Auckland Libraries is delighted to host the final presentations of the Auckland History Initiative’s Summer Research Scholarship students of 2026. Since its founding in 2018 the Auckland History Initiative has sought to support student engagement with histories of Auckland and build relationships with Iwi and Auckland’s cultural institutions. As part of this mission, since 2019 the Initiative has partnered with the Auckland Libraries Heritage Trust to offer summer research scholarships to University of Auckland history students dedicated to uncovering the histories of Tāmaki Makaurau.
Join us for the final presentations of the 2026 summers scholars, taking place across two sessions on Wednesday 28th January and 4th February 2026.
These are the speakers and topics presented on 28th January:
1. Star Jackson
Title: Turning the pages: the history and social importance of the Auckland Public Library
The Auckland Public Library has a long and rich history of community connection and civic participation. This research will explore the years of World War Two and the immediate postwar era, which are believed to have strengthened Aucklanders’ recognition of the library’s importance in public life. It will also highlight the role of John Barr, chief librarian of the Auckland Public Library from 1913 to 1952, in the development of an entirely free library service, as until 1946, Auckland residents had to pay a subscription fee to borrow books.
2. Kasia O'Meara
Title: Angels Only Lent: Memorialisation of Infant Mortality in Auckland, 1860-1910
New Zealand’s infant mortality rate was between one in eight and one in sixteen Pākehā babies dying before their first birthday before 1910, and the infant mortality rate for Māori babies, which was unrecorded until 1930 due to racism, was undoubtedly much higher. There are many stories that remain untold about Auckland’s youngest citizens, buried in archives and obscured by deteriorated or missing headstones. This project aims to examine the ways that these babies were remembered, through gravestones, death notices, and funeral records, as well as coronial files. It also considers why memorialisation, or its absence, varies in infant mortality cases between 1860 and 1910, and draws conclusions about how societal conditions influence practices of infant remembrance.
3. Benjamin Mander
Title: Quarrelling Councils: Experiments in Early Auckland's Local Government, 1851-1856
Voter turnout for Auckland’s 2025 local body elections indicated that interest in local governance is at an all-time low. The region received the lowest voter turnout in the country of only 29.3%. This was not always the case, and in the 1850s, local government was one of the town’s most pressing issues. The 1850s and 60s were a time of experimentation, and Auckland went through four failed iterations before a permanent municipal council was finally established in 1871., This project focuses on the two early attempts from the 1850s, known as the Auckland Borough Council (1851-1852), and the first Auckland City Council (1854-1856). Both councils failed spectacularly, and exploring how these developments unfolded reveals a lot about the character of early Auckland.