Tawa Historical Society Incorporated

The Tawa Historian

Newsletter #22 – November 2009

Dear members and friends of the THS,

There are a number of matters to report to you following our recent Executive meeting.

Treasurer
We accepted the resignation of Mrs E Jackson from this position, and have thanked her for her work. In her place we are delighted to announce that Bill Hinkley, who was our foundation Treasurer, has resumed this position he filled so ably for us.

Subscriptions
As you are aware, we got a little out of kilter in collecting the 2008-09 subs (you were given notice too late), so there were a few subscriptions in arrears as at balance date. Attached to this newsletter is the subscription notice for 2009/2010. Where you are in arrears, the notice will tell you this. If you have paid the 2008/2009 sub and we have charged you for arrears, please let us know.

Publications
Our bi-monthly stocktake indicates steady sales throughout the year. Of recent times Best of Tawa Vol 2 and Rails Through the Valley have sold well.
Our major book of the year, Best of Tawa Vol 3, should be available in early December.
Michael Steer’s booklet on the Bartlett House will be ready for publication in the first quarter of 2010.
At present we are gathering information on the Tawa Town Hall (on the current site of the Salvation Army shop opposite Mexted Motors) which was in place from the late 1930s for 20 or so years. If members have photos, notes or memories of that building, please contact Pat Waite (232-8137) or Phil Harland (232-8157). We hope to produce one of our booklets on the Tawa Town Hall.
Similarly, Brian Calcinai, late of Tawa (now living in Wairoa) sent us photos and notes of his recollections of living in a railway house which was alongside the old railway line near today’s underpass that takes motorists on to the motorway to the city. His father was a surfaceman on the line. The information / photos he has sent is fascinating, and would make for an interesting booklet. If members have access to material relating to Tawa Flat in those days (say from 1930 to 1950) we would be keen to receive it. Please contact David Parsons (232-6339), Phil Harland, or me (232-5374).
Our major book for 2010 will be about A H (Arthur) Carman, a well known Tawa identity from the early 1930s till his death in 1982. He played a huge role in community service for most of those years, and led a most interesting and at times controversial life. His book, Tawa Flat and the Old Porirua Road, is of inestimable value to anyone interested in Tawa’s history. We need to write about him while memories are still relatively fresh.
Michael Steer is presently gathering information about the old Mexted farmhouse, currently at 8 Rewa Terrace, to become a THS booklet in due course.

AGM
Our AGM was preceded by a most interesting talk by Brian Mexted about Tawa as he remembered it, especially pre-WW2. Michael Steer took good notes as Brian spoke, and has written them up. They will shortly appear on our website.

Public Information Boards
Members will be aware of the heritage sign erected in August outside the Library. It is attracting the interest of passers-by. Regrettably, 10 days after its placement it was vandalised when one of its four panels was shattered by a piece of concrete. Repairs are underway, but will take a little time. The WCC have asked for our advice on an information board to be erected near to young fruit trees which have recently been planted in Willowbank Park. The WCC’s experts took cuttings from the original fruit trees, planted in the 1860s or 1870s, which formed the Earp family orchard behind the farmstead the Earps called Boscobel. We have also been working with the council on a further information board to be placed in Willowbank Park which will alert people to more of the history associated with that part of Tawa – the original Maori track; the origin of Takapu as a name; the Earp family; the Wellington-Manawatu Railway; the Tawa Flat deviation of the railway; the Old Porirua Road and Boscobel Lane; and McCoy’s Stockade.

Conclusion
2009 has seen further progress in our aim of getting Tawa’s history down on paper, and then published and made available to the general public. By the end of 2009 we will have published 7 major books and 2 booklets in our Tawa Historical Series. Within 12 months there will be 8 books and 3 or 4 booklets. They cover a wide range of interests from the more scholarly to those of intense local interest. We thank you, our members for your support in bringing these worthwhile things to pass.

With best wishes for the Christmas season, and for a good year in 2010,