We were over in Russell last week on B's day off hoping to do a tour of the Pompallier Mission House but alas we were a bit late for the tour. History about this place is: Built in 1842 it housed a printery where church texts were translated from Latin to te reo Māori, then printed and bound. The property is just five minutes’ walk from the wharf at Russell, formerly known as Kororareka and infamous as the ‘hell-hole of the Pacific’ for its drunken and raucous behaviour. It was against this colourful backdrop that a group of French Marist Brothers – including Jean Baptiste Pompallier, after whom the property is named – arrived to set up a Catholic Mission in the settlement.
Unfortunately we were a bit late by the time we got there and B had an appointment that afternoon so it will have to wait until another time.
