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In the North Waikato area of Te Kohanga, there remain two main buildings — the hall and the local school.
Te Kohanga Community Hall committee member Denise Ewe said the land around the hall was purchased in 1926. In 1929, there was an agreement to build the hall, with the project completed in 1931.
“The total cost to build the hall was 418 pounds, six shillings and tuppence. What a bargain! It was built in the community and by the community, both Maori and Pakeha.
“We had dances, socials, and people played table tennis. They had fundraising, bowls, and card games. When I was growing up, there was also a youth club based there.”
Te Kohanga Community Hall used to fall under the Raglan County Council, then the Franklin County Council in 1991, before coming under the Waikato District Council, Ewe said.
“Today we use the hall for weddings, wedding receptions, birthdays, and the school sometimes will use it because of the stage in the hall. The acoustics in the hall are just fabulous.
“The hall is still very much as I remember when I was growing up, and so myself and my husband were along with some of the locals we look after the hall because it has great significance for us. We grew up there, and the hall, and now there’s only the hall and the school left.”
- To book the hall, contact Denise Ewe via email denise.ewe32@gmail.com or her mobile 027 298 9563.
