Interview: Hugh McBain talks about Mangakuri
Hugh McBain was born in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the North of England and is a descendant of both Henry and William Williams. In 1970, he emigrated to New Zealand and worked as a shepherd at Totara Hills Station in Hawke's Bay before attending Lincoln College and obtaining a Diploma of Agriculture. Hugh has been closely involved with the Anglican Church over the last fifty years. Hugh served as a trustee of the Henry and William Williams Memorial Trust for fifty years. The Trust supports the mission of the Anglican Church to Māori and to other Indigenous people around the world. Hugh talks to NZ Booklovers.
Tell us a little about Mangakuri.
Mangakuri is a coastal sheep station in Central Hawkes Bay. Māori occupied the land for many centuries before European settlement, through times of peace and turbulence. The first European to own the land was Barney Rhodes, who, in 1839, bought a large tract of land from Cape Kidnappers to Cape Turnagain and inland for thirty miles, amounting to about 1.5 million acres, for a purchase price of 150 pounds. The sale was registered in Sydney but was later disallowed after missionary William Williams (my great-great-grandfather) protested vigorously, as Māori were opposed to the sale.
After the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, Mangakuri was part of the Waipukurau block purchased by Donald McLean as per Article 2 of the Treaty. Mangakuri was originally 21,000 acres (8502 ha) and was leased from 1853 until it became fully freehold in 1866. The station was leased by Fred Hargreaves and Peter Couper from 1853, and in 1859 was taken over by the Russell family. In 1876, the station was purchased by James N. Williams and has been owned by the Williams family since that time, with 150 years of ownership being celebrated this year. Over the years, the station has been subdivided and is now 3,200 acres.
The station has changed from originally producing only wool to producing sheepmeat, beef, timber and wool. The station is also developing sections for sale overlooking Mangakuri Beach. Since the 1950s, sections have been sold along Mangakuri Beach and, more recently, at Netherton Farm Park. The Station has its own private Church built in the 1870s. Today, the station is owned by a Williams Family Trust, as there are no family descendants; however, Waipari, originally part of Mangakuri, is farmed by Williams family descendants.
What inspired this book?
The idea to write this book came from the trustees about 13 years ago. They engaged Pat Parsons, a well-known Hawke's Bay Māori historian, to write the book. He wrote four of the early chapters and then pulled out because of ill health. Another person was then engaged but pulled out after a while. In the meantime, in 2022, I had written The Plough, The Chalice and The Sword, a 564-page book about the Williams family in New Zealand to celebrate the bicentenary of the arrival of Henry and Marianne Williams in the Bay of Islands in 1823 and William and Jane Williams in 1826. Mangakuri was included in this book, and so the Mangakuri Trustees, having seen that book, asked me to complete the Mangakuri book. I agreed on the proviso that I could complete the history of the original 21,000-acre station rather than just the current 3,200-acre station, and the trustees agreed. I was happy to take on the challenge; as a member of the Williams family, I knew many of the people involved and had spent many family holidays at Mangakuri Beach over the years.
What research was involved?
This consisted mainly of about 60 interviews with people involved as well as researching more of the early history like the collection of wool by the steamers and surf boats.
What was your routine or process when writing the book?
This mainly consisted of arranging interviews, carrying out the interviews and taking photographs, writing up the interviews and sending them back to the people concerned for checking and signing off.
If you were going to include a soundtrack to the book, what would you include?
I would find more than enough material in Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony!
What did I most enjoy about writing this book?
Meeting all the people and hearing their stories.
What is the favourite book I have read this year and why?
The Last Secret Agent by Jude Dobson. The incredible bravery of Pippa Latour so well told made this book a winner.
What is next on the agenda?
My daughter and I want to write a book about the Tukituki River and its people in Hawke's Bay. Otherwise, I will be working on my memoirs for my grandchildren.
Quentin Wilson Publishing
