History of the Abel Tasman

Mana Whenua

Māori have had a long association with the Abel Tasman National Park dating back more than 600 years. Archeological evidence shows most occupation was seasonal, with iwi (tribes) living along the coast, gathering kaimoana (food from the sea) and growing kumara on suitable sites. 

The first known iwi were the Ngai Tara who came from the Wellington area.  Around 1600A.D, Ngāti Tumatakokiri arrived from the Marlborough Sounds and gradually spread as far as Karamea.  The people of Te Ātiawa and Ngāti Rārua also recognise the ancient people of Waitaha who tribal traditions say came to the area from their ancient homeland Hawaiki.

The region’s abundant food and proximity to the West Coast’s pounamu (greenstone) made it attractive to invading iwi and around 1800 Ngāti Tumatakokiri were conquered by Ngāti Apa from the North, Ngāti Kuia in the east, and Ngāi Tahu from the South.

In 1828 the Taranaki and Tainui tribes that were part of Te Rauparaha’s confederation swept through the region.  The local tribes were almost completely destroyed with the area then settled by Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Rārua and Ngāti Tama.

Local iwi continue to have a strong relationship with the park as kaitiaki or guardians, working closely with Project Janszoon and DOC. Pou whenua are being erected at significant sites in the park to celebrate the stories of ancestors with links to the Abel Tasman and surrounding areas

Abel Janzoon Tasman

On 18 December 1642, Abel Tasman and his crew anchored in what is now known as Golden Bay, a short distance from the Māori pa at Taupo Point.  It is thought Ngāti Tumatakokiri warriors came out to inspect the ships by waka and the resulting skirmish resulted in the death four of Abel Tasman’s men. The local māori also suffered casualties and Tasman never landed in the area.

He named the area Murderers Bay and fled north, anchoring near the Poor Knights Islands but never actually setting foot on land.

Captain James Cook

It wasn’t till 128 years later that Captain James Cook visited the area. But he also never landed. He sailed past the entrance to what is now Tasman Bay, on the 29th of March 1770 and again in May 1773. Due to unfavourable winds Captain Cook never risked closer inspection.

Dumont D’Urville

French explorer Dumont D’Urville’s ship, the Astrolabe, anchored off the coast of the Park on the 16th of January 1827. D’Urville named the sheltered part of the coastline south of Anchorage the Astrolabe Roadstead, a name still used today. He also named the nearby island “Adele” after his wife. In 2014 the name was officially changed to Motuareronui Adele Island.

D’Urville and his crew explored many of the bays and headlands around the Roadstead, naming landmarks like Watering Cove, Simonet Creek and Coquille Bay.

A chart from D’Urville’s visit shows six huts at Torrent Bay and he, and others like early surveyor John Wallis Barnicoat, recorded Māori in small settlements at many spots in the Park like Mutton Cove, Te Pukatea Bay, Whariwharangi, Awaroa, Marahau and Adele and Fishermans Islands.

European Settlers

With the arrival of the New Zealand Company, Māori lost control of much of their land. Land now within the National Park boundaries were subdivided and sold to settler families during the 1850’s and 60’s.

Settler families worked the land in different ways – farming, boat building, the bark trade and quarrying. Native bush was cleared by fire, or milled.

However, this was not good farming land. The area was difficult to access, had poor soils and the terrain was mostly challenging.  

From 1876 to 1878 rock was quarried from Adele Island and was shipped to Nelson to form seawalls as part of the new wharf and for the extension of the railway to the port. In the 1870s rocks were taken from the western end of The Anchorage for use at Port Nelson and sand was also shipped to Wellington for use on building facades.

Tonga Quarry was incorporated in 1904, the remains of which can still be found today. This includes the winch block, discarded granite blocks and the old wharf. Building-grade stones were cut from both ends of the beach and were shipped by scow to Wellington for the old parliament building and to Nelson for the steps that lead up the Cathedral. By 1913, operations were greatly scaled down and the Tonga Bay Granite Company was struck off the company’s register in 1921.

From 1855 timber was felled to clear land and for ship and house building. Sawpits were built along the coast with bullocks and trams used to haul the logs. A tramway was also set up from Waiharakeke over to Awaroa, resulting in a small village being established at Awaroa with a school and shop.

Establishment of the National Park

The Abel Tasman Park was formed on the 16th of December 1942, 300 years to the day since Abel Tasman visited the area.

Formation of the Abel Tasman National Park was largely due to the efforts of Mrs Perrine Moncrieff. The area already had several small scenic reserves at Fisherman and Adele Islands, Torrent Bay, Sandfly Bay and the area between Awaroa and Totaranui.
Mrs Moncrieff, amateur ornithologist, was concerned about the proposal to log native timber at Totaranui in 1937. She had been part of previously successful protection endeavours in Nelson and several other areas in the top of the South. She lobbied the government to buy the affected area. There was also the threat of a coastal road being built through the area. A fire at Torrent Bay in 1941 further spurred Moncrieff into action to protect the area.

She lobbied local government, citing that as much land as possible had to be protected to beautify the area surrounding the road. The Nelson City Council agreed with the proposal and signed a petition taking it to parliament. The parliamentary commission decided that the area was worthy of national park status and the road was never built. The Abel Tasman National Park was subsequently formed, with later additions north of Totaranui to Wainui Bay; also initially excluded blocks at Waiharakeke, Awaroa Inlet, Tonga Roadstead and Torrent Bay were subsequently procured and added.

Initially the Park was administered by the Abel Tasman National Park Board and in the mid 50’s the Abel Tasman Coast track was formed with huts  gradually built over the next two decades.

In 1976 the Wilson family began Abel Tasman National Park Enterprises taking passengers on the first scheduled services from Kaiteriteri to Bark Bay.

In 1980 the Department of Lands and Survey began administering the Park.  The Department of Conservation (DOC) took over responsibility for the management of the Park in 1987.

The 1835 ha Tonga Island Marine Reserve was created in 1993.

At 22,530 ha the Abel Tasman is New Zealand’s smallest national park and also one of its most visited with an estimated 300 thousand visitors in 2017.  

As kaitiaki and guardians, Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Rārua and Te Ātiawa work closely with DOC, the Abel Tasman Birdsong Trust and Project Janszoon towards restoring the ecology of the Abel Tasman.