Issue 1, November 2011

1814 HANSEN FAMILY

Welcome to the first newsletter of milestone anniversary, 200 years Hansen Family society and the 1814 Hansen Family Society since settlement. describes what is being planned in Inc. The bicentenary of the arrival This first newsletter gives an the lead up to the bicentenary. of the Hansen Family in New update on activities underway, Join us as we work toward this Zealand is upon us. That means it introduces the newly established important commemorative event. is time to plan a celebration and to discover, update and present the history of the Hansen Family for family members and all of New Zealand. Many of you will have attended the wonderful reunion held in 1990 to celebrate the 175th anniversary of the Hansen Family's arrival and settlement in New Zealand. Since then, family members (most notably Stan and Kath Hansen) have continued to unveil the history of the Hansen Family in New Zealand and to look ahead to the next major Rangihoua Bay (painting by R Horner, 1989)

Contents The 1814 Hansen Family Society

An organisation has been proposed to be $20 for 1 year, or established to support the $50 to cover the full three years  1814 Hansen Family planning of the bicentenary, the until the bicentenary reunion. Society 1814 Hansen Family Society You can also become a  Hansen Family 2014 Incorporated. The aims of the foundation member for $100 Bicentenary society are to: (later in this newsletter). 1. Raise awareness of the Until officers are elected at the  The family tree history of the Hansen Family first AGM, the committee  Communication settlement at Oihi in 1814 members are Ted Hansen, Kath 2. Organize and manage and Stan Hansen, Kerry Butler,  What’s happening at Oihi Hansen Family events such Rosalie Maihi, John Carroll, Eric as the bicentenary reunion Hansen, Denise Poole and Roger  Did you know? 3. Protect and promote any Chambers.  Hansen Family Hansen Family artifacts, such The AGM will be held early next publications as the model of the brig year – 2pm 25 March 2012 at the Active recently lent to the Papakura Netball Centre with  Foundation members Waitangi National Trust. the date and venue to be  Fundraising You can become a member of the confirmed early next year. 1814 Hansen Family society if Family members are encouraged  What can you do? you are a descendant of Captain to attend or if you can't attend,  Contact details Thomas and Hannah Hansen and make contact with the secretary you pay the membership fee. The or other current committee fees will be set at the Annual member to register your interest General Meeting (AGM) and are in any AGM matters.

1 Issue 1, November 2011 Hansen Family 2014 Bicentenary

On 22 December 1814 the brig Active anchored in Rangihoua Bay in the . The brig, under the command of Captain Thomas Hansen, carried Reverend and his chosen missionaries to New Zealand to establish a Christian mission here. Four families, including our Hansen Family ancestors, went ashore and established New Zealand's first permanent European settlement. December 2014 will mark the 200th anniversary of this historical event and the 1814 Hansen Family society is planning a bicentenary reunion. The actual anniversary falls just a few days before Christmas - the Reverend Samuel Marsden preached his first sermon in New Zealand Family Tree to Maori and the small group of settlers on Christmas Day 1814. The Church Missionary Society is planning major celebrations of the landing and the first Christian service at Oihi over Christmas week For the 1990 reunion, the 2014 and we will keep you posted as we find out the details. We have massive task of documenting decided not to divert attention from those celebrations by organizing a the Hansen family tree was Hansen event at this time, so our celebrations will be held the undertaken with assistance weekend of from genealogical specialist, 16th to 18th January 2015 Evagean Publishing Ltd. This The Telstra Clear Pacific Events Centre in Manukau is tentatively 175 year old tree of life required booked for the occasion. It is a great, modern venue that is well two separate 500 page volumes located and large enough to cater for the large numbers expected. to record the whole family or as much as was known at More information about the plans for the bicentennial celebration will the time. So it is with some be provided in future newsletters. All you need to do just now is to… trepidation that we now seek to Note the date of New Zealand's update the entries and to bring the family tree into the most historical family reunion! electronic age. Evagean Publishing (now Communications owned and run by Alison Honeyfield) has again been To stay in touch with our vast whanau we are planning a programme engaged to translate the of communications, including email, newsletters, a website existing hard copy family tree (www.the1814hansenfamilysocietyinc.org), Facebook (Hansen record into an electronic format Family 1814 in New Zealand), letters, person to person, even through that can then be updated and media such as radio and newspaper. To help us stay in touch with made available to family you, please let us know your contact details. We would like to be able members. Alison will work to update as many people as possible by email but we also need your through family members to postal address for family tree updating. obtain information relating to If you would like to receive our communications, please send your births, deaths and marriages contact details to Kerry Butler or other member of the committee. since 1990. She relies on contacting people by mail so it’s very important that we obtain We urgently need help from your postal address. someone who can manage our Hansen Family website. We want Please advise your to make information about the

family, our history and the postal address bicentenary celebrations available to Kerry Butler and include to family and, where appropriate, your email for other the public. communications. Please contact Kerry Butler if you WE NEED YOU! think you can help. 2 Issue 1, November 2011 It all started at Oihi

