Manuscripts and archives generally consist of unpublished primary resource material gathered by an individual or organisation.
Personal and family papers can include diaries, journals,
reta, notebooks, typescripts and scrapbooks. Records of organisations can include minute books, correspondence and ledgers.
Many of these records from our databases can now be viewed at Kura Heritage Collections Online.
Heritage Collections, Central City Library
Manuscripts online is the catalogue of the manuscript collections located in the Heritage Collections on the second floor of
Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero Central City Library.
Tip
Some manuscripts are not available online. You can locate this material in the Heritage Collections at the Central City Library.
The collections consists of reta and manuscripts either collected by or produced by Sir George Grey. The material relates to his political and colonial career, both in and outside
Aotearoa, and his cultural and philological interests. Included are manuscripts by Captain James Cook and Sir Joseph Banks and material about Madagascar, reta and manuscripts in
Māori, and more than 3000 reta written mostly to Grey, but occasionally to other correspondents.
Grey New Zealand Māori Manuscript Collection
The Grey New Zealand Māori Manuscript collection is a substantial cultural and historical record of pre-European examples of Māori knowledge and information. This collection was inscribed on the New Zealand register of the UNESCO Memory of the World in 2011. See all Auckland Libraries inscriptions.
God Defend NZ original score and lyrics
As New Zealand’s national anthem, ‘God Defend New Zealand’ is one of our most powerful symbols of national identity. This collection was inscribed on the New Zealand register of the UNESCO Memory of the World in 2013. See all Auckland Libraries inscriptions.
Richard Davis Meteorological Records
The weather journals (1839-1844 and 1849-1851) of Richard Davis are a record of weather observations which has allowed climate scientists to develop a better understanding of the historical weather record of northern New Zealand. This collection was inscribed on the New Zealand register of the UNESCO Memory of the World in 2019. See all Auckland Libraries inscriptions.
New Zealand Manuscripts
The material in this collection relates to New Zealand, and particularly Auckland and
Te Tai Tokerau, from the 19th century through to the present day. Current collecting concentrates on
toi whakaari, social action and community groups,
waiata, literary papers, women’s organisations,
Māori collections and personal papers and diaries.
Non-New Zealand Manuscripts
A collection of miscellaneous non-New Zealand manuscripts ranging in date from 1558 to the 20th century.
Medieval and Eastern Manuscripts
The collection includes Medieval and Renaissance manuscripts from the 12th to the 17th century, and Eastern manuscripts from the 16th to the 19th century.
Reed Dumas Collection
Heritage Collections houses the largest collection of works by and about Alexandre Dumas outside France, including first editions and 2000 pages of manuscripts.
Want to learn about the Reed Dumas Collection at Auckland Libraries and about Dumas’s publishing style? Listen to two interviews with Kate de Courcy, former Manuscript Librarian, on the Auckland Libraries podcast channel:
Alexandre Dumas by Ngā Pātaka Kōrero on SoundCloud.
Go to SoundCloud
Alexandre Dumas in Kura Tūturu on SoundCloud.
Go to SoundCloud
Waitākere Central Library
The repository for a significant collection of archive material sourced from west Auckland individuals, families, organisations,
pakihi and communities.
J.T. Diamond West Auckland History Collection
A major collection, which represents 70 years of research on the Western Districts by the late amateur historian and archaeologist John (Jack) Thomas Diamond (1912-2001). This collection was inscribed on the New Zealand register of the UNESCO Memory of the World in 2017. See all Auckland Libraries inscriptions.
East Coast Bays Library
Local Archives
The Friends of East Coast Bays Library Local Archives contains clippings, booklets and some local community records about the East Coast Bays (from Campbells Bay to Long Bay). The collection can be accessed by making an appointment with the staff at East Coast Bays Library.
Birkenhead Library
Chelsea Archives
A collection of records from the Chelsea Sugar Refinery in Birkenhead (now New Zealand Sugar Company Ltd.) dating back to the late 19th century. It is housed in a purpose-built room at Birkenhead Library and can be viewed by appointment. To visit the collection, please contact the staff at Birkenhead Library.