Mural marks bittersweet victory
The ‘‘bittersweet moment’’ when Nelsonians gathered to celebrate the end of World War I is being remembered by a 10-metre-wide mural displayed on Nelson’s main street.
This year, the Nelson Provincial Museum has joined with the Nelson City Council and Uniquely Nelson to show the responses of people in November 1918 when they heard the war had ended.
The mural has been set up on Trafalgar St, with two photos capturing the celebrations immediately after the guns fell silent in 1918, and the Victory Day celebrations in 1919.
While the armistice was signed in Europe on November 11, it wasn’t until November 13 when word reached New Zealand and a celebration could be organised.
The 1919 victory parade was a more grand affair, with one of the largest crowds in the region’s history gathering in Trafalgar Square.
Museum chief executive Lucinda Blackley-Jimson said the photographs showcased the ‘‘bittersweet moment’’ when people found out the four-year conflict had ended.
The display has been set up using the windows of vacant buildings across the road from the museum on Trafalgar St, and coincides with the upper Trafalgar St summer closure that started at the weekend.
Blackley-Jimson said bringing the display out on to the street would enable people ‘‘to literally stand in the footsteps of our forefathers and mothers and to reflect on an important part of our region’s history’’.
‘‘Many of the buildings in the photographs still exist, and it’s easy to imagine yourself in the crowd that day.
‘‘Nelson at the time was a small, tight-knit community, and the impact of the war and the loss of so many of the region’s sons would have had a significant impact on everyone.’’
The photos have been selected from the museum’s glass plate collection, from thousands which depict the history of the region during the war years.
‘‘Our exhibition curators have selected these images, from the many thousands in our collection, because they reflect Nelson’s response to peace,’’ BlackleyJimson said.