Story: Te Māori i te ohanga – Māori in the economy

Paremata whaling station

Paremata whaling station

This is Joseph Toms's whaling station at Paremata in the 1840s. Toms (spelt 'Thoms' in the picture title) married Te Tokirikiri, a niece of Te Rauparaha. Māori initially supplied food and other goods to whalers. Later, with shore-based whaling stations, Pākehā whalers often married into Māori communities. Some Māori communities continued to operate whaling stations even after whaling wound down.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library
Reference: PUBL-0020-05-3
Engraving by Samuel Charles Brees

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:

Basil Keane, 'Te Māori i te ohanga – Māori in the economy - Early trade with Pākehā', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/artwork/25764/paremata-whaling-station (accessed 30 March 2024)

Story by Basil Keane, published 11 Mar 2010