Centenary photographs from Auckland Libraries Heritage Images

Women of the J D Richardson family. Sir George Grey Special Collections,  Auckland Libraries, 4-2419

Mr Cooper and family. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 7-A17229

Mr and Mrs Shaw with grandchildren. Sir George Grey Special Collections,  Auckland Libraries, 4-8903

Centenary photographs from Auckland Libraries Heritage Images

Kings College football team. Auckland Libraries, 31-WP7720.

Members of the Kiwi basketball team. Auckland Libraries, 31-WP7723.

Ponsonby 5th grade football team. Auckland Libraries, 31-WP7559.

The wonderful people from the Auckland War Memorial Museum delivered an Artefact Digitisation Unit (ADU) to the Central Auckland Research Centre.

A what? I hear you say . . . .

Artefact Digitisation Unit (ADU) from Auckland War Memorial Museum

It is an awesome piece of technology that looks kind of like an ATM machine - a kiosk with a computer, touchscreen monitor and a camera.

With its connectivity to the internet, it has direct access to the new Online Cenotaph. 

People can use the ADU to search the Online Cenotaph direct from the Research Centre, and contribute information about the person they are researching - this includes the ability to photograph documents and objects to upload to a subjects record.

The Online Cenotaph itself has been completed re-designed and had been re-launched in January.

There are more than 140,000 service personnel listed, and alots of new content has been added:

• approximately 2,000 new images from Auckland Libraries’ Schmidt Collection of portraits
• direct links with servicemen’s sketches, poems and writing held in the Troopship magazines, which the Museum has now digitised
• around 2,000 additional records of New Zealand servicemen who served in the Australian Imperial Forces (AIF) – purchased for Online Cenotaph by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage
• linking of of 437 records from the Māori Pioneer Battalion with a digital image of their signatures on the Pioneer Scroll, on display in the Scars I gallery
• digitising of the Mickle Album, including the 60 photographs of friends from Birkenhead who volunteered and left New Zealand to fight in WWI

3/4 portrait of Sapper Bertram Charles Robinson, Reg No 12074, of the New Zealand Engineers, No. 2 Field Company. Killed in action in France on 15 November 1916. (Photographer: Herman Schmidt, 1916). Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-R984. No known copyright

The Auckland Weekly News was filled not only with news and advertisements, but with an excellent assortment of photographs, and a service it offered during the war years was to publish a passport sized photograph of your wounded or killed family member. These photographs have all been indexed in to one easy-to-use volume, although its worth noting it does not included those photographs published in the Weekly News supplement.

Their daughter Tonya shared with me the family's story about these birth notices ...

My Grandmother (Jean nee Foote Bellingham), tore the original clipping of the birth notice out from the paper after Mum (Helen Bellingham) was born, making sure that she had the entry for her daughter's birth.

Alot of years later someone (probably my Grandmother --Jean Bellingham), was going through all her old newspaper clippings, had a look through and saw that the birth notice not only included Mum (Helen), but Dad (Tony) as well!  Interesting as they were both born in different places in NZ, and on different days (my mums parents were late getting their birth notice in the paper) -- throughout the years us kids were told of the story but the original newspaper clipping has been mislaid.

Their birth announcements were published in the Monday, 9 April 1934 edition of the New Zealand Herald and indeed it was true -- they were together in the birth announcement column with just one other entry between their family names.


Helen and Tony met at teachers training college, became engaged and were married on 25 January 1958 in Auckland at the Onehunga Presbyterian Church. 

The couple on their wedding day.

It is quite a nice thought that perhaps they were destined to be together since birth.

Mr & Mrs Dunn kindly gave us permission to post their story on Kintalk and thank you also to Tonya for supplying us with the lovely family photographs.

Karen

As students and teachers are all now back in the classroom it reminded me of the many resources we have in our family history collection relating to education. There are numerous school lists and registers of graduates and students for various schools around New Zealand as well as special publications focusing on jubilees and centenary celebrations.

Karioi School, c.1908 from Heritage Images

To browse our holdings search using the Auckland Libraries classic catalogue  by selecting Call Number in the drop down list and typing 2 NZL SCH into the text box. Alternatively, you may want to do a Keyword search with the name of the school.

Open-air classroom, c.1939 from Heritage Images

If you happen to have a teacher in your family and are interested in their career details, the CD-ROM 'New Zealand Teachers Examinations and Licenses 1880-1920'  includes '... the name of those who have passed the teachers examinations and the area they are from ... and who are licensed to teach, the area of their teaching engagement and their rank in the teaching profession.'  This information is also available from the New Zealand Gazette -- there is a dedicated computer in the Research Centre for accessing these records.

Nelson (Boys) College, building completed in 1859, from Heritage Images.

The Heritage images and photography eResources page lists all of the photography related databases such as Footprints, Heritage Images and Local History Online to search for visual treasures of school buildings, pupils and teachers.

