Auckland Domain
The Auckland Domain, referred to as Pukekawa / Auckland Domain by the Auckland Council, is a large park in Auckland, New Zealand. It is the oldest park in the city, and at is one of the largest. Located in the central suburb of Grafton, the park land is the remains of the explosion crater and most of the surrounding tuff ring of the Pukekawa volcano. The park is home to one of Auckland's main tourist attractions, the Auckland War Memorial Museum, which sits prominently on the crater rim (tuff ring). Several sports fields occupy the floor of the  crater and the rim opposite the Museum hosts the cricket pavilion and Auckland City Hospital. The Domain Wintergardens, with two large glass houses, lie on the north side of the central scoria cone called Pukekaroa Hill. A sacred tōtara tree grows on top of Pukekaroa. The fernery has been constructed in an old quarry in part of Pukekaroa. The duck ponds lie in the northern sector of the explosion crater, which is breached to the north with a small overflow stream. Naming. The site was originally named "Pukekawa" by Māori. After being reserved by Governor George Grey in 1845, the  park became known as "Auckland Domain" and "The Domain". In 2014, the geographic hill between Parnell and Grafton, locally known as "The Domain" was officially changed back to "Pukekawa", in a Treaty of Waitangi Settlement that agreed the name reflects the historical association of local Māori with this site. "Pukekawa" traditionally meant 'sour hill', because the land was considered (meaning sour or bitter) and would not grow kumara. Pōtatau Te Wherowhero, the first Māori King interpreted it to mean 'hill of bitter memories', likely referring to various hard-fought tribal battles between the Ngapuhi and Ngati Whatua iwi. A tōtara  tree, commemorating the battles and the continued peace agreement, stands on the central volcanic cone called "Pukekaroa", also known as "Pukekaroro" ("Black-backed Gull Hill")"." Alternatively Pukekawa may be a shortening of or 'the hill of the kawakawa tree', which are still found in the vicinity. Auckland Council now refers to the site as "Pukekawa / Auckland Domain". Geography. Auckland Domain is the remains of Pukekawa volcano, one of the oldest volcanoes in the Auckland volcanic field, that erupted approximately 100,000 years ago. Pukekawa consists of a large explosion crater surrounded by a tuff ring with a small scoria cone named  Pukekaroa Hill in the centre of the crater. Its tuff ring, created by many explosive eruptions, is made of a mixture of volcanic ash, lapilli and fragmented sandstone country rock. Its eruption followed soon (in geological terms) after the neighbouring Grafton Volcano was created, destroying that volcano's eastern parts and burying the rest. Originally, the crater floor was filled with a lava lake, the western half collapsed slightly and became a freshwater lake which later turned into a swamp and slowly filled up with alluvium and sediment, before being drained by Europeans for use as playing fields and parkland . These origins are still somewhat visible in that the Duck Ponds are freshwater-fed from the drainage of the crater. History. Māori habitation. Pukekawa was identified by Tāmaki Māori early on as one of the best sites in the isthmus area, with the north-facing side of the volcanic cones well-suited for growing kumara, while the Pukekaroa Hill itself was used for storage and as a "pā" site. The crater swamp meanwhile provided eels and water. In 1828, Pukekaroa was the site of a peacemaking meeting between Northern and Waikato iwi. Soon after signing the Treaty of Waitangi, Ngāti  Whātua Paramount Chief Apihai Te Kawau made a "tuku" (strategic gift) of 3,500 acres (1,400 hectares) of land on the Waitematā Harbour for the new capital of Auckland, including Pukekawa which was set aside as a public reserve in 1843 by Governor FitzRoy. In the late 1840s, Governor Grey asked Te Wherowhero, to protect Auckland from threats from northern chiefs Pomare and Patuone. Te Wherowhero stayed at Pukekawa with nearly 400 kinsmen. Auckland was never attacked. Public reserve. The area was first established as a public domain in 1845. In the 1866, the springs at the Auckland Domain became the  first piped source of water for the town of Auckland after the Waihorotiu Stream became unsuitable. The original swamp was drained and turned into a cricket field. This was replaced by the pumpworks at Western Springs in 1877. The Auckland cricket team played all their home matches at Auckland Domain until 1913, when they moved to Eden Park. The Auckland Acclimatisation