Cambridge History Talk Series in partnership with U3A
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Cambridge Museum and Historical Society partners with U3A to provide three lectures a year focussing on the history of Cambridge and the Waikato region.
Meetings are free for Friends of the Museum and are held at the Te Awa Lifecare Woolshed, 1866 Cambridge Road, Cambridge, from 10am for 10.30 until 12.00 noon on the fourth TUESDAY of each month.
Upcoming events
- Tuesday May 26th, 2026 – Christopher Archer & Warren Dawson Recovering a New Zealand ANZAC Legacy – The Story of the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade in Egypt and Palestine (1916–1919)
- Tuesday, 25 August 2026 – James Goodrich, Odontology and a Marine: The Battle of Tarawa
- Tuesday, 27 October 2026 – Rod Smith, From Galway to the Waikato War – a peerage family’s connections
FURTHER DETAILS:
Tuesday 26 May, 2025
Christopher Archer & Warren Dawson
Recovering a New Zealand ANZAC Legacy – The Story of the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade in Egypt and Palestine (1916–1919)
On the eve of WWI in 1914, New Zealand dispatched two brigades to join the Imperial Army—one of Infantry and one of Mounted Horse. After Gallipoli, the infantry was sent to Europe, but the Mounted Brigade remained in Egypt.
Over the next three years, the troopers of the NZMR rode 400 miles across desert and mountain in a campaign that defeated the Ottoman, German, and Austrian forces in a series of victories unmatched in military history. Yet, their extraordinary story was largely forgotten in the aftermath of the war—until, a hundred years later, their legacy began to be recovered.
Christopher Archer, historian and author of Saviours of Zion, and Warren Dawson, who retraced his grandfather’s route in partnership with Israeli historians, will share their insights into this remarkable history. Together, they have also been closely involved with the project to erect a 5-metre Silver Fern memorial in Gan Sorek, Israel, commemorating the New Zealand troopers who fought in Palestine.
Tuesday 25 August, 2026
Dr James Goodrich, Odontology and a Marine: The Battle of Tarawa
Dr James (Jimbo) Goodrich is an active forensic odontologist in Cambridge, with more than 25 years experience in the field.
He attended the Christchurch Earthquake, Mosque Shootings, and Whakaari White Island Volcano disaster victim identification efforts, as well as more routine individual identification work for the police.
He has presented internationally on his work with Drs Corinne D’Anjou and David Senn with identification of marines from the Battle of Tarawa in 1941, among other things.
Jim is a Fellow of several organisations, including the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, and is a past president of the New Zealand Society of Forensic Odontology.
Jim is one of the few members of the New Zealand Society of Forensic Odontology to have been fully credentialed in Bitemarks, and his current interests are in the field of the ethical considerations around using dental age estimation to threshold adulthood.
Tuesday October 27th, 2026
Rod Smith
From Galway to the Waikato War – A peerage family’s connections
Rod Smith, family history researcher and writer, presents “Galway to the Waikato Land Wars – A Peerage Family’s Connections”.
Rod is a retired public servant, and former newspaper journalist and probation officer. His career included time crewing a cargo freighter, work in an English youth conference centre, and service in the Justice Department, Parliament, the Ministry of Defence, the Forest Service, and the Accident Compensation Corporation.
An avid family historian for over 35 years he has researched in depth his wife’s connections to landed Irish families, publishing his findings in two books – Guinness Down Under: the famous brew and the family come to Australia and New Zealand (2017) and Clancarty: the high times and humble of a noble Irish Family (2024). While researching Clancarty he discovered reports of the family’s involvement in the Waikato Land War of 1863-64 and a revealing speech given by the 3rd Earl of Clancarty in the House of Lords in 1864 on the subject of New Zealand race relations. Rod’s presentation will explore the events of 1863-64 and the several connections between the Earls of Clancarty and New Zealand.
To book your place:
These events are free to Friends of Cambridge Museum. Book your place by contacting the Museum.