Stories Pour In For Kaeo Post Office Centenary

Former post office workers and Kaeo identities have responded well to the call for anecdotes and memorabilia to mark the centenary of the old Kaeo Post Office building next month.

The Far North District Council announced plans to commemorate the council-owned building’s 100th birthday last month.

Council advisory services officer Sheryl Bainbridge is delighted with the stories and photos people have offered to display and share at the commemorations on May 5.

"We have received some great stories of some of the real characters of the postal and telephone services.”

Anecdotes illustrate the vagaries of party lines and the pressures and pranks involved in providing a 24-hour manual telephone service.

They include tales about the serious business of being a vital link in emergencies, the unofficial provision of wake-up calls and the hilarious capers of line staff during the construction of the overhead telephone network.

“Stories range from firing a mortar with a line attached to shoot overhead lines across rivers and gullies to a community which offered a keg of beer and a hangi to be the first to receive a telephone service in their area.”

The stories also offer a timeline through history – from cash welfare payments through the mail to the savings bank era, the introduction of cheque books, Post Office loans and Bonus Bonds, to motor vehicle registration, carless days, the introduction of road taxes and an era when births, deaths and marriages were registered at the Post Office.

"The stories have created a rich tapestry of the way things once were and the self-help spirit which has motivated small rural communities through the decades."

Mrs Bainbridge has also been impressed by the way people have rallied to make the commemorations a success.

"We have had tremendous support from the community, not only to help compile a record of the proud history of this iconic building, but also through offers of volunteer assistance and paint donations to give the first floor interior of the building a facelift."

The council is painting the exterior of the building so it looks its best for the commemorations on Saturday 5 May at 11am.

More than 100 people are expected to attend the commemorations which will include addresses by Kaeo resident Bruce Mills on behalf of the Bay of Islands-Whangaroa Community Board, Far North Mayor Wayne Brown, Northland MP Mike Sabin, and district councillor Di Maxwell whose family has a long association with the Kaeo area.

Chorus representative Grahame Delaney will also speak about a government initiative to bring broadband communications to rural communities.

People with personal information about the history of the building are asked to contact Sheryl Bainbridge on (09) 401 5217 or Kaeo librarian Diana Jenkins on (09) 405 0287.