Samuel Marsden, leader of the Church Missionary Society in the Pacific, was invited to form the country's first missionary settlement in the Oihi valley, directly under the gaze of Ruatara's stronghold at Rangihoua Pa. Founded in 1814, the mission set out to provide local Maori with skills for engaging with Pakeha society, as well as a knowledge of Protestant Christianity.
Samuel Marsden played an important role in the history of contact between Maori and Pakeha, having taken up a post as the Pacific representative of the London Missionary Society, a Protestant Christian organisation, in 1804, and persuading the newer Church Missionary Society of the virtue of establishing a mission in New Zealand a few years later.
A service led by Marsden at Oihi in December 1814 is the earliest recorded church ceremony held on New Zealand soil, and the mission's purchase of more than 80 hectares (200 acres) early in the following year, largely comprising land that lies within the historic area, was also the first step in a process that would eventually transform the country.
By 1907 the commemorative significance of the mission site at Oihi had been recognised.
In 1907 the Marsden Cross was erected overlooking the foreshore, and was unveiled by the Governor-General of New Zealand, Lord Plunket on the 12th of March in the presence of representatives of the two races in the Dominion. It is of Celtic design, and it bears the following inscription:—
On Christmas Day, 1814
The First Christian Service in N.Z.
was Held on This Spot
by The Rev. Samuel Marsden.
At the unveiling ceremony, addresses were given by His Excellency Lord Plunket, Bishop Neligan, of Auckland, and Archdeacon Walsh. Mr. J. B. Clarke spoke on behalf of the mission families in the district, and Hare Te Heihei on behalf of the Maori people. Amongst the hymns sung was, “All People that on Earth do Dwell,” the hymn chosen by Marsden at his memorable service.
More recently the Department of Conservation has purchased parts of the area as scenic and historic reserves, while Rangihoua Pa and the Te Pahi Islands remain Maori reserves.
Access: Marsden Cross Track Length 2.3km, Time 40mins. The Marsden Cross stone monument, commemorating the first sermon preached in New Zealand (Christmas Day, 1814), is in Oihi Bay on the Purerua Peninsula. The track is signposted off Rangihoua Road, 36km from Kerikeri. It offers a rural trek across farmland with stunning views out into the bay. It can also be approached by sea.