Karen

The engagement of Mr Joseph Boyce Johnston, solicitor, to Miss Pauline Constance Doxey was announced in The NZ Observer's 'Social Sphere by Myra' column published 8 March 1913. Note the incorrect spelling of the bridegroom's surname in the newspaper clipping.

Mr and Mrs J B Johnston Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-WP314

The record for this image includes a detailed description of  the couple's wedding attire . . . . 'Mr Johnston wearing a dark coloured jacket and waistcoat, striped trousers, a white shirt with a stand-up collar and tie, flowers in the buttonhole, gloves and holding a hat; Mrs Johnston wearing a light coloured wedding gown with a train on the skirt, a long veil with flowers in her hair, holding a large bouquet.'

New Zealand Herald, 13 June 1913.

Although the entry for this wedding portrait does not refer to Mrs Robertson as the former Miss Doxey, there is no doubt of her identity  -- as there is another lovely image of her in the Schmidt collection from the same year that does provide us with her name.

Miss Doxey, 1913. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-74619

Perhaps this photo was taken to mark the occasion of their engagement?

Auckland city will be abuzz with excitement this weekend, February 15th and 16th as Eden Park plays host to 16 teams of athletic young men in the inaugural NRL Nines rugby league tournament . Eden Park is a sellout and no doubt for leaguies who can’t make the live event, it will be a case of getting in the beer and the pizza, and settling in for a weekend in front of the telly.

While rugby union is the number one game downunder,  League in fact has quite a heritage in Auckland and was given plenty of attention back in the day.  Flicking through our heritage database, the game was well covered in publications like the Auckland Weekly News, and a large part of that is due to what is affectionately called the “spiritual home of rugby league,” Carlaw Park.  Named for James Carlaw, the head of Auckland Rugby League, the land alongside the Domain was leased by the Auckland Rugby league from the hospital board until it was bought by the ARL in 1974.  It is currently a car park and all that remains for leaguies are the memories.

Judging from the photographs in our collection, it’s easy to see why Carlaw Park is held in such affection with events such as the 1929 test between the Kiwis and Great Britain where a whopping 28,000 fans turned up to watch the Kiwis win.

So if your old man was a leaguie back in the day, whether he played the game or was one of the thousands who travelled to Carlaw Park over its history, have a browse through our heritage images. Type in the keywords “rugby league” – and enjoy! In the meantime, here are some photographs of good times from Carlaw Park from our collection.

Carlaw Park, 1921. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries

New Zealand's great football public at Carlaw Park, 1924. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries

A brilliant exhibition of rugby league football, 1931. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries

Watching the rugby league action at Carlaw Park, 1926. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries

Joanne

'Wedding Wednesday' highlights a wedding portrait from the Heritage Images photograph collection and this week we are featuring Mr and Mrs Robertson.

Photographed standing outside the front steps of a house and they are both elegantly attired for the occasion as would be expected. Mr Robertson wearing a dark coloured jacket, striped trousers, a white waistcoat, a fob watch chain draped across a white shirt with a rounded collar and tie, holding a top hat and gloves; Mrs Robertson wearing a light coloured wedding dress with lace on the bodice, a pendant necklace, a veil and holding a gorgeous large bouquet.

Mr and Mrs Robertson, 1914. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-WP597

Another Wedding Wednesday post featuring a wedding portrait from Heritage Images collection, these photographs mark the marriage of Mr Arthur Ah Ching to the former Miss Anna Theresa Ertel in 1920.

Mr and Mr Ching, 1920 Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-WP872

Ching-Ertel bridal party Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-WP873

Ching-Ertel bridal party Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, 31-WP874

'Wedding Wednesday' highlights a wedding portrait from the Heritage Images photograph collection and this week we are featuring Mr W Norman Heather and Miss Myrtle Chatfield of Auckland who were married in October of 1899.

This photograph of the bridal party was taken on the front steps of the Chatfield family home located in Bridgewater Road, Parnell.

Heather-Chatfield bridal party, 1899. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries.

The happy event was reported both in the Auckland Weekly News  27 October 1899 supplement as well as the 20 October 1899 edition of the New Zealand Herald which offers some lovely details about this special day.


Karen

If he was – yay, you!  You’re one of a very select few who can make that claim because, according to the Bateman Rugby Facts book,  as recently  as ten years ago only 1037 men had ever worn the black jersey for New Zealand. Current estimates put the figure around 1130.

Lighter side of the All Blacks rugby tour of Great Britain. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, AWNS-19351030-52-5

Just as they are today, these gorgeous photos from the early years of All Black history show  the men in black were absolute superstars, with the folk back home getting a taste of their overseas tours via the Auckland Weekly News.

