New Zealand Odyssey: Dargaville Post Office

'New Zealand Odyssey', published in 1989 by Heinemann, was authored by Don Donovan (who did the text and illustrations) and Euan Sarginson, who did the photography and design. In this series of blog posts, I will publish some of my drawings.

When I did this watercolour of the Dargaville Post Office it was just that. But, as with so many Post Offices in New Zealand, it was later de-commissioned and is now an office complex listed in the top category of the NZ Historic Places Trust. Saved, but just another example of how NZ Post has lost its pride and lost its way.

It was built in 1914 and was then probably the most substantial building in a town that otherwise had little else of note and was declining after years of comfort associated with the exploitation of kauri forest and kauri gum deposits.

It's an interesting place, Dargaville, before any decent roads were built it was possible to travel there from Auckland by way of Riverhead (near Coatesville), portage over the hills to Helensville, and then by barge up the huge Kaipara Harbour to Dargaville on the Wairoa River and thereby into darkest Northland. Terra incognita.

© DON DONOVAN

donovan@ihug.co.nz

Country Churches of NZ 14. St. Peter's, Te Kopuru, Northland

I wrote and illustrated Country Churches of New Zealand. It was published in 2002 by New Holland, Publishers and is still on sale in bookshops. The publishers have kindly agreed to me re-publishing some of the book’s images and descriptions in this blog.

ST PETER'S, TE KOPURU

St Peter's, with its boxy nave and dumpy steeple was designed, as were many simple Anglican churches, by a minister, in this case a Reverend H. B. Wingfield.

It was built in 1902, and its foundation stone was laid by the first vicar's wife, Mrs A. J. Beck. Inside it is dark, cool and unremarkable. Te Kopuru is an old settlement that time seems to have passed by. The Wairoa River lies to its east and was an important transport waterway into Northland via the Kaipara Harbour in the early times of the settlement.


© DON DONOVAN

donovan@ihug.co.nz
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