Heritage et AL

When the Delta Theatre opened in July 1926 the grand opening was advertised in the Saturday edition of  New Zealand Herald : Ref: excerpt from the New Zealand Herald, 31 July 1926, page 18.  In The History of New Lynn , it was claimed, unusually for the time, that the architect of the Delta Theatre was a woman. However, contemporary newspaper reports on the ‘Leaky Picture House’ vary as to whether Miss Mitchell was the building contractor or the architect . The theatre was closed in 1928 because of subsidence and reopened in 1929, the Auckland Star reported upon its reopening on the 21 May 1929. Ref: Delta Theatre, 1930, New Lynn Print Collection, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries.

“There is a belief that runs strong in the NZ Cantonese community. It’s the idea that through hard work, education and the willingness to take some risk, our children can have a life better than the one left behind in the Cantonese village. In the year 2013, Aotearoa/NZ is peopled with bright young Chinese women who take on jobs of tremendous importance for which they receive great recognition. Much of what they achieve is thanks to the hard work and sacrifices made by their mothers and the women before them.” Ref: Photograph by King Tong Ho. Most of NZ’s early Chinese settlers came from Canton Province, now known as Guangdong. The project From Guangdong to Aotearoa came about through Sue Gee’s interest in her ancestral origins. From Guangdong to Aotearoa aimed to record the life histories of six remarkable NZ Chinese women. They were chosen because their contribution in the community is noteworthy or because they had interest or knowledge of our Chinese settler history...

Currently on in the exhibition space on Level 2 of the Waitakere Central Library is ‘Holding the Line’, an exhibition celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the Going West Books and Writers Festival featuring material from the Going West Festival archives . Every year a gathering of people with a passion for the written and spoken word takes place in the verdant setting of West Auckland.   Named after the Maurice Gee novel in which he vividly describes the train journey from Loomis (Henderson) to the city, writers and performers of all ages and backgrounds come together to participate in the Going West Books and Writers Festival. Since the festivals beginnings in 1996, guests and audiences alike have been attracted by the unique character of the location and the diversity of the programme. In 2015, Going West celebrates 20 years as a stalwart of the literary festival scene in New Zealand with ‘Holding the Line’, the theme for this year’s event that is an apt reference to t...

This week marks Vaiaso o te Gana Tuvalu, or Tuvalu Language Week , for 2015. This year’s theme is "Tau gana ko tou iloga/ Language is your identity”. This provides an excellent opportunity to focus on some images relating to Tuvalu in our heritage collections from  Local History Online . Ref: Pacifica Arts Centre, Tuvalu traditional dance performance, 14 November 2013, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, PAC-PLAF-2013-D-096. The Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs has compiled a list of events for the week and ask that you follow their Facebook page for updates during the week. Ref: Pacifica Arts Centre, Mama Teuke at the Pacifica Living Arts Festival, 1 November 2005, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, PAC-PLAF-2005-D-002.

The majority of the F. Douglas Mill Collection contains images which represent some of the first civil aerial photographic surveys in New Zealand, the images range from the late 1920s to the middle of the 1930s and document the country at that time from the Bay of Islands down to Waimate and Dunedin. Details of the collection can be found here in Local History Online . The photographs include an early aerial survey of Auckland containing images such as this one of the Auckland War Memorial Museum under construction: Ref: F. Douglas Mill, Auckland War Memorial Museum under construction, from the air, 1929, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, FDM-0544-G.

Currently on in the exhibition space on Level 2 of the Waitakere Central Library is an exhibition highlighting some of the stories of West Auckland contained in our collection of oral history recordings.   If you are interested in exploring any of these stories in more depth these and other recordings can be listened to in the J T Diamond Reading Room at the West Auckland Research Centre .  Ref: Picnic in Henderson, 1932, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries.

Eli and Selina Warburton of Lancashire, England, had 2 children, James Hartley and Edna, while living in England. The Warburton family immigrated to New Zealand in the early 20 th Century. The Warburton family: from Lancashire to New Lynn The 1901 UK census shows that at 3 years old James Hartley Warburton was living with his father Eli Warburton (31 years old), cotton weaver, his mother Selina Warburton (26 years), and his sister Edna (2 years old) at 18 Merton Street, Lancashire. The NZ Electoral Rolls show that the Warburtons were living in New Lynn by 1911.  If you would like to search the 1841-1911 UK Census records they are easy to access for free at any of the Auckland Libraries through the   Ancestry and FindMyPast databases  in the Digital Library. The New Zealand electoral rolls are available on microfiche at Auckland Libraries’ Research Centres as well as online at Ancestry. Opening Day at New Lynn School Ref: Opening day at New Ly...

