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The 1886 Te Topotoru Tapu (Holy Trinity Anglican
Church) was designed and built by Maori. It has
been now been restored, sitting high with
a view of the firth, at 334 Parawai Road.
holy trinity
anglican church
Churches kept
communities connected
I
n 1833 – long before mining began in the Thames
region – missionaries had established a station for
Maori near Puriri on the Waihou River (what Captain
Cook named The Thames). The initial Puriri river
location proved too swampy, so the Anglican’s mission
was moved to a higher location overlooking Thames
in the Parawai hills. In 1886, the Maori designed and
constructed the Holy Trinity Anglican Church, which has
recently been restored.
After the area was opened for mining in 1867, the seeds
of churches were soon planted and then sprouted.
Most church folk found each other quickly, meeting and
worshipping in private homes or hotels. Hymns were
accompanied by simple harmonium, guitar or violin.
Churches were one of the mainstays of socialising
in Thames – pubs being the other! – offering
companionship, opportunities to meet with those of
same country of origin (such as the Irish Catholics), and
space for other social, educational and musical events.
Many churches ran their own schools. Ministers offered
assistance to miners who could not read nor write.
Congregations provided comfort and aid to families
when a digger was killed or injured in the mines.
The Methodists got off to a roaring start with Primitive
Methodist Minister the Rev G.S. Harper preaching ‘his
first sermon from a beer barrel’ on Christmas Day, 1867.
Not to be outdone in the barrel department...empty
blasting powder barrels provided pew seating for a
Baptist congregation that began meeting in mid-1868 in
the cottage of Henry and Sophia Driver.
ANCHORS OF THE TOWN:
St. James Union Church, originally the Presbyterian Church, later joined
with the Methodists. The background photo by Ross Davies, who attended
as a child, shows the distinctinve herringbone pattern its kauri walls.
st. james union
(presbyterian) church
Photo: Charlotte Giblin
visit the
SURVIVING
HISTORIC CHURCHES
The small early church halls were outgrown
and larger ones built: in 1872, St. George’s
Anglican Church; in 1898, St. James Union
(Presbyterian) Church; and in 1886, the
quaint Holy Trinity Anglican Church.
These are the best preserved of the town’s
historical churches. The Baptist Church
on Mary St. has blended its historic chapel
with modern front additions.
The two Roman Catholic churches
each supported schools and a nuns’
convent; they joined as St. Francis and built
modern facilities and a
school with nearly
100 students.
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COROMANDEL LIFE 2015 WINTER