Pat reminisces about early Levin days
A photo of Levin resident Patricia ‘Pat’ Roe taken 50 years ago that featured in the Horowhenua Chronicle last month, got the 93-year-old reminiscing about her life growing up in Levin.
If Levin could claim its own landed gentry or an ‘aristocracy’, then Pat’s father Frederick Roe would be right up there. Born in Wellington in 1859, Roe became Peter Bartholomew’s saw mill manager and clerk in March 1888. That same year he requested to become the town’s postmaster, without salary.
Roe and his brother built the town’s first hotel in March 1889, recognising the number of visitors from Wellington coming up for duck and pigeon shooting needed somewhere to stay. He was also a long-time borough councillor of 12 years and substantial farmer, tireless in his efforts working for Weraroa, refusing to support any project not built there.
Pat’s mother, Emma Newton, started Shannon School and taught at Ohau where she met Frederick and the couple married in 1906.
“I’ve lived in Levin in all my life. My father was 65 when I was born, the youngest of four brothers,” said Pat.
Her youngest brother was 12 years older than her.
“I suppose I was a nice surprise after four boys.”
A self-confessed “outdoors girl” Pat’s favourite time was spent on the family farm.
She said her mother, a gifted painter, could turn her hand to most crafts, making the lace collar Pat wore for the Levin Post Office and Savings Bank centenary celebrations 50 years ago.
“Mum tried to teach me but I was never that interested.
“I preferred to be outdoors, especially at haymaking time, on the rake raking up all the bits of hay.
“I helped my brothers to milk the cows. That was by hand before the machines came in and I think I could still milk by hand.”
She said her youngest brother would give her half a crown to milk the cows so he could play cricket on a Saturday.
As she got older, Saturday afternoons were spent with friends at The Regent Theatre picture house, watching “everything and anything”.
Pat started at Weraroa Post Office opposite the Levin railway station in 1942 as an 18-year-old.
“When the train stopped, I’d run from the Post Office and scramble into the guard’s van, on my knees on the hard floor, looking in the ‘late box’ for any letters for Levin.
“I used to see the wounded soldiers coming in on the train. It was quite a busy station in those days.
“At the aerodrome in Tararua Rd there were four or five wooden aeroplanes to make it look like as if we had planes if the Japanese flew over.
“There was also a big hole dug on farmland ready for a gun placement but there was never any gun.” She said one night the sappers [soldiers who undertook tasks such as building/repairing roads and bridges, laying and clearing mines] decided to undertake an exercise at Hokio Beach.
“We heard them blowing up things and of course everyone thought the Japanese had arrived.
“I said to my dad ‘what do we do?’ He said ‘go back to bed’.
“The plan was for the townspeople to go to the hills but we had no idea how we would get up there. It was supposed to be by lorries but that hadn’t been arranged.”
Pat also worked at the Levin Post Office and Savings Bank, including relieving at post offices around the wider district for a total of 36 years. She would cycle between Manakau and home in Hokio Beach Rd.
“I had the road to myself. There weren’t many cars around in those days.”
She recalled the early Levin premises.
“You had to put an umbrella up when it rained and there was a hole in one wall which we had to stuff with newspapers to keep the wind out.”
After leaving the Post Office, Pat worked in the office for Heayns and Moore (now Jensen and Moore on Oxford St) for a few hours a day until she was 60.
She had an almost grandstand view of the Grand Hotel burning down in 1981.
“I looked out the window and saw the top of the building on fire. To see that going up in flames was quite a thing. I just watched all the excitement.”
Pat never married nor had children. Her mother was always keen that Pat should travel, and she did, travelling the world twice.
“I’ve always loved coming back to New Zealand. There’s no place like home.”
Pat wished she had written more down about her life and the town.
“[But] I didn’t think I would get to this age.”