As a collector of interesting old things it is natural that Christmas related items frequently fall into my hands. I often find examples that fit well in my collections of maritime, military and New Zealand historical ephemera, photos and postcards. This Christmas postcard happens to also be from […]
Today marks an important date in New Zealand history. One hundred and fifty years ago one of the bloodiest battles of the New Zealand Wars took place between British troops and Māori warriors at their defensive earthworks at Rangiriri. By the time the battle was over early the […]
At the start of the year I posted this series of summer snapshots taken by English tourists passing through sunny Nelson in 1933. Here are a few more snapshots from their New Zealand holiday, this time showing what they got up to that winter. Eighty years ago the […]
This week two television documentaries I worked on premiered in the United States as part of Discovery Channel’s high-profile ‘Shark Week’. My job on these shows was to track down and get permission to use any video footage or photographs that we wanted to include. I don’t blog […]
Right now the South Island is in a state of panic with news of the approaching snow storm. The Red Cross is on standby, warnings are bombarding the masses from every conceivable angle and supermarkets are running low on bread, milk and romcom DVD box sets as people […]
I’ve been blogging for about ten months now and one of the fantastic parts of the experience has been the exchange of ideas and stories with fellow bloggers. It is inspiring to see so many passionate people sharing our past in different ways and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed becoming […]
This is the true story behind what I suspect might be the earliest known photograph of a waterspout or tornado in New Zealand. As I’ve stated many times before, every photo, postcard or piece of paper has a story to tell, however this one really will blow you […]
Today I’m going to share one of the oldest postcards in my collection, one which also happens to include a message relating to New Zealanders fighting in the Boer War. It is one of a small group that I found in a junk shop as a teenager and […]
Recently I came across a beautiful photograph in a secondhand book store and snapped it up for my collection. Usually I don’t blog about items that I’ve only recently purchased but this I thought was an exception. I give you – four Dunedin children and their pet cat. […]
This evening a good friend of mine shared this beautiful photo of a snow-covered Dome of the Rock. It is the first time in four years that snow has fallen in Jerusalem and it looks like the locals are enjoying the novelty. According to this article it is […]
History Geek 