Today on Heritage et AL we are featuring the T.A. Bishop Collection of stereographs that are held at the West Auckland Research Centre. This collection consists of 767 stereograph cards from the early decades of last century. These images provide a valuable record of the lives of early settlers of West Auckland in general and specifically in Titirangi. For instance, the Bishops attended the openings of the Upper Nihotupu Dam   and also the Titirangi Soldiers Memorial Church. Ref: James D. Richardson, Opening of the Nihotupu Dam, 14 April 1923, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, TAB-P-0254. Ref: James D. Richardson, Opening of Titirangi Soldiers Memorial Church, 18 May 1924, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, TAB-P-0350.

We often don’t give a second thought to the stories behind the names of our roads, schools, creeks and more, but delving into the history of Massey I have unearthed some interesting facts and anecdotes. The suburb itself was named in 1915 after one of New Zealand’s most significant politicians, the then Prime Minister William Ferguson Massey (1856-1925).  Prior to that, the sparsely populated area was known as Lawsonville, after settler John Lawson who had an orchard by the creek that also bears his name. Elizabeth Freeman (nee Gregory), who was born in Lawsonville in 1898, described it as, “wilderness, supporting a few cottages…a windswept, low [manukau] scrub desolate area, the ground being exceptionally poor”. Lawson’s Creek was home to a number of gum diggers who built simple whare on its banks. Read an 1889 New Zealand Herald article reporting the fate that befell one such man. Ref: J.T. Diamond, Waterfall at head of Lawson’s inlet, December 1962, West Auck...

Whiria te kaha tuatinitini Whiria te kaha tuamanomano Friday this week is the 6th of February, Waitangi Day, which, this year, marks the 175th anniversary of the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi / the Treaty of Waitangi. Ref: Ron Clark, Flagstaff, Waitangi, 1960s, Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 1207-1373. Ref: F. Douglas Mill, Treaty House at Waitangi from the air, February 1934, West Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, FDM-0337-G.

Geographically NZ Aotearoa lies between 37 and 47 degrees south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Generally both the North and South islands have a moderate climate, which allows Kiwis to both work (e.g. farming, fishing) and enjoy their leisure time outdoors for much of the year. The two features which heavily influence the weather are our fabulous mountains (with alpine winters dropping to lows of -10ºC in the South Island) and our seas (with some areas hitting as high as 30ºC+ in the top of the North Island). Our three big cities: Auckland, Christchurch, and Wellington all receive over two thousand hours of bright sunshine a year, which is spread across all seasons, not just the summer. As small island land masses, we do however experience dramatic weather on occasions, with wild storms, gale force winds, rain,  cyclones , hurricanes and even the odd waterspout hitting our sunny shores. The aftermath of this type of extreme weather can be dramatic, causing all sorts of damage such ...

Marge Harré’s story is one of an enterprising and, by all accounts she was an extremely engaging and unique character. She left behind a lasting legacy - one that connects, a house, a community, her wider family history, and the history of West Auckland. Her most enduring legacy has been provided in the book, 'Roadhouse Days: an account of a family, a house and a restaurant' by Drew Harré and David Harré (2009). 'Roadhouse Days' tells the story of Marge and her family’s involvement in the Town and Country Roadhouse Restaurant (1949 to c.1968) in Oratia, West Auckland. Written by Marge’s son, Dave Harré and Dave’s nephew, Drew Harré, this book contains entertaining anecdotes, recollections as well as accounts based on historical records. Many of Marge’s recipes are also included at the end of the book. Ref : JTD-13A-01995-1,  Oratia Bowling Club pavilion. (Parr Homestead in background), 1963, West Auckland Research Centre The original Roadhouse restaurant...

Ref: 4-319, Symonds St Cemetery, Sir George Grey Special Collections A recent article in the Western Leader describes the history of the Walker family, who were employed as gravediggers at Symonds Street Cemetery and Waikumete Cemetery over a period spanning from the mid 1840s through to early 1900s. Find out more . Ref: Waikumete Sexton's House & Cemetery, JTD-12A-02364-1, West Auckland Research Centre

Ngā Kākano o Matariki / Seeds of Matariki, an exhibition of selected works by students of Ngā Kākano Reo e Rua Kura is currently on display at the West Auckland Research Centre, J T Diamond Reading Room, Level 2, Waitakere Central Library, Henderson  from 16 July to 27 July. Seeds were planted in the minds of local rangatahi (youth) this Matariki, during two wānanga held at the West Auckland Research Centre, celebrating Māori New Year. Students from Ngā Kākano Christian Kura Reo E Rua attended two environmental presentations at Waitakere Central Library, then produced art work based on what they had learned. Their prints celebrating our relationship with Papatūānuku, our earth mother, have blossomed into a celebrated body of work in the sanctuary of the J T Diamond exhibition space. Ngā Kākano o Matariki / Seeds of Matariki exhibition is on display for the following weeks as Matariki Celebrations conclude and te wiki o te reo Māori, Māori language week begins.