St Mary’s Church (Anglican)

School Road, Tuatini, TOKOMARU BAY

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St Mary’s Church sits within the Tuatini marae grounds in Tokomaru Bay on the East Coast. It is situated next to State Highway 35 and is a place that is highly visible throughout Tokomaru Bay. Probably erected in 1883-6, the building is likely to represent an early surviving Anglican church on the East Coast. It is also a rare example of a church in New Zealand that is clad in corrugated iron. Since at least 1844 there have been Anglican religious structures at Tuatini marae. An original 1840s chapel appears to have been replaced in timber in 1861 by a local Pakeha man. This church may have been burnt in the New Zealand Wars. The St Mary’s Church that stands today is likely to have been erected in the 1880s by Duncan Stirling, a prolific builder of East Coast churches in the late nineteenth century. Anglicanism arrived on the East Coast in the 1830s, and for much of the nineteenth century formed the main religion among Maori in the region. In the mid-1860s, Tuatini had become the first Anglican parish on the East Coast. Of Gothic Revival appearance, the church encompasses a nave, chancel and porch, all with gabled roofs. A south transept is situated towards the east end of the nave. Renovations occurred in 1918, 1959 and 1989. It is currently unclear if a distinctive and unusual feature of the building - its corrugated iron sheathing - formed part of the original design, or was a later modification, perhaps in 1918. St Mary’s Church is of historical significance because it can tell of the Anglican Maori Mission’s campaign in spreading Christianity throughout the East Coast region, and the role of Maori themselves in the spread of the religion during that time. It is particularly significant for reflecting the resurgence of Anglican faith and church-building among local peoples in the Waiapu Diocese from the late 1870s onwards, following a period of turmoil within Ngati Porou and the East Coast through the spread of the Kingitanga movement and Pai Marire faith. In Tokomaru Bay, as elsewhere, the church was a way in which some Ngati Porou leaders held their people close. The place is connected with several people of note, including the local leader Henare Potae and Anglican church minister Matiaha Pahewa. St Mary’s Church is of considerable architectural significance for being one of very few corrugated iron-clad churches remaining in New Zealand. It belongs to a small group of such churches on the East Coast that evidently reflects a specific Anglican architectural tradition among local Maori. That St Mary’s Church continues to stand in a town where other Anglican churches have been deconsecrated, highlights its special place in the history of Tokomaru Bay, and the important role of Maori in the Anglican Church today.

St Mary's Church (Anglican), Tokomaru Bay. Image courtesy of www.flickr.com | Shellie Evans – flyingkiwigirl | 26/03/2018 | Shellie Evans
St Mary's Church (Anglican), Tokomaru Bay | Martin Jones | 06/09/2003 | Heritage New Zealand

Location

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List Entry Information

Overview

Detailed List Entry

Status

Listed

List Entry Status

Historic Place Category 2

Access

Private/No Public Access

List Number

801

Date Entered

6th June 2015

Date of Effect

7th July 2015

City/District Council

Gisborne District

Region

Gisborne Region

Extent of List Entry

Extent includes part of the land described as Tuatini Maori Township Sec 5 Blk X (RT 387352), Gisborne Land District, and the building known as St Mary’s Church (Anglican) thereon, and the following chattels: altar, lectern, font, pews and war memorial board. (Refer to maps in Appendix 1 of the List entry report for further information).

Legal description

Tuatini Maori Township Sec 5 Blk X (RT 387352), Gisborne Land District

Location Description

St Mary’s Church is located within the graveyard/urupa at Tuatini Marae, Tokomaru Bay. The church is visible on the approach along SH35, and from the corner of Waitangi Street and School Road, Tokomaru Bay.

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