The first of the "All Blacks" leaving the mail steamer Sonoma. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, AWNS-19060315-7-2

The crowd round the ferry company's wharf waiting to welcome the "All Blacks." 1906 Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, AWNS-19060315-6-2

All Blacks entertained by famous London comedian. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, AWNS-19250101-46-3

The King shakes hands with New Zealand's "All Blacks". Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, AWNS-19250129-48-5

The effects weren't just financial, though. Lady Verna Meads recalled in The A-Z of Meads book that back in the day Sir Colin was on tour, players were allowed only one phone call a month, “and when they did come home, wives told heart-wrenching tales of children not recognising their fathers or screaming when dad went to pick them up.”

Bon voyage: 1934 "All Blacks" team departing for Australia. Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries, AWNS-19340801-50-1

Joanne

As family history month draws to a close so does our photographic feature from the mystery Album #224. If you have not been following this series throughout August then I encourage you to have a  browse of the photographs in the previous Friday blogs and as you never know, you may recognise someone from your family's past.

Charles Henry Manning's photography studio in Christchurch was in operation from 1887 to 1895. So we know where and approximately when the picture was taken and by whom, but it does not get us any closer to discovering who this pleasant-looking young lady was.

C.H. Manning,  Christchurch.

Thomas Edward Price operated his studio T.E. Price in Timaru for only a period of three years from 1875 to 1878 and we believe this is when this photograph was taken.  Price was originally from New South Wales and made the journey to New Zealand in 1863. Towards the end of 1878 he went into partnership with another photographer, Rudolph Haigh, as Price & Haigh in Timaru. His photography business operated in multiple locations around the country until 1895.

T.E. Price photographer.

This woman's photograph was taken by T. Plimmer who established his Belfast studio in 1860, but other than that fact, we know very little about him and we don't have any clues to help identify the woman.

T. Plimmer photograph.

I had another look through the photographs from this album and I noticed that the same person was in at least three of the individual portraits. Each one captures this mystery man at different point in his life and offers a nice glimpse of how he matured throughout the years.

Photographed by Alfred Thomas Robottom, Christchurch, c.1878.

Photographed by William Sherlock, Christchurch, c.1871- c.1890.

Photographer, location and date are all unknown.

If you have any information to share about this last group of photographs, please contact us at the Central Auckland Research Centre on 307 7771 or send us an email at: library.centralheritage@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

If anyone is interested in viewing the original album it is held in Sir George Grey Special Collections and is identified as Album #224.

Regards
Karen

Photograph by E.T. Church.

Cabinet card photograph by Eden George Co. Ltd., Christchurch, no date.

This photograph has been interpreted as a family portrait, most likely a mother and her daughters? Count the number of young ladies . . . . yes, there are ten!


Another cabinet card by Eden George Co. Ltd., Christchurch, undated.

Portrait by P. Ginn Photography of Linwood, no date.

If you recognise anyone in these photographs we would love to hear from you! Please contact us at the Central Auckland Research Centre on 307 7771 or send us an email at: library.centralheritage@aucklandcouncil.govt.nz

Next week is our last instalment.

Regards
Karen

This is a photograph series of three military men that are featured in our Album #224 display which we had at the New Zealand Family History Fair, 2-4 August. It is now available for viewing in the Central Auckland Research Centre for the remainder of family history month.

As any family history detective would do, we scrutinized the uniform details of these men to find clues that would help us to identify their rank and regiment. So please take a look at the photographers as we are hoping members of the public will be able to provide us with the most important information about them, their names.

Soldier #1
The uniform's sleeve chevrons denote a rank of Sergeant, and the cap style headgear has a badge insignia which dates this after 1840, as prior to this time there were only numerical cap badges. The tunic style jacket replaced waist-length coats circa 1855, so gives another indicator for determining the time period. Another subtle clue relates to his facial hair, as it can provide supporting evidence for dating a military photograph according to Robert Pols, the author of Dating Old Army Photographs. Beards and side whiskers were often worn by soldiers in the 1850s, 1860s but were less prevalent by the late 1870s.

Portrait was taken in a Dunedin studio, date unknown.

Unfortunately, this photo has not given us enough information to draw any definitive conclusions. We suspect he was a soldier with a New Zealand Volunteer regiment. Possibly the New Zealand Militia or even the Otago Constabulary?

Read more » |

This week's photographs from our mystery Album 224 feature gorgeous portraits of children. To find out more about how we acquired this collection of images please read the blog post from last week.

For this first photograph we don't have any clues except for a lovely smiling face.

Portrait of a boy, date unknown.

Another lovely image for you, a young lad with very stylish hair! Perhaps he is posing with his younger sister?



Eden George cabinet card, Christchurch, date unknown.

A cute babe with sun-kissed arms seated on a fur skin. On the reverse side of this tot's portrait someone has written 'Aunt Libby', not much of a clue but it may have meaning for some one's family?

Photographer: Packer &  Co., date unknown.