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Discovering Photographer Noel Brotherston : A Personal Journey Through a Fashion Archive

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In late 2022, Auckland Libraries received a significant donation of fashion photography negatives by Noel Brotherston (1932–1997). Most of the images date from 1968 to 1969. For me, it marked the beginning of a piece of work to make this substantial archive discoverable. Of the nearly 19,000 frames in the collection, over 7,000 now include metadata and are available to view on Kura Heritage Collection Online . Creating metadata for this collection turned out to be more revealing and more rewarding than I had expected. Metadata is generally defined as data about data. It records information such as format, dimensions, media type, and other technical or descriptive details. As dry as that may sound, effective metadata is essential – it helps users locate, search, and make sense of content.  At Auckland Libraries, those of us creating metadata for photography collections work in spreadsheets adding descriptions, keywords, subject headings, and relevant notes for each image. Thankfully...
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The Many and Varied Editions of the Auckland Star

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What has many editions and only one? Tāmaki Makaurau’s long-running newspaper, The Auckland Star. A researcher’s worst nightmare is knowing of a source that no longer exists, and the Star is a source like no other in that it was once published as several editions every day, yet nobody bothered to collect them all. Auckland Council Libraries holds a near-continuous run of the daily periodical from its origin as the Evening Star in the 1870s to its present incarnation as the Sunday Star–Times . However, a decision was made over a century ago to only retain a single daily copy, a mere sampling of the Star’s copious output. This decision still impacts historians and researchers today and raises important questions: why did the Star print so many daily editions and what are we missing by their absence? Image: The Auckland Star masthead with various edition stamps underneath dating from 1926 through 1975. Despite covering the same geographic area—urban Auckland—the long-running newspa...
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Auckland Library Heritage Trust John Stacpoole Scholarships 2025

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Image: Auckland wharves from Point Britomart.  Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections 5-2635. The Auckland Library Heritage Trust is a charitable trust that supports Auckland Libraries and Auckland Council to preserve, care for, add to, and promote Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections for the benefit of the people of Auckland. You can find out more about the work of the Trust via their website: www.alht.org.nz The Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections are one of New Zealand's key research destinations. They were originally established when Sir George Grey, 19th-century Governor of New Zealand and later Premier, gave his significant collection to the city of Auckland in the 1880s and has continued to grow since this time. The collections include photographs, maps, oral histories, manuscripts and archives, rare books and medieval manuscripts, ephemera and music; as well as Māori and Pacific heritage collections in all formats.  The Heritage Collections are held princi...
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Lost Neighbourhoods of Central Auckland - Maps and Early Census

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The heritage collections at Auckland Council Libraries offer of wealth of information on the history of our city, including an early census, and map collections that document the built and natural environment at various points in time. Each source has its own strengths, and when looked at together, a picture of Auckland’s lost neighbourhoods can be found. 1842 Map Image: Plan of Auckland as it stands in January 1842. Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections Map 4601 This plan of Auckland as it stood in January 1842 provides many details of the town in its early years. Shortland Crescent (now known as Shortland Street) was the main street at this time. Among the most densely built parts of the town is the area on the southern side of Shortland Crescent where the sites stretch through to Chancery Street. The position of hotels on the map helps show the location of some of the streets we know today. The Sir George Gipps Hotel was located on High Street (marked with the letter M). The a...
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Clearing ‘the Mists of Ignorance’: the New Zealand China Friendship Society in the 1970s

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In a series of letters written in July 1975, Wilfred ‘Bill’ McAra applied for membership to the New Zealand China Friendship Society (NZCFS), formally known as the New Zealand China Friendship Society. ‘Dear Jack,’ he wrote in one letter, ‘Enclosed $4 to cover membership for Diana Wilsie and myself’.  McAra and Wilsie, once-active members of the Communist Party of New Zealand (CPNZ), were passionate about Marxist-Leninist ideology and found common ground with the NZCFS.  Along with the membership forms, McAra wrote, ‘I had intended earlier to commend the Society and its members, for its outstanding contribution in the struggle to secure Governmental recognition of the People’s Republic of China.’  As the National Secretary of the NZCFS at the time, Jack Ewen was perfectly happy to admit McAra and his partner into the group.  Image: A NZCFS subscription form McAra would have likely filled out. Joan Donley Papers, MSS & Archives-2007/15, Series 4. File 4/4/B/1...
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