Durham Military Barracks

This building was originally sited near the Durham Redoubt in the early Te Papa (Tauranga) Settlement. This barrack building was typical of those occupied by junior officers at the time. Paintings by military artists show this type of building in the Royal Artillery Ca1np, Te Papa.

At a later date, with settlement expansion, the building was relocated on the town outskirts.

In 1979, it was rediscovered at the rear of a Gate Pa shopping complex. During rebuilding, an old brick wall of a plumber’s workshop was demolished revealing the old army building.

By 16 April 1984 renovations were completed and the building named as the “Durham Light Regiment of Foot Barracks”. It was officially opened by Major Flint of the Hauraki Regiment with local Maori Elders participating.

A display relating to the Battle of Gate Pa is housed in the mainroom and the smaller rooms displayed as subalterns’ quarters.

Its present site is very appropriate for on the eve of the battle, the British troops camped on the hill directly behind. The carmon mounted at the front of the barracks was, for many years, displayed in the grounds of the Monmouth Redoubt. Prior to this the gun sat in the grounds of the home of Mr A W Burrows, a prominent architect of early Tauranga. It is believed to have come from the fortress established by the Maketu trader, Philip Tapsell.

Upon removal to the Historic Village, a new gun carriage was constructed.