Society had their gardens in Auckland Domain in 1862; they became the Auckland Botanic Gardens. Parts of the layout still exist north of the Band Stand, including some greenhouses from the 1870s. Many exotic specimen trees were donated and  planted throughout Auckland Domain by the late Victorians which have now matured into a landscape park. They are now augmented by many New Zealand species. The wooden Cricket Ground Pavilion designed by William Anderson was built in 1898 as a replacement for an earlier structure that burnt down. In 1910, Auckland Domain witnessed the first ever rugby league test match in New Zealand when Great Britain defeated New Zealand in the 1910 Great Britain Lions tour. In 1913, Auckland Domain was the site of the Auckland Exhibition whose president was local businessman William Elliot. The financial return from this event  resulted in many improvements to Auckland Domain, chief among them the Wintergardens next to the duck ponds. Unlike many of the other buildings, the Tea Kiosk was intended to remain after the Exhibition closed. Reputedly built in the form of an "ideal home", it is an example of an Arts and Crafts cottage and was designed by architectural partnership Banford & Pierce. It stands between the Wintergardens and the duck ponds and houses a café and function centre. The Wintergardens Fernery was created in a former scoria quarry in the side of the small Pukekaroa cone"." During the 1920s and 1930s , Elliot donated several of the marble statues as well as money to complete the Wintergarden complex. He provided a further sum of money to construct the art deco entrance gates. Designed by the architectural firm Gummer and Ford, the gates are surmounted by a bronze statue of a nude male athlete by the sculptor Richard Gross. Auckland Domain is also the location of several other public artworks including Guy Nygan's "Millennium Tree" and "Kaitiaki" by Fred Graham. In 1929 the Auckland War Memorial Museum, which was built in a neo-Greek style, was opened. The rear portion was added  in the 1960s, with a major renovation and extension in the mid-2000s adding a dome to the south end. The Auckland Cenotaph surrounded by a Court of Honour in front of the museum, is modelled on the 1920 Empire Cenotaph in Whitehall, London, was consecrated by the Archbishop of New Zealand in November 1929. In 1940 a tōtara tree was planted on top of the central cone Pukekaroa by Kiingitanga leader Princess Te Puea Hērangi, the great-granddaughter of Pōtatau Te Wherowhero to commemorate 100 years of the Treaty of Waitangi. The sacred tōtara is surrounded and protected by carved  ancestral guardians of Pukekaroa, which were restored in 2017. Also in 1940, to commemorate the founding of Auckland 100 years earlier, a new road was planned for Auckland Domain. "Centennial Drive" was surveyed and trees were planted along its length, but it was never formed as a road; it is now a walkway between the duck ponds and Stanley Street. During World War II, two camps were erected in Auckland Domain for 1,726 United States troops, one in front of the Auckland Museum. To the west of the main entrance, a plaque commemorates their presence from 1942 to 1944. An  18,500 cubic meter (4 million gallon) water reservoir was constructed in 1952, buried in the field at the high point to the immediate south of the museum. The reservoir is still in use maintaining the water supply into Auckland's central business district. In 1970, a sensory garden for the blind was established at the eastern end of Auckland Domain by the Tamaki Lions Club and Council. In 2005, a monument for the Auckland Regiment was installed south of the central cone Pukekaroa. Events. Auckland Domain has also hosted many of New Zealand's largest outdoor events. Such use has  a long history, from balloon ascents during the Edwardian period, to the 1953 Royal Tour of Elizabeth II, to papal visits, and various sports events. Some of the largest annual events are "Christmas in the Park", which in the past has drawn more than 200,000 spectators, and other popular recurring events including the "Symphony under the Stars" and the "Teddybears Picnic". The War Memorial Museum in the Auckland Domain is the site of the largest annual ANZAC service in Auckland. White crosses erected on the field in front of the War Memorial Museum, commemorate the people that died in the  New Zealand Wars and the New Zealand military personnel that died from wars fought overseas (beginning with the South African War). The Red Bull Trolley Grand Prix was held using Domain Drive as the racecourse from 2003.