Work in progress
Previous | Contents | Next § Transcript of Hugh’s 1950s radio talks, # 1 The heyday of the Kauri bushmen ended in about 1914. Before that time large camps, some more permanent than others, were operating in the bush throughout Northland, and it is about the men in these camps that I’m ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next My mother Dorothy was very proud of the McCarroll boys, and showed it in the newspaper clippings and memorabilia she passed on. I don’t know when this photo was taken, but given my grandfather doesn’t look much older than in his 1911 wedding photos, I assume it ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next Those early days must have been a rough and ready pioneer experience for the family, both parents and all the children, when they came together at Mareretu on land only two years won from virgin bush. And the children were young. If the third son, Willie, seems ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next I’ve said that I’m trying not to “comment or pass judgment” in telling these stories, but it’s impossible not to notice the change in the role and even visibility of women. “Mrs J.N. McCarroll”, not “Mrs Sarah McCarroll”. Or “A daughter was born to Mr and Mrs ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next Jack was a member for 18 years, and chairman for eight years, of the Kaipara Hospital Board, a member of Hobson County Council for 17 years, 20 years a member of the Kaipara Licensing Bench and a member of the North Auckland Power Board since its inception. ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next This is largely based on a 1953 newspaper article in which 90 year-old Robert McCarroll told the story of his family migrating to New Zealand, with extra detail from newspapers of the time. ~ Ian § Robert McCarroll was born when his Mum and Dad were 18 and ... Read more
Contents § If you have feedback, corrections, photos, or can help fill in the gaps on these family pages, please email or let me know in the comments — thanks! I probably haven’t been consistent, but by and large I’ve called the women by their “maiden” names — e.g. Violet ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next But the Army was on the lookout for P&T staff for Divisional Signals, and he was soon transferred to HQ Platoon as a Signalman. Camp was invigorating and his letters were animated. Drill exercise, the rifle range, PT and signal training. Letter-writing and yarning with his ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next Like his stories of the Depression, the letters paint a picture of what already seems a distant time — of experiences we haven’t shared and values we’ve set aside. Or so it seems to me. Even distances aren’t the same. Fifty miles was a barrier, ... Read more
Previous | Contents | Next As a kid I don’t recall Mum ever losing her aura of motherly capability, even though I did eventually come to suspect that Dad wasn’t quite Superman — when he took off his glasses, for example, and his eyes seemed to shrink into his head. ... Read more