Puhoi is just north of Auckland. Bohemians arrived in 1863 and ‘settled’ the ‘waste land’ that in reality belonged to Māori (as did everything in New Zealand before Europeans arrived and grabbed it). That phrase ‘first settlers’ sounds so normal, but Māori were there first.

Puhoi church - a small wooden structure painted white, with a red roof.Plaque about the ‘first settlers’.Building with memorial rock and plaque in front of it. Extensive information board about Bohemian settlers in Puhoi.