Waiamakariri Libraries created an amazing Māori Language Collection called Ako Collection to help you explore and learn more about Te Reo Māori.
A range of apps that make using the library easier.
Grab your library card, remember your PIN number and jump right in!
Award Winners
Waimakariri Heritage website - a place to conserve and curate community memories and taonga.
To assist teachers, Waimakariri Libraries have a feast of resources available to help teachers feed students who are hungry for knowledge.
The Waimakariri Heritage Collection is a place to preserve memories and share them with the community. The library team is looking forward to connecting with different groups in the community who want to learn about the area's history and have memories to share. They are also excited about the potential for students and schools in the area to use the platform as part of the Aotearoa New Zealand Histories curriculum and would encourage student contributions.
https://waimakariri.recollect.co.nz/
Genealogy is a rapidly growing hobby. The library has a variety of books that might help with your research. General guides to genealogical research can help you get started - you will find these on our library shelves at 929.1.
The library has access to Memories.
Our online local history resources include general histories of the District, family histories, church and school histories and more. There are numerous sources of genealogical information on the internet. We have compiled a list of web links of particular relevance on our Genealogy page.
Ancestry Library edition
Ancestry Library edition can be accessed free within the libraries via our wi-fi or on the library computers.
Ancestry will help you trace your family history and build your family tree. It contains extensive records from the US, UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand including births, deaths, marriages, shipping records and census data.
To access Ancestry Library Edition for free simply log in using your library barcode and PIN.
Need a little help using Ancestry or with your family research? Please get in touch and we’d be happy to help. Email or use the Book-a-Librarian form on our website.
You might like to join the Waimakariri Branch of the New Zealand Society of Genealogists to learn from other genealogists. They meet on the 2nd Tuesday of every month at 7.30 pm at the Rangiora War Memorial Hall, 2 Albert Street, Rangiora. For more information email them here or go to their website.
The Canterbury branch of NZSG also has a very extensive library collection.
The local museums and historical records societies also have valuable resources such as photographs and old local newspapers.
In the libraries you can access the Waimakariri District Burial Records CD compiled by the Waimakariri branch of the NZ Society of Genealogists in 2006, covering 17,260 entries from public and private cemeteries, including headstone transcriptions. This is available for searching at all 3 Waimakariri libraries (Rangiora, Kaiapoi and Oxford), or email your query to library.heritage@wmk.govt.nz. Locations and histories of cemeteries within the district and also burial plot maps can be found on our Cemeteries within the Waimakariri District page. There is also an alphabetical listing for St Barnabas Church cemetery in Woodend on that page. Cemeteries administered by the Waimakariri District Council can be searched on the Council's Cemeteries Database.
