Pride of Place
Sam was driving his quad bike along the road when he stopped for a chat. He escorted me onto the local marae at Waingaro to show me the cannon. Along with another one, it was taken from a wrecked ship during the Land Wars and was on its way to Rangiriri when it was abandoned. It was rediscovered in the 1950s by a group of bushmen, and seven horses were used to tow it on a skid back to the marae. The other cannon made it to Rangiriri where it was used against the British forces. Unfortunately, they had a well armed gunboat and opened fire with devastating effect.
The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year... ... read more 
whirinaki maniapoto
non-member comment
tena koe
very nice photo mate,that man is my grand father sammy maniapoto,hes a very humble who has spent most of his life in waingaro.