HISTORIC CHURCH

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23009, 9 April 1938, Page 12

HISTORIC CHURCH

EARLY MAORI ATTACK BULLET-SCARRED WALLS £ff PUKEKOHE ANNIVERSARY When the Pukekohe East Presby. terian Church holds its morning and f? evening services to-m6rrow it -will be celebrating its seventy-fifth anniversary, and in so doing it will not only be paying • homage to the Giver of All Good, but will also be paying tribute to the stout-hearted pioneers who. went out into the wilderness to make for themselves a home, and to lay the foundations of a heritage for a new generation. i The Rev. T. Norrie, as early as J? 1857, conducted a service in the homestead of one, Mr. Dearness. Filled with the desire for public worship, a slab building was ejected for the purpose by the pioneers, and this was followed in 1863 by the completion of a larger building in wood, 28ft. by 18ft., with • a small porch and belfry. The new church was opened on April 6, 1803, by the Rev. John Macky, later to "be Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in New Zealand. The most prominent minister associated with the church was Mr. Norrie, previously mentioned, who, from 1855 until his death in 1905, conducted his mission through a great sparselypopulated area that included the settlements of Papakura and Drury.

Great Source of Inspiration v : Standing high on the wind-swept"":-/ hills, the new church was a great source of inspiration and comfort to those who had turned their backs on civilisation. It was also prized as a common meeting-ground after the week's lonely and unremitting toil. That it was to be something more than a place of worship was soon' to be seen. x The earliest years found the settlers and the Maoris living in comparative harmony and contentment, but in 1863 the wars were on the eve of breaking out anew. On Sunday, July 12, 2000 men under General Camerop crossed the Mangatawhiri from Queen's Ro doubt. Mr. Norrie rode to the Redoubt, but could hold no service as most of the soldiers were away. Continuing to the new church he held a* service in the afternoon. On the following Wednesday a settler and his son were shot in the neighbourhood by the Maoris. The fire that had been smouldering had at last broken into flame, and settlers and their families took refuge in Auckland. Mrs. Mary H. Robinson, still a resident of the Pukekohe East district, has many vivid recollections of the sudden exodus. "r;vV A few returned later but conditions being still disturbed a sergeant and 10 constables, together with 18 settlers, took possession of the church and began to construct earthworks surmounted by a barricade of logs. The work was;... completed on three sides, with only a screen of boards on the fourth, when j firing broke out from the surrounding I bush. Defenders' Brave Stand I The church was vigorously attacked !on September 14, and had.the Maoris pressed on the battle might have ended differently, for, when the firing slackened at noon, only 10 rounds of j ammunition remained for each defender, and water was scarce. A small ! detachment from Springfield joined the I men who were 'inside at 12.30, and later a large party arrived from 3)rury. Flinging themselves boldly at the encircling enemy, the positions were.car-, ried and the gallant little bancL'flf defenders relieved. The British tekses were three killed and seven wounded, the Maoris, besides other casualties, leaving six dead on the field. A pleasant touch of Christian sentiment is revealed in the erection of a • large rough stone over the grave of the Maori warriors, a stone that is carefully kept by the present-dav adherents. There remains also evidence of . the trenches that surround thej'hurch, and bullet holes are numerous in the

walls and on the ceiling. Captain Corlx?tt Scott, of Auckland, is the sole survivor to-dav of the brave little band of men that held the church. With the war over, settlers returned to their holdings, and in 1860 the stockades were removed and the church repaired. That the pioneers built well and truly is evidenced by the fact tfas»t the little church still stands as it stood 75 vears a no. several buttresses onlv having been added for extra support.