Wellingtonians from the Turnbull Library collections

This is a book for everyone who has experienced Wellington. It began as a series of pictorial features in the Wellingtonian newspaper, and its offbeat look at the citys history has proved popular. Now it is a book with new pictures and stories. 

The pictures come from the collections of New Zealands famous Alexander Turnbull Library. There are photographs, paintings, cartoons, manuscripts, posters, sketches, and novelty postcards. No other book about the city has ever included quite such a variety of views. Each has a story, and all are very different: They include Te Aro Pa in 1841, punk protests at Parliament, a young local at Gallipoli, and Town Hall pandemonium when the Rolling Stones hit Wellington. Or you can read about jazz dancing in the flapper age, high fashion in the fifties, or the great earthquake of 1855. There are wrestlers and rugby players, flying boats and electric trams, gales and shipwrecks, even a singing ventriloquist and a venomous Sumatran rat monkey. There is certain to be something you didnt know about Wellington, a little city truly like no other.

I lived for four years in Wellington in my early working life ack in the 60's and I must say I found reading  the book a real nostalgia trip. The publishers have kindly allowed me to select and publish some of the images from the book.The Neville Lodge cartoon struck a real chord as six o'clock closing was still in force in my Wellington days and I well remember after work drinks on Friday nights at The Duke of Edinburgh Hotel on the corner of Willis and Manners Streets and the crush and swill between 5.00pm and 6.00pm! Also the photo of Suzy's Coffee Lounge which opened during my stay in the capital.
I should mention that there are many colour images in the book as well as black & white, I just happen to have chosen mainly b&w images.

About the author:

David Colquhoun has been Manuscripts Curator at the Turnbull for twenty years. There is still nothing else he would rather do. He has written articles and curated exhibitions about many aspects of New Zealands history. This is his second book. 

Pictures above , from top to bottom:

pg 33 The All Blacks board the Remuera, 29 July 1924 Photographer unidentified PAColl-5932-49

pg 91 Flying boat Ararangi at Evans Bay, October 1950 Photographer unidentified (Evening Post) 114/200/08-G Negatives of the Evening Post (PAColl-0614-1)

pg 51  Fashion parade, Wellington Town Hall, 1957 Photographer: Morrie Hill (19292002) 1/2-177273-F Morrie Hill negatives of Wellington, national events and personalities (PA-Group-00375)

pg 16 Suzys Coffee Lounge, 1964 Photographer: Duncan Winder (19191970) DW-1163-F Duncan Winder architectural photographs (PA-Group-00395)


pg 66 "What d'you mean "Let's go to one of the luxury hotels" - this is a luxury hotel".
 Neville Lodge Cartoon, 1945.


Wellingtonians from the Turnbull Library collections
David Colquhoun
Steele Roberts - Hardcover -  $29.99 (a bargain)
Publication date - 11 November