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Thursday 9:30am - 12pm Sunday 1pm - 3:30pm

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Tuakau and District Museum

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Tuakau and District Museum

The Tuakau and District Museum is open every Thursday morning from 9.00am - 12 midday and every Sunday from 1pm - 3.30pm. W.F.

We will open at other times by appointment. Phone Keith or Sandra on 09 2368785 or email [email protected] to make an appointment. The old Tuakau Post Office in Liverpool Street was officially opened in 1914, and closed as a Post Office in 1983. An energetic committee led by Mr Ted Wild, then president of the Tuakau and District Museum Society Inc., were fortunate to secure the building. Lo

cal people, businesses, Rotary and Lions Clubs all contributed generously and the building was repaired, repainted and gradually transformed into the Tuakau and District Museum. The museum was officially opened by the Hon. Birch, the local MP, on Saturday 17th October 1987 at 2pm. The museum’s collection emphasises the rich history of the local area with colonial and Maori exhibits, a military section, natural history items and a large collection of tools and agricultural implements. The reading and records room holds an extensive collection of photographs of early Tuakau and districts as well as information and publications relating to pioneers and families of the district

“Custodians to the Future Generations”

18/06/2026

There were so many volunteers gathered around the morning tea table today that we couldn't fit everyone into the photo!

To celebrate National Volunteer Week, we enjoyed Jean's fabulous homemade scones, Bronwyn's yummy hot sausage rolls and Keith's belated birthday shout - a well-deserved treat for a great team.

The Tuakau and District Museum simply couldn't achieve what it does without the dedication and enthusiasm of our volunteers. The past year has been especially busy with the Feather Cottage restoration and their contribution has been nothing short of remarkable.

Over the past 12 months, our regular Thursday working bees and Sunday roster days saw volunteers contribute an incredible 2,450 hours of their time. On top of that, some of the volunteers came in on an additional 201 days throughout the year, contributing a further 2,806 hours - much of it devoted to the Feather Cottage project.

To every one of our volunteers: THANK YOU! We appreciate everything you do. Whether you're creating some of our amazing displays, taking your turn on the Sunday roster, serving in a governance role on the committee, cleaning the toilets and floors, preparing morning tea, cleaning glass cabinets, weeding the gardens, transcribing and indexing historical records, sanding and painting or helping restore the cottage, every task plays an important part in keeping the museum running.

Your time, skills and dedication are helping to preserve our local history for future generations and we couldn't do it without you.

If you've ever considered volunteering, we'd love to have you join our team. Drop into the museum on a Thursday morning, meet our friendly volunteers and enjoy a cuppa while you discover the many ways you can get involved.

09/06/2026

In recognition of International Archives Day, we thought we'd share a glimpse into the fascinating collection of records held in the Tuakau and District Museum archives.

Our archives contain a wide range of material that helps tell the story of our district and its people. Among the treasures are minute books from the Loyal Pukekohe and Loyal Tuakau Lodges, ledgers from Crawford's Store in Onewhero that document what customers purchased from the store, minute books and attendance records from the Tuakau Sunshine Garden Circle and even a minute book from the Whangarata Bobby Calf Pool. We are also fortunate to hold Ruth Edwards' collection relating to Port Waikato and Te Kohanga.

An interesting fact is recorded in the Camp Register from the Port Waikato Camping Ground. It records that on 7 November 1976, our current Museum President, Keith Brasell, stayed there with his father Jim and his two children, James and Kylie, after viewing the Waimate Bay property they would later purchase (the former Cole-Baker farm). The register notes that they spent one night in a caravan and paid the princely sum of $3.35! Did you have family that camped at Port Waikato - perhaps they are also recorded in the register.

Our archives also include records from Tuakau Plunket, the Franklin Women's Division of Federated Farmers (WDFF) and many other local organisations, businesses and families. The full list is far too long to share here.

If you're interested in learning more about your family history or a local organisation, we'd love to hear from you. We recommend emailing us at [email protected] before visiting so we can undertake some preliminary research. Not all our records have been indexed or digitised yet, so finding the information you're after can sometimes take a little time. Uncovering these stories is always worth the effort though.

08/06/2026

There are only a few copies of the 'More than a name' Tuakau and Districts book still available. Order your copy now.

