1920s memories star in open day
One hundred years ago the celebrations, tragedies and everyday moments that contribute to Knowledge Bank Hawke’s Bay’s historic records were being lived, and some of the photos from that era will be on display at the coming open day.
The Knowledge Bank team is preparing for its Open Day 2020 on March 21. Visitors will see the technology used to scan and upload a vast range of materials, from books and magazines, to letters, voiced memories and old photographs, meet the wonderful team of volunteers who make the preservation of the region’s history possible, and tour the beautiful historic Stoneycroft Homestead.
There will also be tea and coffee, a $2 sausage sizzle and book sale, and members of the Hawke’s Bay branch of the New Zealand Founders Society and of the Hawke’s Bay Society of Genealogists will be there to talk about their groups’ activities. Entry is by gold coin donation.
The coming open day has prompted a trip down the Knowledge Bank’s memory lane to see what was happening this time a century ago.
The new Parkvale School opened, Marama was performed at the Hastings Municipal Theatre, Central Hawke’s Bay’s first Fordson tractor was put through its paces, and Hastings’ Drapers held their staff picnic at Nga¯ tarawa.
“These outstanding photographs and the information that comes with them is a real reminder of why we do this,” says Hawke’s Bay Digital Archives Trust chairman Peter Dunkerley.
While the Knowledge Bank is open every day to the public (Monday to Friday, 10.30am to 4.30pm) and the archives are available at any time on the website knowledgebank.org.nz, the annual open day is “always very special”.
“It’s the day when we can totally focus on our visitors, show them what we do and how we do it, and talk about the reasons we do this.”
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