Heritage et AL

Today we have another New Zealand Music Month post featuring the manuscript collection of Benny Levin (1930-1994) an entrepreneur, band manager and concert promoter. This collection includes personal papers, tapes, audio-visual recordings, posters and photographs from the estate of Benny Levin. A complete inventory is available with the record on Manuscripts Online ; it has been sorted and listed thanks to a Lotteries Environment & Heritage Grant. Ref: Business card for Benny Levin/Russell Clark, Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, Series 3, Box 4, NZMS 990.

Although Easter still has religious significance for many people, for others it is an opportunity to have a holiday and enjoy the last few rays of  the Kiwi autumn before the long winter months set in. Events such as race meetings, day trips, tramps, horticultural shows and sports tournaments are often held over the Easter period. And of course there is the obligatory hot cross buns and Easter egg eating! You can use the  Ephemera Index to search for heritage related resources at Auckland Libraries such as information about Easter shows and Easter cards. The Manuscripts Online database has letters and other unpublished material relating to Easter. This includes a letter from Bishop Selwyn to Sir George Grey in 1883, in which he discusses grass seeds and advises Grey that he will be in Auckland over Easter (GLNZ S17.2). Simply enter Easter into the keyword search box of both databases and have a browse. In the meantime, here is a selection for you to flick through in...

During the Auckland Tall Ships Festival  earlier this year the Auckland Libraries heritage and research collections  organised a popular display which included letters, maps, magazine covers and photographs. Of particular interest to many visitors were the hydrographic charts. These charts are fascinating examples of early mapping and are wonderfully detailed, with volcanic cones sometimes looking like puffs of smoke. They are accessible via the  Heritage Images  database and copies of the charts are available to be purchased from Sir George Grey Special Collections . Ref: NZ Map 3908a, Auckland Harbour, 1848-1855, Sir George Grey Special Collections Ref: NZ Map 2560, Kaipara Harbour, 1852, Sir George Grey Special Collections In 1848,  C aptain John Lort Stokes   commanded the paddle-steamer  Acheron, and began the first official hydrographic survey of the New Zealand coastline. Starting on Auckland's North Shore,...

Cataloguing and preservation tasks can lead librarians working in heritage collections to come across items which may not have been accessed for some time. These encounters provide an opportunity to explore the lives of historical figures, both locally and internationally, who are connected to the objects. Ref: AWNS-19381005-50-2, portrait of Signor Mussolini, dictator of Italy, 1938, Sir George Grey Special Collections A recent 'rediscovery', which sparked a conversation in the  Sir George Grey Special Collections  workroom, was a telegram sent in 1933 under instructions from the Italian leader, Mussolini. Ref: AWNS-19350925-41-2, king of Italy with Signor Mussolini during the Bolzano maneuvers, 1935, Sir George Grey Special Collections

Three long lost Robert Burns (1759-1796) manuscripts including letters from the well loved Scottish poet and his friends were discovered earlier this year. Chris Rollie, a researcher discovered the manuscripts inside an Extra Illustrated W. Scott Douglas edition of 'The Works of Robert Burns', from 1877-79. This edition belonged to Burns's publisher, William Paterson. Ref: 35-R1480, unveiling of the Robert Burns statue in Timaru Botanical Gardens, no date, Sir George Grey Special Collection One of the discovered letters is from 'Clarinda' the pseudomny for Agnes McLehose. Burns was in love with Agnes and she was the subject of several of his poems including: ' Clarinda (Mistress of My Soul ' and ' To Clarinda '. After Burns' death in 1796, Agnes had requested that the intimate letters she had written to Burns be returned to her by Burns' friend and doctor William Maxwell.

