
Growing Up In NZ

Growing Up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 21: Entertainment
Part 21 – Entertainment Dorothy – 31/08/01 In my interviews with people who grew up in the period 1925-50 the same activities have been mentioned again and again – playing with favourite toys, inventing imaginative outdoor games, swimming, boating, singing around the piano, listening to the radio, reading books and comics, playing cards and board…

Growing Up In New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 20: New Zealand Life In The 1940s. An interview with Elric Hooper
Part 20 – New Zealand life in the 1940s Dorothy – 17/08/01 An interview with Elric Hooper Elric Hooper MBE, best known in New Zealand as the Director of the Court Theatre in Christchurch, looks back on the experiences and formative influences of his youth. Elric Hooper Photo source Elric Hooper Elric Hooper has recently…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 19: Travelling Between The Towns And Going On Holiday
Part 19 – Travelling Between The Towns And Going On Holiday Dorothy – 06/07/01 Handy destinations favoured Holidays usually involved little travelling. Anne J enjoyed holidays on an uncle’s farm or having country cousins to stay in the city. Many families went to a bach or a tent at a nearby beach, river or lake….

The Friendly Aunt At The Friendly Store
Dorothy – 25/05/01 Thousands of New Zealand children were Leaguers in Hays Junior League run by Aunt Haysl. Who was Aunt Haysl? ‘Aunt Haysl’ was the role which James Hay of Hays Ltd designated for a person to organise a club to attract families to the store known as Hay’s – the Friendly Store. Edna…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 18
Part 18 – Going To Town An Important Outing Dorothy – 18/05/01 Going to town meant what we would now call a trip to the inner city, but it happened much more often as there were no suburban malls, and most shopping and visits to the library, dentist, doctor, lawyer, accountant, land agent or car…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 17: New Zealand during World War II
Part 17 – More About Life In New Zealand During World War 2 Dorothy – 04/05/01 Since the publication of earlier articles in this series about life in New Zealand during World War 2, readers have supplied me with additional information about two aspects mentioned earlier – the work of the Navy League and the…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 16
Part 16 – Serving overseas in World War 2 Roydon Harrison – 30/03/01 Growing up officially ended at age twenty one in the 1925-50 period. The war brought a rapid change to adulthood for many people, especially the young men who volunteered for war service. Editor Roydon Harrison Photo source Roydon Harrison My experiences after…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 15: World War II
Part 15 – At Home In New Zealand During World War 2 Dorothy – 16/03/01 Restrictions on travel, rationing, different roles for women. Day to day activities for those in New Zealand were affected by all sorts of restrictions. Women who had stayed at home took jobs vacated by men serving in the armed forces,…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 14
Part 14 – At Home In New Zealand During World War 2 Dorothy – 09/03/01 More about life in New Zealand during World War 2 – stringent defence measures As the Japanese advanced south in the Pacific and even attacked Darwin the invasion of New Zealand seemed a serious possibility, and defence measures were more…

Growing up in New Zealand 1925-1950, Part 13
Part 13 – At Home In New Zealand During World War 2 Dorothy – 02/3/01 School pupils’ memories, the Home Guard, the mystery object in the sea, the Navy League, defence measures in Lyttelton Harbour …. The war years brought loss of loved ones, social change, times of austerity, an awareness of New Zealand’s vulnerability,…