4 May

Marion du Fresne arrives in the Bay of Islands

1772 Marion du Fresne arrives in the Bay of Islands

Marion du Fresne’s was the second French expedition to visit New Zealand, following that of Jean François Marie de Surville in 1769. Du Fresne’s acceptance of the philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s beliefs about ‘noble savages’ was to have unfortunate consequences for him and his crew. Read more...
Avalanche kills two workers at the Homer tunnel

1937 Avalanche kills two workers at the Homer tunnel

The engineer-in-charge and the overseer were killed when the second avalanche to hit the Homer tunnel project in less than 12 months struck without warning. Read more...