Louise Magdalene Teowaina Wallscott (25 December 1898 – 17 February 1999) was a Māori activist, teacher and weaver.

Early life

Magda Wallscott was born at Pipikaretu Beach,

Ōtākou Otakou ( ) is a settlement within the boundaries of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand. It is located 25 kilometres from the city centre at the eastern end of Otago Peninsula, close to the entrance of Otago Harbour. Though a small fishing villag ...

, the daughter of Ema Karetai,

Kāti Māmoe Kāti Māmoe (also spelled Ngāti Māmoe) is a Māori iwi. Originally from the Heretaunga Plains of New Zealand's Hawke's Bay, they moved in the 16th century to the South Island which at the time was already occupied by the Waitaha. A centu ...

and

Ngāi Tahu Ngāi Tahu, or Kāi Tahu, is the principal Māori people, Māori (tribe) of the South Island. Its (tribal area) is the largest in New Zealand, and extends from the White Bluffs / Te Parinui o Whiti (southeast of Blenheim, New Zealand, Blenhe ...

, and Frederick Wallscott, a professional soldier from

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

, Germany. Her great-grandfather was John Karetai, known as Chief

Karetai Karetai ( – 30 May 1860), also known as Hone Karetai and Jacky White,Thomson, J. (ed.) 1998) "Southern people: A dictionary of Otago Southland biography." pp. 263–264. was a New Zealand tribal Māori leader. Of Kāti Kurī, Kāti Māmoe ...

, one of the signatories of the

Treaty of Waitangi The Treaty of Waitangi (), sometimes referred to as ''Te Tiriti'', is a document of central importance to the history of New Zealand, Constitution of New Zealand, its constitution, and its national mythos. It has played a major role in the tr ...

in 1840. Karetai's mere pounamu ''Kahutai'' was passed through the family to Wallscott, who then loaned it to

Otago Museum Otago (, ; ) is a region of New Zealand located in the southern half of the South Island and administered by the Otago Regional Council. It has an area of approximately , making it the country's second largest local government region. Its po ...

in the 1970s where museum

kaitiaki Kaitiakitanga is a New Zealand Māori term used for the concept of guardianship of the sky, the sea, and the land. A kaitiaki is a guardian, and the process and practices of protecting and looking after the environment are referred to as k ...

continue to guide its care. Wallscott attended Te Waipounamu Māori Girls' College in Christchurch, and then in 1918 entered Christchurch Training College and boarded at Bishopscourt Hostel until 1921. Wallscott was taught to weave flax in Taieri by her aunt Ripeka Martin (formerly Karetai). For several years, she taught at small schools in

Stewart Island Stewart Island (, ' glowing skies', officially Stewart Island / Rakiura, formerly New Leinster) is New Zealand's third-largest island, located south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait. It is a roughly triangular island with a la ...

Bluff Bluff or The Bluff may refer to: Places Australia * Bluff, Queensland, Australia, a town * The Bluff, Queensland (Ipswich), a rural locality in the city of Ipswich * The Bluff, Queensland (Toowoomba Region), a rural locality * Bluff River (New ...

Wyndham Wyndham may refer to: *Wyndham (name), a surname and given name Places Australia *City of Wyndham, an LGA (local government area) in Victoria * Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley, a LGA in Western Australia * Wyndham Important Bird Area, Western Aust ...

, Clifton, Invercargill and Dunedin. From 1944 to 1948 Wallscott taught at the Ōtākou Native School, and during this time began an active role at the

Ōtākou Marae Otakou ( ) is a settlement within the boundaries of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand. It is located 25 kilometres from the city centre at the eastern end of Otago Peninsula, close to the entrance of Otago Harbour. Though a small fishing villag ...

which continued for 30 years. Although Wallscott never married or had children, she raised her niece Iri Wallscott as whāngai, which is a traditional method of open adoption among the

Māori people Māori () are the Indigenous peoples of Oceania, indigenous Polynesians, Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand. Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of Māori migration canoes, c ...

of New Zealand. After retiring from teaching in 1953, Wallscott began a new career in community service that she maintained into her 90s.

Māori Women's Welfare League

Wallscott was a founding member of the

Māori Women's Welfare League The Māori Women’s Welfare League or Te Rōpū Wāhine Māori Toko I te Ora is a New Zealand welfare organisation focusing on Māori people, Māori women and children. It held its first conference in Wellington, New Zealand, Wellington in Sept ...

, and was the Ōtepoti Representative of the league for many years. Other Ōtepoti branch members included Victoria Potiki, Taka Moss, Rumatiki Wright and Jean Robinson. Wallscott made significant contributions to the league over many years. She relished the achievements of the Ōtepoti branch – "We have made our voice heard ... we are listened to ... we have just simply been so sincere that people have taken notice of us." In 1968, Wallscott accepted the McEwen trophy on behalf of the Te Waipounamu branch of the Māori Women's Welfare League, awarded to the area showing the greatest yearly increase in membership.

Other community work

* Foundation member of the

Āraiteuru (also written ) was a canoe () of some of Ngāi Tahu's ancestors in Māori tradition. The canoe was conveyed to New Zealand by the north-east wind, carrying the chiefs Kirikirikatata, Aroarokaehe, Mauka Atua, Aoraki, Kakeroa, Te Horokoatu, ...

Cultural Club and helped establish its marae in Dunedin *

(secretary) * Ōtākou Māori Committee * Ōtākou Māori Executive * Te Wai Pounamu District Council * Māori Mission Committee * Dunedin Branch of National Council of Women * Old Peoples' Welfare Council * Board of Directors of YWCA * In 1960 she became the first Māori women in Dunedin to be a Justice of the Peace. * In the 1980s Wallscott helped lead opposition to the Aramoana aluminum smelter.

Notable achievements

* In 1976, Wallscott was awarded the

Queens Service Medal The King's Service Order () established by royal warrant of Queen Elizabeth II on 13 March 1975, is used to recognise "valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the ...

in the Queen's Birthday honours list for services to the community. * Wallscott was chosen as one of five people to accompany ''

Te Maori ''Te Maori'' (or sometimes ''Te Māori'' in modern sources) was a landmark exhibition of Māori art (taonga) that toured the United States from 1984 to 1986, and New Zealand as '' Te Maori: Te Hokinga Mai'' ('the return home') from 1986 to 1987 ...

'' exhibition to San Francisco and attend the opening ceremonies in 1984. * In 1990 Wallscott received an award from the

Māori and South Pacific Arts Council Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

for her contribution to weaving.

Death and legacy

During the early 1990s, Wallscott contributed audio recordings of her local place names to ''Ngā Ingoa o Aotearoa: An Oral Dictionary of Māori Placenames.'' In 1999, she donated many of her personal papers and archives to the Hocken Manuscripts and Archives Collection. These included letters from friends and family, papers relating to land issues, the Māori Women's Welfare League, appointment diaries, notebooks, music and songs. Wallscott passed away on 17 February 1999, two months after her 100th birthday At the time of her death, Wallscott was the oldest surviving member on

's tribal roll.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wallscott, Magda 1898 births 1999 deaths Ngāi Tahu people Māori activists New Zealand women activists New Zealand activists New Zealand schoolteachers People from Otago Peninsula