Oihi is the name of the place in track to the reserve, the Marsden Rangihoua Bay where Reverend Cross Track Samuel Marsden established the (http://www.doc.govt.nz/parks- Christian mission settlement that and-recreation/tracks-and- brought our Hansen family walks/northland/bay-of- ancestors to New Zealand. 200 islands/marsden-cross-track/. acres at Oihi was purchased by As part of our preparations for Marsden for the mission the bicentenary, the committee settlement from the Chief has commenced discussions with of Ngati Rehia. DOC to have the early history of Today it is the site of the Marsden the Hansen Family at Oihi Cross Historic Reserve described on information panels (http://www.doc.govt.nz/conser to be installed at the site. The vation/historic/by- committee has also been in region/northland/bay-of- discussion with DOC and the islands/marsden-cross-historic- Auckland University to excavate reserve/), a site maintained by the the archaeological remains of Department of Conservation what may have been the house of (DOC). The Marsden Cross marks Thomas Hansen (son of Capt the site of the first sermon given Hansen). Nearby are a lemon tree by Reverend Marsden in New and a briar rose that may have Zealand on Christmas Day 1814. originated from the time of the Further up the slope there is also settlers. the King Memorial to the We will provide more Rangihoua Mission and family information on these projects in Marsden Cross at Marsden Cross members who are buried there. future newsletters. Historic Reserve, Oihi DOC have recently upgraded the (Photo by Alison Mackrell) Did you know?

“The brig Active arrived in the Bay and worked for the mission for of Islands on December 22, 1814. years. John and Hannah King spent On board was the Rev. Samuel the rest of their lives at Oihi Marsden who came on behalf of the working with and for the people Church Mission Society to establish there. the first mission in New Zealand at The descendants of Thomas and Oihi, under the protection of Hanna[*h] Hansen were the first Ruatara and the Ngati Rehia. Europeans to settle permanently in The Active was commanded by New Zealand. Their [*grand] Thomas Hansen. With him on this children were the first Europeans to historic voyage was his wife be born and remain in New Hannah, their son Thomas and their Zealand. The last of them was born daughter Hannah, wife of John King in 1837, three years before the the missionary. They were a London signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. family which had already migrated They lived in a community that was to New South Wales in 1807 as free bilingual and bicultural.” settlers. Back cover of The First Family – Young Thomas was not a Captain Thomas and Hannah missionary but he settled Hansen and their children (1989) permanently on land next to the by Ron Martin. The brig Active mission, raised his family of 11 there (by R Horner) [* corrections] 3 Issue 1, November 2011 Fundraising record of the Hansen Family tree. Karl began the project of investigating and recording the Hansen As you can imagine, the society will require some Family tree in preparation for New Zealand’s 1940 funds to support the planning required for the centennial celebrations. The book covers Karl’s bicentenary. In particular, in the immediate future family history investigations but also provides an we need to lodge a considerable deposit for the hire insight into his family life as a young married of the venue, as well as some incidental costs such schoolteacher in remote rural New Zealand. as those associated with our communications to Copies of ‘Dear Mr Hansen’ are available for just $10 you. As time goes by we will require funds to seed ($12 including post in NZ) each by contacting Kath other fundraising activities. Hansen or other members of the committee. Kath is We are very grateful to Kath Hansen for donating very generously donating all profits from the sale of profits from the sale of her book ‘Dear Mr Hansen’ to ‘Dear Mr Hansen’ to the 1814 Hansen Family society. the society. If you would like to contribute, you Other Hansen Family publications will be described could become a member of the society ($20 for 1 in future newsletters. Look out for Kath’s Korner in year, $50 for 3 years or $100 to become a foundation the next newsletter. member). We will advise you of fundraising activities as they What can you do? arise. If you have any ideas or would like to make an online payment, please contact the Rosalie Maihi We hope you have enjoyed this newsletter. Here is a or any other committee member. reminder of what you can do to join in. 1. Register your interest with us so we can keep Foundation Members you informed. Send contact details to Kerry Butler or another committee member and Would you like to become a founding member of please pass this newsletter on to others so we the 1814 Hansen Family society? can expand our contacts list quickly. You will be noted in our membership record as a 2. Help with the family tree updates - provide foundation member and receive a certificate noting your postal address to the committee so Alison your special membership. Each foundation member can contact you. is asked to donate $100 to the society and in return 3. Note the date of New Zealand’s most historic will receive their certificate, membership in the family reunion – 16-18 January 2015. society until the bicentenary reunion (3yrs) and a 4. We need a website developer urgently! Can you $50 discount on the cost of attending the help? bicentenary celebrations. 5. If you would like to become a foundation Funds raised from founding members will enable member, please contact Kath Hansen or any bicentenary plans and other activities to proceed. other committee member. 6. Please note the tentative date of the annual Dear Mr Hansen general meeting (AGM) – 25 March 2012 (2pm). ‘Dear Mr Hansen’ is a book recently written by Kath 7. If you have any feedback for the committee on Hansen to recognize the work that Karl Hansen (3x the bicentenary plans or anything else in this great grandson of Capt. Hansen) did to start the newsletter please contact your committee.

Ted Hansen [email protected] 07 542 3814 14 Motiti Rd, Papamoa 3118 Kath and Stan [email protected] Hansen 09 268 6505 5 Byblos Place, The Gardens, Auckland 2105 Kerry Butler [email protected] 021 681 044 3F 38 James Cook Cr, Newmarket, Auckland 1050 Rosalie Maihi [email protected] 09 2989633, 027 415 2944 6 Butterworth Ave, Opaheke, Papakura 2113 John Carroll [email protected] Karl Hansen and family (left to right: Karl, Eunice, Eric Hansen [email protected] Denise Poole [email protected] Noelene, Lil, Val) Roger Chambers [email protected]

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