This book contains a short life story for each of the 292 men and women whose names appear on the WW2 Roll of Honour Boards or Memorials in the Tuakau & Districts area – covering the Boards and Memorials at Onewhero, Opuatia, Pokeno, Pukekawa, Tuakau and Whangarata.

Stories are researched and written by branch or family members. We chose the name of the book to reflect the aim of the project - we wanted them to be remembered for more than just a name on a Board. They were real people who provided an incredible service for our country.

This is a reprint of the book published in January 2026 and only a limited number of books will be available, so order your copy now. $58 per copy.

This is a Franklin Branch NZ Society of Genealogists project.
For further details contact Heather Maloney, ph 0277235328 or email [email protected]

07/06/2026

We've had a busy couple of weeks at the museum. Last week we hosted a group from Te Kauwhata Community House and this week the delightful ladies from the Bombay Garden Group visited the museum. Today 48 members from the Howick Classic and Vintage Car Club came to visit and judging by some of the comments in our visitors book they had a great time.

25/05/2026

We recently welcomed visitors from NSRA Waikato to the museum. The group of Waikato-based car enthusiasts, part of NSRA New Zealand (National Street Rod Association) enjoyed exploring our exhibits and learning about the area's history. A couple of the visitors have already returned for another visit!

01/05/2026

If you missed out on purchasing a copy of "More than a name 1939-1945 Franklin Rolls of Honour" - Book three - Tuakau and Districts then you are in luck.

The Franklin Branch of New Zealand Society of Genealogists have had a number of enquiries about the third book in their "More than a name" series, which sold out and they are now considering a reprint. Before they commit to this, they would like some indication of your interest. The reprint will be cost $58; postage will be extra - one copy anywhere in New Zealand is $5. Local orders could be delivered or picked up.

This volume contains the stories of the 292 WW2 men and women in the Tuakau & Districts area on the following Roll of Honour Boards or Memorials:
• Onewhero
• Opuatia
• Pokeno
• Pukekawa
• Tuakau
• Whangarata

If you are interested in purchasing a copy please respond with your name and the number of copies you would like to purchase to
Heather Maloney, Project Coordinator before May 10th.
[email protected] or phone or text 027 723 5328

25/04/2026

It was a beautiful day for today's ANZAC service. It was good to see a strong turnout from the community.

24/04/2026

A reminder that Tuakau's ANZAC parade will assemble on Saturday morning at the Tuakau Cosmopolitan Club in Madill Street from 10.30am for an 11am start. The parade will march to the Tuakau Memorial Hall in George Street for the commemoration service.

We have created a small display in the foyer leading to the supper room at the Memorial Hall. Of the 32 names on the WWI memorial plaque we have managed to find photos for 27 of the men.

08/04/2026

What a difference a year makes! The first two photos show Feather Cottage today compared with March 2025.

A huge thank you to all the volunteers who’ve contributed in any way to this renovation. Feather Cottage is really starting to look amazing!

There are still a few exterior jobs to finish, including painting the front and back doors, refreshing the balustrades, and installing the fretwork that has been painstakingly restored by Mike. Once that is complete it's full steam ahead on the interior.

For those interested in the details, the cottage is painted in Resene Joanna, with baseboards in Resene Hemlock and the doors will be completed in Resene Scrub to match the roof.

We’d also like to extend our sincere thanks to Counties Scaffolding for their incredibly generous support in providing scaffolding over the past four months — a huge help to the project budget.

And a special thank you to Matthew Kurth, who travelled from Whitianga over Easter and generously gave his time and expertise to tackle building work that was beyond the scope of our volunteers. Matthew has family connections to the Wilson and Watson families of Whangarata, and the Hutton family of Tuakau — making his contribution even more meaningful.

13/03/2026

Today we had the pleasure of welcoming two visitors from Australia who brought along a special donation for us — a 1955 Bromley Park brochure. Thanks Lynda and Ivo – it’s a great addition to the museum’s archive.
We’ve scanned all 42 pages of this fascinating piece of history and have shared a few of them here. It’s a snapshot of the people and work connected to Bromley Park in the mid-1950s.
Do you recognise anyone featured in the brochure? If you can help us identify any of the workers pictured, we’d love to hear from you! If you have memories of events held in the Recreation Hall — please share them with us.

Address

10 Liverpool Street
Tuakau
2121

Opening Hours

Thursday	9:30am - 12pm
Sunday	1pm - 3:30pm

Website

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