HO431

Margaret Jane STEVENSON

Notes from interview taken by interviewer at the time of the interview

Track 1

Introduction

Track 2

Earliest memories – Dads farm hand milking – Dacre (Farm – introduction). Mum and Dad – no car – Yellow car – 30 cows – track cans – breakfast – Woodlands school – bus – Mr Wyeth driver – describes school – lunches – Baker – pies – Blacksmith – Philips family – hot cocoa – school day – 5 year olds rest

Track 3

Books – afternoon tea – milking – tea – mother – made frocks – mending trousers – buying materials – horse and van – wooden railway – logs from the bush – horses pull – flax mill – Davidsons

Track 5

School milk – long drops – trenches – Dad home guard – phone – WDFF – Women’s Division Federated – mums baking – pet day – senior class with Mr Roseveage – Mr Whiting – oral reading - poetry – maths. No prizes – parents spoke up – Dux medal was awarded – sport – bus to Winton – back flap up on hot days – swimming in Waihopai stream – gardening at school – flowers, Oregon pines – 1944 left Woodlands school – Certificate.

Track 6

Bike and train to school – Southland Girls High – Miss Mae always late – uniform (describes) – school badge – stockings and suspenders – 1945 subject - classes

Track 7

Bluff trip – names teachers – dissects frog – bunson burner – sports. Mr Latchford – janitor. 1947 moved to Tweed Street to New school – describes it. Unwell at school cert time – passed – 6th form subjects – Miss Mae tray cloth 2 pound- travelling rug. Teaching – not accepted at training g college – Waikana School east of Mataura – 7 pupils – Parkers, McKays, Haggarts.

Track 8

Accepted 1951 at training College Dunedin – boarded privately – biked

Track 9

Learnt the grasses/weeds for agriculture – blood – poetry anthology – other subjects and teachers left training college – back home – Woodlands school for probationary year. Subjects – sports games – young brother – biked and bused

Track 10

1953 infant teacher – primer 1, 2, 3, 4 – a new school on the rise. Std class – blackboards – passages – flush loos – central heating – staff room – 5 years teaching there. 1954 – piano – singing.

Track 12

1957 Left teaching – married – Dacre – teacher aiding Dacre School (2005 closed) – relieving – wool – leather – plastic

Track 13

Teenage years – Country Girls Club – dances “Hard Up” dress – “Shipwreck” – 1st president – 1956 float for parade – Invercargill Centennial – travel to Stratford with sister – Queen and Duke – stock judging – cattle, horses, pigs and sheep – judging – winning the Cup – meeting Douglas – dances at Woodlands and Dacre (good dancer – Douglas) – lived 2 miles away – debating

Track 14

1958 married First church – photos – wedding party – Elmwood – dance – wedding gifts – 3 mixing bowls (set up home half way between Dacre and Ttitipua) – shearers quarters – describes this – kitchen – shower – toilets – 2 chairs – learning to cook – no car – truck – tractor – bulldozer (made hay/mower) coal range. Married couple next door – moved to cottage – washhouse – 3 bedrooms – large – no fridge – keeping milk cool – value of the married couple – bringing in (tussock country) – shearing in January – lamb sales – lambing – cooking for men – Breakfast, lunch and tea – Maori shearers light lunch – big meal of evening – no pudding (married couple afternoon and morning teas) – raid sisters garden when out of food. Groceries from Morton Mains store then Woodlands Store

Track 15

The Pig – no one wanted to kill it – very fatty bacon

Track 16

1959 – Sandra born – new house – chimneys – timber – helping putty nail heads – V shape for sun – open veranda. 1960 moved in – clay soil – water tank – garage – Douglas – fixing machinery – married couple – plantation men – borrowing car – Chrysler and Plymouth – bought one for themselves ? Baby Sandra – hot summer – keeping her cool – cotton vest – cotton frocks – wool allergy – describes new house – wood – varnish – white outside

Track 17

Going into labour with Sandra – track to Dee Street (oil cans and all) – a card from a friend

Track 18

Sandra – swing – spanners – trike – lambs – George born – pups – school at Dacre – Mr Gallately words – Mr Donaldson – maths – George to school – agriculture Club – a garden – Pet Day (Calves – leading and feeding them) – Roxy Corgi dog – no breeding from her. George teacher – Mrs Ross “neat” – naming George – Decimus – Xmas shared with grandparents – boarding school – no visits for 6 weeks – 13 years old – missing Sandra – Visits to school fair – made a cake for raffle – beach – friends.

