Te Hokioi printing press

The printing press was a gift to Waikato chiefs Wiremu Toetoe Tumohe of Rangiaowhia and Te Hemara Te Rerehau Paraone of Ngati Maniapoto from Archduke Maximilian of Austria. They brought it back to Aotearoa in 1860.  It is now in the collection at Te Awamutu Museum. 

Te niupepa reo Māori ‘Te Hokioi e Rere Atu Na’

The first issue of Te Hokioi, a four-page newspaper, was published in Ngāruawāhia on 15 June in 1862. The outbreak of the Land Wars between the government and Waikato iwi meant that the last issue was printed on 21 May 1863. The newspaper was named for a spirit bird from ancient times.  

 Pātara Te Tuhi, editor and writer of Te Hokioi

Te Hokooi e Rere Atu Na was started by the Kīngitanga and edited by Pātara Te Tuhi.

References / further reading

• Te Hokioi e Rere Atu Na! The Hokioi Printing Press (Te Awamutu Museum)
• The diary (and translation) of Wiremu Toetoe when he was in Austria - part 1 (Papers Past, Te Ao Hou, October 1958, Page 40) 
• The diary (and translation) of Wiremu Toetoe when he was in Austria - part 2 (Papers Past, Te Ao Hou, December 1958, Page 20) 
• Printed greetings to the Emperor, printed by Wiremu Toetoe and Hēmara Te Rerehau (Papers Past, Books in Māori, 1815-1900: an annotated bibliography)
• Strangers in a strange land: Toetoe and Te Rerehau in Vienna (New Zealand Herald, 17 October 2009)
• Postmaster, sailor, freedom fighter: The man behind Waikato's first newspaper (Stuff, 20 May 2017)
• Te Hokioi printing press (Te Ara)
• Digitised issues of Te Hokioi e Rere Atu Na, 1862-1863 (Papers Past)
• Biography of Wiremu Pātara (Te Ara)

This DigitalNZ story was first published in September 2023.