Apirana Ngata, Member of Parliament for Eastern Māori, was keen for the museum group to visit the East Coast to obtain records of his people of Ngāti Porou. In March 1923 the expedition, which included Te Rangi Hiroa (Sir Peter Buck), James McDonald, Elsdon Best and Johannes Andersen, set out for the Ngata homestead at Waiomatatini which was to be their base.
He tino taonga tēnei mō ngā iwi o Ngāti Porou kia mau i ngā āhua me ngā ritenga o ngā wā ō mua.
From Waiomatatini visits were made to Whareponga, Kahukura, Rangitukia, Te Araroa, Ruatoria and other parts of the district. McDonald recorded on film traditional skills retained in the area for making fishnets and traps, methods of netting and catching fish, weaving, hand games and music making. Also shown is the digging and storing of kūmara and cooking food in a hāngī.