Ka mua, ka muri
LOOKING TO OUR PAST TO GUIDE OUR FUTURE
Photo of family from 1800's

Welcome to The Treasury Research Centre and Archive

Nau mai, haere mai!

E mihi ana ki ngā tohu ō nehe, ō Hauraki
E mihi ana ki ngā tāngata whenua ō te rohe nei

We recognise the ancestral and spiritual landmarks of Hauraki.
We acknowledge the indigenous people of this area.

Do you or your family have historic connections to the Coromandel-Hauraki area? Are you interested in knowing more about this region's rich and significant past? If so, you have found your way to the right place. There is every chance The Treasury can help you bring to life the stories of bygone days that you are seeking.

The Treasury, a Research Centre and Archive, has its home in Thames on the beautiful Coromandel Peninsula. Having evolved into specialists in family records, we collect, house, preserve and make accessible paper-based records of the history of the people, organisations and businesses from our rohe/area which includes the entire Coromandel Peninsula and the Hauraki area including Paeroa, Waikino, Waihi, the Hauraki Plains, Ohinemuri and Te Aroha.

The Treasury is housed within two extraordinary buildings side by side at 705 Queen Street, Thames, each quite imposing in their own way and completely juxtaposed architecturally.  The Thames Carnegie Library, built in 1905, was refurbished by Thames-Coromandel District Council in 2007 and reopened as The Treasury in 2009.  Today The Carnegie Library is recognised as a Category 2 Building by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.  Alongside it, The Treasury Archive is a bespoke designed, award-winning state of the art facility, stark in its architecture, which respectfully and artistically interprets aspects of the Carnegie Library design.  Read more about the buildings.

At The Treasury, the past is not lost.  It is tended carefully and respectfully.  The stories are honoured and told.  Currently holding largely post-colonisation records, an active move toward broader cultural inclusion in our collections is underway at The Treasury.  

Led by heritage sector professionals, our team of history-passionate volunteers are here to help you explore detail of the lives of those who came before you and us.

Get involved

We wouldn’t be able to safeguard our treasures or share them with you without vital funding and partnerships. There are a number of ways you can support what we do:

Volunteer with us
Donate
Become a member
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Our opening hours

Our Research Centre and Archive in Thames is open Monday, Thursday and Friday 11am - 3pm & Saturdays 10am - 2pm

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Book image: True Takes of East of the Waihou Matatoki to Hikutaia

The Treasury Book Shop

Collecting and telling the stories of our rohe/district is The Treasury's core purpose. Learn more about the events that moulded our region, help us preserve our history for future generations, and support The Coromandel Heritage Trust by purchasing from our bookshop today.

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"Nothing happens unless first we dream"
Carl Sandburg

This quote was the opening statement of The Coromandel Heritage Trust’s successful 2013 application to Lottery Environment & Heritage which was the final enabler of the Archive build. Daring to dream is what has created the Archive we see today at The Treasury.

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Ngā mihi nui to our funders and partners