Track 19

Sandra horse riding Harlick and Tinkerbell – Pony club – a grey horse – riding at AMP show – Aunties keen horse women

Track 20

Sandra 9 when Warren born – mothered by Sandra – Warren walking – Columba College – boys a school – George at boarding school, Warren at home – Margaret working on the farm – Sandra coming home. Work Malloch McCleans 2 years – University Dunedin – Accountancy – Computer systems – Accountant – Invercargill and Dunedin – City Council Dunedin – George – John McGlashan Lincoln Science and Agriculture 6 years – Bachelor of Agriculture Commerce – home to the farm. Women keen to catch up – John McGlashan – athletics. George broke records – 100 meters, 400 metres. Warren broke brothers records – made friends – still has some and wanting to leave school – “have to have a go” – sat school cert – ad garage “wanting a junior” – learning jobs cutting a muffler and joining it on – too short – boss not happy – didn’t want to go back – Dad talked to the boss – “on drugs” – NO – kept on. Now owns the garage – George home to the farm from Lincoln – new ideas – meeting Bronwyn (Farm in trust for family) went for a trip – returned – engaged

Track 21

Farm – lads working uni students – locals – brothers (Rod Ryan horse) – jeep. Students from Massey and Lincoln Adam Brian Hall, Noel and ? Brian Wickam Wellington, Jeffrey Green – Pete Lipshoe America – Harry Corbett America – newspaper article – helpers – skinning a sheep – Harry’s son came to visit – married couples – monks – dogs – Harry wanting to take back dogs – Alby, Morris and Lila – Galvins – John Monk killed in accident – John’s farm – Alf McKenzie and Colleen keen horseman – kicked by horse. Murray Linwood and Diane – freezing workers living in cottages on the farm – odd jobs

Track 22

1009 acres – 442 hectares – 240 acres the in laws – was tussock land. 1935 Stevenson’s bought it. Plantation (Pinus insignus) beside farm – blackberries – palm tree – native plants – herb club (sage and parsley) with Olive Dunn and Jean Young – WDFF – learnt skills – floral work – flowers – shows Dacre and Morton mains – preserving apricots (describes this) and Beetroot (describes)

Track 23

Farming – hay making – shifting bales – feeding out hay on the back of trailer – tailing mobs into pens – searing iron, ear marking, scabby nose injection, cooking – contractors in. Shearing and haymaking Jan Feb March – working the ground disc and harrows – Percy Acton – Adams – 2 in tow (from Canterbury), winter crops – swedes – Doon Major – sweet – leaves eaten first – lambs sold – “store lamb” 1-2 years old, oats turned under for manure – not so many swedes grown now. Chowmolier stems don’t break down. Kale grown on farm now – maize. Trips shorthorn cattle and South Devon Cattle – farming group formed – visiting farms – Jersey Cows smaller than South Devon cows – good milkers – visiting North and South Island farms.

Track 24

Hokonui group trip to the Haast – knowlands – Arawata River by boat – swam the cattle down river to sale yards. Cattle Group to Australia – Brisbane – Darwin – Sarah Henderson’s Research station – Coconuts – Cattle – “Blue tongue disease” – setting sun – old machinery from the War years – pearl factory – jewellery – shells – indoor pool with Coral – farms – shops – kangaroo and Ostrich meat. Ayres rock – hotel – opal rings – bus to Ayres – Dingo. Douglas flew to the rock – huge ranches – Sarah Henderson made lunch. Her daughter made lovely large Pav – Darwin – sale yards – sold to overseas – taken to Asia. Alice Springs – Ayers Rock Village – power cut – meal affected – drinks and savouries for flight passengers included Margaret. Climbing the rock – rope and rail – shoes not suitable – walked round the rock – people had fallen – medals for those that reached the top

Track 25

Aborigines lived not far. Cindy Chamberlain. Home in bus – air balloons – camels. Radio station – museum – wartime messages send from here – Aborigine children taught English - mixed tribes – rock paintings – kangaroo – gun – turtles. A spiritual being. Camels (sat on one) – races – shop kangaroo pie – paintings purchased. Used sticks to paint – baskets – grubs – spears. Northern Territory to Adelaide – stayed on a station – children had a teacher living there. Radio telephone – dryed up lake – cattle branded – aeroplane to go shopping – 6,000 acres – underground water pumped up.

Track 26

Cairns – cattle farming – snake – train – 13 carriages – tunnels – coral reefs – boat – flew to Brisbane and home. 2000 – Douglas had a fall – sinews torn – had cancer – 6 years of treatment – George home on farm. Golden Wedding the year before Douglas died. Sandra Accountant – Dunedin Council – married Bruce – both Accountants – Sandra – Tower Health

Track 27

Trip to Scotland with Sandra – to grandparent places. Business exec? Sandra passed away 2012. Coming to Waihopai Street – happy there. George happy on the farm – Warren happy with George – joined Windsor church – activities there – U3A – great topics on Fridays – Sports Southland – croquet. Grandchildren names