Well, well, well! Athenaeum poser
AT times this column and its readers are asked to help out with all manner of inquiries or searches for information, some of which are relatively straightforward, others not quite so.
I suspect today’s request falls into the latter category, but then again I never cease to be amazed at the wealth of knowledge and history out there in ‘‘readerland’’, so let’s give it a go and see what transpires.
The inquiry comes from Lawrie Forbes, a wellknown Dunedin developer who specialises in ‘‘breathing new life into old buildings,’’ as the ODT reported back in May 2013 when he paid $900,000 for the historic Dunedin Athenaeum building in the Octagon.
Lawrie is transforming the complex, built in 1870, and as part of this project is keen to find out what he can about an old well discovered nearly 70 years ago , as you can see from today’s Evening Star photo, published October 18, 1949.
Lawrie writes: ‘‘The Athenaeum buildings are being assessed for earthquake strength, with a detailed earthquake assessment which can then be used for final design strengthening. Once this is complete it will show the lowest rating which may only apply to one area. Once that area is remediated the rating will be applied to the next lowest rating area and so on until the rating is in the 70100% of NBS [new building standard] being aimed at.
‘‘Because of this I would like to know where in the buildings the well existed so as to evaluate how it was remediated in 1949 by way of covering over, or filled in, by what material. The New Athenaeum Theatre is in the throes of moving into the newest building on the site (built in the rear of the premises in the late 1890s).Thank you for your help.’’
With valuable assistance from my ODT illustrations department colleague Gerard O’Brien, I have also found the story which accompanied today’s photo. It begins:
‘‘An old domestic well, dug long before the Athenaeum was erected in 1870, has been discovered under the Athenaeum building in the Octagon. The well itself is in a basement used by a shop fronting the Octagon and was discovered by accident when it was noticed that some heavy cases stored in the basement had sunk into a depression in the ground. When the cases were removed, the well was discovered.
‘‘Fitted with a system of pipes, the well was obviously used for domestic purposes and the water was probably lifted by a windmill or some similar arrangement. The hole, which was found to be about 6ft [1.8m] in diameter at the top . . . was full to the top with water when it was found, but has since been pumped down to a lower level.
‘‘The well is about 24ft [7.3m] depth and the top had merely been covered with a light coating of asphalt over some old tree lengths laid over the hole. The well is to be filled with rubble and sealed up. The water is not particularly palatable.’’
When reading this story I couldn’t help wondering what else lurks beneath the surface of the Octagon?
For example, the old men’s toilets, which I recall from my teenage years. Were they demolished, filled in or just covered over and left to be discovered many generations later by archaeologists?
As for the athenaeum well’s location, if anyone can help Lawrie with relevant information, let me know and I’ll pass it on.
Mixed flatting
Last week’s popular topic of the mixed sex flatting furore at Otago University back in 1967 has prompted several calls from readers trying to help identify some of the main players from the Union St flat which caused the fuss and subsequent student protest but I will wait to report further on this until I get more information from someone at the centre of the kerfuffle. So stay tuned for updates.
But, in the meantime, I understand from another reader that mixed flatting was not just an issue for the university to grapple with.
I am told the New Zealand Police also had a ban on mixed flatting, which was still in force in the early 1970s and may not have ended until the 1980s. Anyone found flouting this written code of conduct faced dismissal for conduct prejudicial to the good order of the police.
These standards applied to other areas of the police force. In the early 1970s, police officers still had to make written application for permission to marry, and the intended bride or groom’s family were vetted to ensure they met the required standard. Again, failure to do so meant dismissal.
Permission also had to be obtained for an officer to undertake secondary employment and a spouse was not allowed to work in a TAB, a hotel or anything prejudicial to the good order of the police.
Policewomen were not issued with batons — they walked the beat, on their own, with a handbag and a set of handcuffs. Some policewomen ‘‘acquired’’ a baton on the quiet from a sympathetic male colleague.
Officers on the beat still did not have radios. If they needed assistance, they had to go to a telephone box, put in their money and make the call — or else get an obliging exchange operator to connect their call to the station free on the 111 system.
How times have changed since — and thank goodness they have!