POMPALLIER MISSION AND PRINTERY, NORTHLAND, PLACES TO VISIT
Heritage fans rejoice, Pompallier Mission has a heritage garden, a fascinating active printery and a cafe. The historic printery is fun; visitors immerse themselves in the process of printing, on 19th century equipment sample texts.
Pompallier Mission & Printery (1842) is the home of 180 year-old printing presses originally churning out Church texts. The rammed earth cob homestead, originally the home for the French Catholic Mission to the western Pacific is named after Jean Baptiste Pompallier, the first Vicar Apostolic to New Zealand.
OPENING HOURS – POMPALLIER MISSION & PRINTERY
Access to the interior is by guided tour only. The heritage gardens can be visited independently with a short hillside walk to panoramic views over the harbour. Garden tickets can be purchased separately from the guided printery tour. Pompallier is open from Wednesday to Sunday during the peak season. Check beforehand to avoid disappointment.
There is a French-styled Coffee House on site.
The printer’s function was to produce Church texts that were translated from Latin to Maori. There is a chapel and various outhouses. Today the Printery stands as New Zealand’s oldest industrial building. Originally the site was a tannery, print shop and book binder.
POMPALLIER MISSION HERITAGE GARDEN
- Extensive Victorian & Edwardian kitchen garden
- Gardening style covering two settler families, the Greenway family and Stevensons
The garden is a burst of spring colour with annuals, perennials and mature trees creating a diverse landscape. The gardens reflect the influences of European settlers combined with native flora and fauna. There’s a number of heritage apple and fruiting trees in quince and other Victorian favourites.
Combine your garden and printery tour with time spent in the Russell Museum. Take a walk along the shoreline. For outdoors enthusiasts discover Day Trips to Coca Cola Lake, Taumarumaru, & Rangikapiti Pa.
POMPALLIER MISSION AND PRINTERY LOCATION
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