at Whitianga’s
Flight Club Ballroom
Amy Sammons • 021 899 634
The Mercury Bay Aero Club hanger transforms into a wonderous
hall for your wedding, anniversary, dance, party or meeting.
• Unique venue • Complete wedding planning
• Wickedly delicious food • Outcatering services to suit any budget
We can arrange it all – our venue or yours!
A CIVIL – AND FASHIONABLE – SOCIETY
A drama club was formed in the late 1890s, and the town enjoyed
performances by visiting opera companies, drama groups, wrestlers,
and even a circus. But the prime excitement came when Mr. A. W.
Whitehouse brought his electric Kinematograph exhibit (moving pictures)
to town. The much anticipated movies filled the hall to overflowing and
multiple shows had to be scheduled. These activities were scheduled
in Loram’s Hall (opposite the Kuaotunu Hotel) which also served as the
school rooms during the day.
Kuaotunu also had a fire brigade; first with buckets and then a more
showy, but admittedly less effective, pump. It was operated by one man
on each side and as Simpson writes, “After some anxious minutes
water at the rate of 10 gallons per 10 min, more or less found its way
to the reduction nozzle at the end of the hose. ... The brigade was
famous not so much for the fires it extinguished as for those it failed
to get under control.”
The most memorable fire was at one of the hotels; and when it was
obvious it could not be saved, the firefighters were told “she’s gone
boys, it’s all yours now.” At which time they all ran “with superhuman
effort” to the bar’s cellar and rescued crates of liquor. “The following day,
there were a few absentees from work.”
Another later fire at the Royal Hotel had a particular hero,
the axe-wielding Mick O’Connor who swung with focused
action at the wall until the source of the flames was
revealed. The bucket brigade put out the flames and ended
their waterworks with buckets being poured over O’Connor
himself as his whiskers were in danger of catching fire.
From 1891, Kuaotunu had its own resident physician,
Dr.
Barnes
(pictured below), who also serviced Mercury Bay and
other locales. For this travel, he was provided a horse, but
not being an avid horseman, often chose to walk, leading the
horse over the tracks. A source of local amusement would
be to watch him catch his horse.
Simpson writes:
“He was not what one would term a
horseman and had a rather novel method
of catching his horse in the paddock. Like
so many badly trained horses, it had a
habit of walking to the far end of the field,
‘fortunately a small one,’ and on being
approached would present the wrong end
for the reception of the bridle. The doctor,
overcame the difficulty with a long forked
stick. He gingerly placed the forked end in the horse’s mane, and with
a twisting motion entangled it in the fork and was thus able to draw
the horse’s business end towards him and eventually place the bridle
correctly on the beast’s head. The rest was easy, for the animal did lead
reasonably well.”
21
Kuaotunu
Gossip
from the
New
Zealand
Observer
The Barnes, an English mining couple, make do with a temporary
accommodation in Midas Gully. Town dressmakers ensured women
could still be fashionable.
In 1890’s fashion,
this wedding
party includes the
McManus sisters,
who ran the Royal
Hotel (front row,
positions 1, 3, & 5).
The ‘Royal’ is the hotel near
the Kuaotunu Hotel that
was destroyed by fire in
1896 (see story at left).
