File:Memorial Obelisk, Okarito, West Coast, NZ.jpg

English: This monument is one of the very few commemorating Tasman's sighting of New Zealand. The obelisk was unveiled on May 21 1940 by the then Minister of Public Works, Robert Semple. Originally it had been intended to erect the monument at the trig station near Okarito but this plan was abandoned as it would have been too difficult to transport the materials to the summit of such a steep hill, 137.25 metres above sea level. The County Council therefore decided to build the obelisk in front of the Okarito School. The monument was erected at a cost of £150, which was raised by public subscription. Unveiled during New Zealand's Centennial Year (1940), the obelisk commemorates the efforts of the Westland pioneers and three events which made their achievements possible. Abel Tasman's sighting of New Zealand in 1642 is thought to have occurred when he was sailing off the coast from where Okarito now stands. As recognition of his achievement was a feature of Westland's centenary celebrations, it was appropriate that the event be recorded on one of the obelisk's commemorative panels. In 1770 James Cook's voyage of discovery served as the catalyst for widespread European settlement of this country. In 1860 James Mackay successfully negotiated the purchase of Westland from local Maori at a runanga held at Okarito.