Museum Blog

By Libby Sharpe, Curator

After the fall of Singapore in 1942, Major R D Hardie, Area Officer of the Home Guard in Whanganui stated, “the fact [is] that the country faced a danger that was great, particularly from raiders and it was necessary that every able-bodied man in New Zealand should be trained to give service and the communities should be organised”. 

Males from 16 years to 40 years, not on active service overseas, enlisted for service in the Home Guard. Its task was to defend the Port of Whanganui. It was hoped that any invaders would be delayed by the local Home Guard until reinforcements could arrive.

Benoni Lytton-White worked for Whanganui publisher A D Willis, as an artist and lithographer. Known in Whanganui as Benoni White, his most notable work was the invitation cards for the Royal Visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York (later King George V and Queen Mary) to Rotorua in 1901 when they were touring the British Empire. He was also a photographer, a poet and an explorer.

Later in life Benoni White became a local hero because, at the age of 83, he was the oldest serving member of any Home Guard in New Zealand during World War II. He served in a clerical capacity and also did some local recruiting for the Whanganui Battalion Home Guard.

May 16 was a Thursday in 1861, and Philip R McRae, sheep farmer, married Bertha, youngest daughter of Captain Scott, late of the Spray.
The Presbyterian Church in Nelson would have been busy that day, with Reverend P Calder and his helpers fussing about, making sure everything was perfect for the future Mr and Mrs McRae. The Nelson Examiner and the New Zealand Chronicle reported the very basics, leaving everything to the imagination of future chroniclers and amateur historians.
What we do know, and in fact have, is what the newly married Bertha was wearing the next day.  It is called a “first day dress'' and is now held in the Whanganui Regional Museum.  Museum external relations co-ordinator, Louise Follett has chosen this dress for her Midweek story.
“The thing I love and find interesting about this,'' says Louise, “is, of course it is made with these beautiful fabrics - you can imagine how vivid the colours would have been and how rich-looking - and the bits you didn't see were made with cheap fabric. Let's be fashionably frivolous yet frugal at the same time.''
How many Midweek readers knew there was even such a thing as a “first day dress''?
The Wanganui connection is that Bertha's granddaughter, Jill Hanna married Fordell sheep farmer, Leo Campion.  “It was gifted to the museum by Mrs Enid Horsley, Bertha's great-great-granddaughter,'' says Louise.
The gown is in remarkably good condition and is a good example of the fashion of the time; the waspish waist and heavy fabric, the strong, dark colours and the predominance of lace at the collar, neckline and sleeves. The dress is hand-stitched and probably made in England.  It comprises a two-piece burgundy and donkey-brown silk damask costume with toning velvet underskirt. A first day dress was always coloured, rather than white or cream, and showed that Bertha was now a respectable married woman.
The family story is fascinating. Bertha's father, Captain Scott was the fourth son of the Earl of Berclough. He ran away to sea rather than becoming a member of the clergy. According to family legend he was a gun-smuggler. Bertha's mother accompanied him on many of his voyages and they eventually settled in Port Arthur, Tasmania. After a convict uprising when Mrs Scott protected her household with firearms, she shifted her family to a safer place. The Scott family eventually migrated to Nelson where Bertha subsequently met Philip.
“You look at this [the dress] and you can see it's full of hope, isn't it?'' says Louise.
“She would have looked amazing.''
Louise has some very firm ideas on why she chose this item for the Midweek.  “An object like this, for me, as a woman, is about the pride she took in now being a married woman. That meant something quite different in 1861 to what it means now, but despite the differences, some things haven't changed, and, of course, she would have had her own hopes and dreams about being married and they would have been restricted within that time frame, according to what women could and could not do. Nonetheless, I hope it was a happy marriage.''
With little knowledge of Philip and Bertha and the life they led, speculation only leads to more questions and very few answers. “That's what I love about the museum,'' says Louise, “your imagination can run wild.''

Original article appeared in the 'Wanganui Midweek on 27th February 2013, and republished here with permission from the editors.

There will be an Open Day at the Archives at the Whanganui Regional Museum on Thursday 7th November, 10am-1pm.  The public are invited to attend the museum between these hours to learn about the Archives Research Service and what we are able to offer.  The open day will be attended by the Archivist, Sandi Black, and the External Relations Officer, Kyle Dalton, and other volunteers currently involved with the Museum.  This is a great opportunity to talk to the staff and find out about the archives collection, the services we offer and how we can assist with your research, and a short tour to view the archives storage area will be offered.

