Pompallier Mission and Printery (Pompallier House) Tours and Tickets

When Europeans were first beginning to establish settlements in New Zealand, a race was on between British and French for who would have the most influence. While the Protestant British would eventually win out and form an island colony, the French still managed to build multiple settlements and influence local Maori. One of those ways was through Catholic texts that were translated and distributed in Maori, which were printed, tanned, and bound right here at the Pompallier Mission and Printery (Pompallier House) by Russell. Accessible today through a guided tour, the Pompallier Mission offers visitors a glimpse of early European settlements, as well as a thorough explanation of how British, French, and Maori tribes all skirmished and negotiated for land. Aside the early printing press and info relating to printing, the Pompallier building is a sight in itself, having been constructed in 1842 in a rammed-Earth style that was typical of the day in the French city of Lyon. It also has an extensive heritage garden, with sweeping views that look across the bay towards Waitangi and Paihia.