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Story: European exploration

Canoeing up the Manawatū

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Canoeing up the Manawatū

This scene was sketched by Bishop Selwyn in his letter book. It shows him travelling up the Manawatū River in November 1843. Intrepid Pākehā explorers commonly depended on the guidance, and often the muscle power, of Māori.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library, George Augustus Selwyn Papers

Reference: qMS-1774-145

by George Augustus Selwyn

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Jock Phillips, European exploration – Discovery and exploration, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/artwork/11246/canoeing-up-the-manawatu (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Jock Phillips, published 1 March 2009.