The NZ Parks and Reserves Ranger History Project aims to protect and promote important collections and stories about the management of Aotearoa's most significant recreation and conservation resources between 1952 and 1987 - the years when our parks and reserves were administered by the Department of Lands & Survey, prior to the formation of the Department of Conservation (DOC).

Participation in outdoor recreation and conservation activities are core national attributes. We identify with our national parks and reserves. They represent a national legacy built on the efforts of many individuals, and particularly the historic efforts of Department of Lands & Survey staff. These men and women operated during a time when relationships with hapu and iwi were often developing and strained, and when local staff had high levels of autonomy, few resources and limited support. Their stories are not well-archived, and rangers and other Lands & Survey staff are now an aging cohort.

Aotearoa’s network of manged public conservation and recreation areas originated in the 1880s, and we were early adopters of the concept of national parks. A very small number of individuals were appointed as rangers to manage these areas in the field, often working in isolation, making do with their families, or solo. Rangers and other parks and reserves staff were responsible for the development of all parks and reserve facilities, public information and visitor safety services, and national conservation efforts. Even by the mid-1970s, fewer than 110 rangers were employed throughout the country. They and their teams made a disproportionate impact on the culture of the country by enabling the outdoor activities with which we identify as a people, and helping protect the nation’s conservation lands.

When DOC was formed in 1987, the National Parks and Reserve network covered 30% of the motu, two-thirds of which came from the Lands & Survey portfolio (the remainder largely from the NZ Forest Service). This land underpinned our developing tourism industry, and was fundamental to Māori and Kiwi culture. The history of our National Park and Reserve system is  a significant part of the story of national development following European settlement.

The ranger service also gained international respect during the Lands & Survey period, with many countries training their rangers here. Many of our rangers worked overseas to help other countries establish their parks and reserve systems.

The NZ Parks and Reserves Ranger History Project collects, protects and promotes stories that are important to our cultural heritage and identity. The stories are important in themselves, but will also assist in future resource management decisions, providing the rationale for past actions and developments, and the cultural values existing and understood at the time.

The project’s focus is on all aspects of ranger and parks and reserves history, including conservation and recreation management, the experiences of individuals and families in the field, and the relationship of the Department of Lands & Survey with national and international communities.

The project is led by a collective of ex-rangers and their families, and other parks and reserves staff. While the history has a strong focus on national parks, all public recreation and conservation assets managed by Lands & Survey are included - meaning the collection has broad national and international relevance.