastic way for students and teachers to develop shared experiences outside of the classroom. This field trip – ‘Stories in the land’ – is facilitated by
Hidden streams field trip
Field trips are a fantastic way for students and teachers to develop shared experiences outside of the classroom. This field trip has been run successfully with Year 9 Social Studies students in the past. Read the full article
Page 1 - Hidden streams field trip
Field trips are a fantastic way for students and teachers to develop shared experiences outside of the classroom. This field trip has been run successfully with Year 9 Social
Page 2 - Hidden streams field trip
Field trips are a fantastic way for students and teachers to develop shared experiences outside of the classroom. This field trip has been run successfully with Year 9 Social
Biographies
Te Āti Awa leader Wiremu Tako Ngātata was one of the first Māori members of the Legislative Council. He opposed legislation threatening Māori possession of land.
Dr Frederick Knox was the librarian of New Zealand's first public library.
A stalwart of Wellington political life, Featherston served as provincial Superintendent and later served as a member of the House of Representatives, colonial secretary and minister without portfolio.
Colonel William Wakefield was one of the earliest European settlers at Port Nicholson (Wellington), where he served as the New Zealand Company’s Principal Agent between 1840 and 1848.
The New Zealand Company chose Wellington as its first organised settlement in 1839. Its future was uncertain until 1865 when it was chosen as the colony’s new capital. Alongside the shift in the seat of government was the centralisation of businesses – many major firms set up their head offices in Wellington. From the 1990s Wellington has rebranded itself as the country’s creative capital.
Meaning of place name
In November 1840 a communication was received from the directors of the New Zealand Company saying it was their desire that their chief settlement at Port Nicholson be named in honour of the Duke of Wellington.
