About | Taranaki Pioneer Village
Be taken back in time as you stroll through the Taranaki Pioneer Village which has over 40 original historic structures, the oldest dating all the way back to 1853. Taranaki Pioneer Village is set on 10 acres and is an outdoor museum that takes a look into the life of Taranaki pioneers during the 1850 – 1950 era with many exhibits and artefacts still in working order. Play the piano, write on a chalkboard, pick up the phone or get locked up in the Kaponga jailhouse.
The Stratford Hospital Museum gives you a glimpse into how nurses and doctors worked and lived, with a wide range of hospital equipment.
The ‘Pioneer Express’ train will take you around the village and is a great way of seeing the outdoor museum. Grab some animal food to feed the friendly sheep and chickens. Walk around the lake, cross the bridge and see the working waterwheel and water ram.
Young can see how life was lived back in the day while the older generation can reminisce about what it used to be like and tell their own stories.
Drop into Shakee Pear Cafe if you get hungry, it’s open for breakfast, lunch and offers yummy treats. It also has an outdoor playground for the kids to enjoy.
The Blacksmith, Woodturner and Printers operate every 2nd Sunday of the month.
How long? People usually spend about 2 hours here.
Nearby
Dawson Falls
Wilkies Pools
Location
Photos
It was a rainy day but we didn’t let that deter us from enjoying the Taranaki Pioneer Village. Running from building to building we learnt more about pioneering life and felt like we had been taken back in time as we explored this beautiful little village.
The boys were given a little quiz to take with them and they looked for and wrote in the answers along the way.
We loved that we were able to walk right into a lot of the buildings and really get a feel of what it would have been like. It was fun exploring the school, opening up the desks, writing on the chalkboard and flicking through some of the books. We read about some very interesting rules that they had for teachers.
Rules for teachers:
In 1872:
- “Make your pens carefully. You may whittle nibs to the individual taste of the pupils.”
- “Every teacher should lay aside from each pay a goodly sum of his earnings for his benefit during his declining years so that he will not become a burden on society.”
In 1915:
- “You must be home between the hours of 8pm and 6am unless attending a school function.”
- “You may not leave the city limits without the permission of the chairman of the board.”
And it went on! Have a good read of them when you visit.
Ashton has taken a bit of an interest in photography after seeing me take so many photos, he now loves to get behind the camera whenever he can!
That big ugly wound on Sam’s arm is from a kettle burn. He had his arm over the kettle just after it had finished boiling and the hot steam gave him that – ouch! He got it at the start of our week away and ripped it a couple of times when bombing into the cool waters around Wellington, etc. Even more ouch!
We were actually hiding away in the church because the rain had started to get more heavy and it was a long run to the next part (it wasn’t actually that long – but it seemed that way being in the rain). So when we felt ready, we left the church and quickly rain for our next destination.
I loved being able to step into the small houses and being able to see the whole thing, the lounge, bedroom, small kitchen and bathroom.
