A fraction too much friction: contested heritage and the Whiteley Memorial

Abstract

A pile of rubble in a north Taranaki paddock is all that remains of the large stone cairn that was once the Whiteley Memorial. Methodist Missionary John Whiteley was killed in 1869 in an incident during the Taranaki Wars and a memorial in his honour was erected near the site of his death in 1923. The location of the memorial on a former Ngati Tama pa site, and its destruction in 2006 has prompted intense debate about different notions of the past and the ways in which it is presented in the present. This dissertation examines a case study of contested heritage where different groups: Maori and Pakeha, the church and the local community make claims for and against. It considers the question of how we might understand contested values that lie behind the loss of historic heritage in post-colonial New Zealand. A range of historical, empirical and theoretical approaches are incorporated in this research, including interviews, archival records, and other historical evidence, to generate a diverse range of data reflecting the wide range of factors that influence the central research question. By utilising the Whiteley Memorial case study in conjunction with theories of both tangible and intangible heritage, the research moves beyond circular debates about right or wrong, inheritance and exclusion, to draw attention to the plurality and ambivalence of historic heritage in New Zealand today. This dissertation also addresses an issue that has been under-developed in the existing literature on heritage, namely how heritage has emerged as a major arena of conflict. The research not only provides an indepth study of one example of heritage dissonance, but suggests that awareness of cultural diversity, and the recognition and incorporation of other knowledge systems in heritage management, will ensure historic heritage is managed in a way that is more inclusive of New Zealand's different communities. It proposes a new direction for the future management of sites of contested heritage, recommending that heritage management in this country should seek to achieve a genuine engagement with the social values that people attach to places, and map out a process where different communities' values can be considered. This dissertation therefore serves as a critical resource to prompt debate and active participation in the management of historic heritage in New Zealand.