The 19th September marks Suffrage Day in NZ . This year's anniversary is extra special, since it marks 120 years since Kiwi women won the right to vote in national parliamentary elections in 1893. The Governor, Lord Glasgow, signed the landmark legislation, which made the new Electoral Act into law. In doing so, NZ became the first self governing country in the world to give women this right. Ref: 7-A12543, A cartoon by Ashley Hunter on Women's Vote, 30 Sept 1893, Sir George Grey Special Collections Also of importance during 1893, was the election of the first female mayor in the British Empire. Elizabeth Yates became the Mayor of Onehunga Borough Council in 1893 and served until 1894. She also was a councilor from 1899 - 1901. Despite the sexism Elizabeth endured her time as mayor, she made a huge impact - reduced the debt of the council, kept the streets and footpaths maintained and made an impression on Parliament when lobbying for the Onehunga Cemetery Bill. Ref...

Malo e lelei. Tongan Language Week is being celebrated from 1-8 September. The theme this year is Fakakoloa 'o Aotearoa 'aki 'etau Lea mo e Hiva Faka-tonga / Enriching Aotearoa with Tongan Language and Music. As part of the celebrations, there is a vibrant  Facebook page . Auckland Libraries has a number of heritage resources relating to Tonga. This include the following subjects: heritage and identity, the Birth Marriages Death index for Fiji and Tonga from 1858-1873, traditional medical practices, early photography in Tonga and Samoa from 1855-1900, Tongan art, early Tonga as the explorers saw it 1616-1810 and the biography of the King of Tonga. Also held in the heritage collections are images showing Tonga, so step back in time and take a walk down memory lane ... Royalty:  Ref: AWNS-19000831-5-6, Mafu Prince of Tonga, 1900, Sir George Grey Special Collections

When the the Ocean liner Queen Mary 2 docked at Auckland Harbour on Monday 11 March, on board was a VIP in the form of Captain Cook's draft journal. Letters by Cook detailing the first voyage and his personal tea caddy and spoon were also on board the ship. The brief return of this journal marks the first time it has been in the country since it was written by Cook. Complete with scribblings and crossing outs, the handwritten account describes Cook's first circumnavigation of New Zealand during 1769-1770 and the infamous encounter with Māori at Poverty Bay. Captain James Cook was the first European to explore and map the coastline of New Zealand extensively. On each of his three voyages to the Pacific he was accompanied by artists and scientists. Accounts of each voyage were published both by Cook and others on the expeditions. Ref: 4-1347, Captain Cook, Sir George Grey Special Collections

Ref: 881-1, Sir George Grey Special Collections Ref: 7-A11197, Sir George Grey Special Collections Today marks the 125th anniversary of the death of Julius von Haast (1822-1887). German born geologists Haast and Ferdinand Hochstetter (1829-1884) were responsible for much of the early geological surveying in the South Island, particularly around the Canterbury region. Haast had a number of of flora and fauna and landscape features named after him including: Haastia (an alpine plant), the extinct Haast's Eagle (the largest eagle to have ever lived), the Haast River and the  Haast Pass . Find out more  about Haast and his written works . Auckland Libraries heritage holdings include letters from Haast to Sir George and maps  as seen below (in both instances enter the search term 'Haast' into the databases) in the Sir George Grey Special Collections at Central City Library.        Ref: NZ Map 5694e, Sir G...

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Sir John Logan Campbell , often considered to be the founding father of Auckland. There are many reminders of Sir John in the Auckland of today, including his gift of Cornwall Park to the people of Aotearoa New Zealand. The deeds for the park  can be found in the Sir George Grey Special Collections at Central City Library.   Ref: 7-C2033, Sir George Grey Special Collections Professor Russell Stone has recently edited  ' Poenamo ', Sir John's pioneer reminiscences. Republished as a complete facsimile of the 1889 reissue,  'Poenamo Revisited: New Zealand's very first adventure story'  is full of additional content, illustrations and biographical details.   Ref: 1-W1497, Sir George Grey Special Collections Stone is an Emeritus Professor of History at the University of Auckland and a specialist on Sir John Logan Campbell. He is...