The archives comprise a wonderful collection of material directly related to Whanganui including newspapers and periodicals, photographs, maps and plans, records of societies and clubs, personal papers, original artworks, a collection of research files, and a reference library.  Sandi Black has been working at the Museum for four years, and Kyle Dalton has been an independent researcher for a 10 years.  They are both very familiar with the collection and are able to offer advice on other research avenues, as well as professional advice on storage and organisation of archival items.

The open day will be held in the Class Room at the rear of the Museum and attendees are welcome to come along any time between 10am and 1pm on Thursday 7th.  Light refreshment will be provided.

By Sandi Black, Archivist

As the weather warms up it’s time to move on to cooler clothing, which means time to put away the winter onesie.  The garments have long been popular pyjamas for young children (pictured) but have made a resurgence of popularity with adults in recent times.  Subscribe to any daily-deal website or take a walk through a department store and you will see a variety of styles available – cotton or fleece, patterned or plain, buttons or zips, with or without feet.  And now with Halloween season approaching costume onesies are making an appearance, including spandex morph suits with glow-in-the-dark bones.

The modern adult onesie was designed as warm and cosy pyjamas which trapped in the warmth through the long winter nights, but they have been sneaking into day-wear more frequently of late.  However, this is not a new fad.  The boiler suit and jump suit have been standards in certain professions, but for a while the onesie was standard daywear.  The jump suit was very fashionable in the 1970’s and early 1980’s in a variety of fabrics (denim shown here) and colours and with varying levels of decoration – think Elvis.  And before that there was the Siren Suit designed for modesty and practicality in the air raid shelters of WWII London.

But even before that, onesies were popular as undergarments.  All-in-one garments have been discreetly keeping us warm and comfortable for a long time.  For the wearer’s convenience a strategic flap known as an ‘access hatch’ or ‘drop seat’ was put in place so the garment did not need to be removed at a critical time, instead a simple unbuttoning cleared the way.  An example of this is shown here in the cotton lawn onesie underwear from the 1920s.  This particular example is a lighter and more feminine version of the Union Suit that became popular in the 19th century.  Patented in New York as women’s underwear it became popular with men as well, eventually evolving into men’s work wear due to the comfort and durability of the garment.

The onesie is not a new fad but has been with us for hundreds of years and seen many changes.  Evolving from underwear to outerwear and back again, it is now being seen on the outer once again.  But just remember, there is an appropriate time to wear onesies – this is not one of them.

By Kyle Dalton, External Relations Officer.

The first eleven Pākehā settlers landed in Whanganui on the 27th of February 1841. On the first anniversary of their arrival they held a ‘Fete and Regatta’ to celebrate the founding of their new settlement. Little is known of these first celebrations; however, the following year the ‘Fete and Regatta’ was an event worthy of mention in the Wellington newspapers. The wonderfully named New Zealand Colonist and Port Nicholson Advertiser stated that on Monday, the 27th of February 1843, the second annual ‘Fete and Regatta’ was celebrated in Whanganui with much enthusiasm.

Nearly two hundred Pākehā and fifteen hundred Māori assembled from all parts of the district to witness and take part in the day’s sports events. The festivities commenced with a shooting competition which was won by Mr Paterson who, we are told, hit the target with every shot. A waka race with Pākehā crews was well contested and was won in fine style by Mr Churton's Nix with Mr Dighton's Crawler coming in second.

The premier race of the day was contested by about twenty Māori waka. We are told the race was so ably contested by two waka that the judges were unable to decide who had won and it was decided to let them run again. The second race was also a dead heat and it was decided to give a prize to each of the waka.

The day was too perfect for some of the events. The fine and calm conditions prevented a good display of sailing on the river and only a running match was contested. Mr Nixon's River Queen won by about a boats length.

On land the traditional Victorian games of jumping-in-sacks, wheeling-barrows-blindfolded, and jingling were played. Yes, jingling. A large circle of rope was occupied by 8 to 10 people, all except one of them are blindfolded. This player is called a ‘jingler’ because they carry a small bell which is rung constantly. The blindfolded players must locate the jingler during an allotted time. The first person to catch them is the next jingler.

In the evening a large feast was held to celebrate the founding of the settlement and also to acknowledge the cordial relations that existed between Māori and Pākehā.