Expedition to Find a Piece of Wood

A talk by Norm Judd.

Campbell Island, New Zealand's most southerly outpost, was discovered when Captain Hasselburg's sealing brig Perseverance made landfall in 1810. The isolation and bleak weather did not deter the hardy souls who followed, and decades of sealing, whaling and farming ensued, along with the inevitable escape of ship rats and cats on to the island.

As the world changed and resources declined, the whaling and sealing fleets dispersed and farms were abandoned, but the human legacy of rats, livestock and weeds continued to impact the ecology of the island for more than 190 years.

The Campbell Island Bicentennial Expedition Steering Group is organising an expedition to Campbell Island over the summer of 2010/11. One of the aims of this trip is to bring together the knowledge from the past 200 years of occupation and scientific research, and in accordance with the conditions of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, use this information to assist in the Island's effective management and protection.

For some, such as local historian Norm Judd, this is a return trip to continue the research begun in 1975. His focus will be on the cultural heritage elements of the expedition "I will be a guide to Auckland archaeologist, Nigel Prickett and one other archaeologist, who will search for Polynesian - pre-European contact and the earliest (c.1810) sealer campsites on Campbell Island. Neither task has been undertaken in the history of Campbell Island." This talk will be illustrated with photographs from his 2001 visit.

Venue Top Floor Lopdell House, 7.30pm. Doors open at 7pm

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