Tuarau

Tuarau was a Ngāti Tawhirikura rangatira from the Te Āti Awa iwi. He usually resided in Waikanae but signed the Cook Strait (Henry Williams) Treaty of Waitangi sheet at Port Nicholson on 29 April 1840.  He was nephew to the former head rangatira of Te Ati Awa, who was nicknamed 'Wide Awake' by flax traders.

In 1834 Tuarau sold seventy acres to George Clarke, which was transferred to the Church Missionary Society in 1837. Tuarau was one of 16 signatories to the deed of sale of the Port Nicholson Block to William Wakefield of the New Zealand Company in 1839.  A tenth of that land was to be reserved for the rangatira and their descendents. 

In November 1839, Taurau was sent in the Tory with Te Wharue, Te Puni's eldest son, to Taranaki to advise them to sell land to the New Zealand Company. 

Tuarau was of the Te Ati Awa iwi. He was the grandson of both Tautara and Maheuheu, and the son of Hineone.

It is believed that Tuarau was the warrior that stood at the front of the canoe, when welcoming the Tory into Port Nicholson harbour in September 1839.

Alongside 16 other signatories including Te Matangi, Te Puni, Puakawe and Te Wharepouri, Tuarau agreed to sell William Wakefield the Port Nicholson Block in 1839 on behalf of the New Zealand Company.

See also: Wellington City Council, 2005. Nga Tupuna o Te Whanganui-a-Tara: Volume 3. P.61. Wellington City Council & Wellington Tenths Trust.

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