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Abstract of Peter William HAYES, 2020

 Item — Box: 31
Identifier: H02180002

Abstract

Peter William Hayes

Interviewer: Jane Craske

Abstracter: Gil Berg

Interview: 14 August 2014

DISC 1: TRACK 1

00.00 Interview identification

00.33 PETER WILLIAM HAYES born in 1936

01.10 Interview agreement

01.49 Born on their property at WAIKAWA

02.05 Mother from QUARRY HILLS

02.17 Father born on the WAIKAWA property.

02.30 Father worked in saw mills when not on the farm. Father had farm quite young. Explains

03.08 Mother was ELIZABETH SHETLAND born and brought up in QUARRY HILLS south of TOKANUI went to school at TOKANUI. She was a school teacher

03.49 Brother JACK was older than Peter and married BEVERLEY (Peter’s Wife) sister RUTH.

04.23 Started going to school at NIAGARA and walked or biked 1 mile to (?) Corner. ALF EGO was his first teacher then ERIC BARGEY who taught there before the war and came back after serving in the AIR FORCE. An excellent teacher. Describes

06.15 Played RUGBY most of his life and a bit of cricket at school.

06.39 Attended SOUTHLAND TECHNICAL COLLEGE and boarded with an aunt through the week. Explains.

07.51 Involved in an ORCHESTRA. Played the fiddled. Describes.

08.36 Father played the fiddle for local send offs to war, any musical events, dances etc. Learnt from father. Explains

09.59 Beverley’s mother played the violin and played together with Peter’s father.

10.23 LESEL (?) HALDANE vamped on the piano. Explains

10.58 Left school at 15 years old after going to tech and learning engineering type stuff. and returned to work on the farm. Went sharing before he was 15 and did this between farming. His brother taught him Machines were just coming on stream and prior to that blade shares were used. Details

End of Track 1

Track 2

00.02 Brother was a better shearer and went to shearing school and shore around the district. Explains

01.17 To get around the farm Peter either walked or went on a horse. It’s steep country. Got motor bikes lately.

01.46 The Farm is in PROGRESS VALLEY originally 300 acres then brought more off of the HALDANE’S and more at LONG BEACH on CHASLANDS ROAD. Describes

03.07 Had to develop land, fencing, clearing 100 acres of bush. Explains

04.30 Farmed sheep and cattle. Crossbred ROMNEY/CHEVIOT and the cattle were a mixture but mostly HEREFORD SHORTHORNS for beef. Explains

06.45 Met BEVERLEY when they were teenagers and have 4 children.

07.32 When first married lived in older house on property. Mother was still alive when they married and died aged 83. Father died of Lung Cancer in his 50’s. He worked at the mill at PROGRESS VALLEY until he took ill. PETER and BEVERLEY ran the farm and his mother remained on the farm.

09.04 Didn’t do national service as to young.

09.11 When going to school roads weren’t to bad. 1 mile out to the main highway. School teacher ran the school bus for a few years.

10.15 MUSIC was around him from birth through his family. Explains

11.00 Started playing the BAG PIPES when at Tech and went to CUTHBERT SELBY to learn in INVERCARGILL.

12.03 Also played GUITAR when he left school.

12.25 STEVEN (son) started playing the guitar and they started playing at parties and dances. Where the POSSUM PICKERS started. Explains

14.08 Played at the GOLD GUITARS and won ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR IN AUCKLAND. Went to TAMWORTH in AUSTRALIA once.

End of Track 2

Track 3

00.07 Went to TAMWORTH 1983 or 1984

00.23 Still playing with the POSSUM PICKERS. Singing mostly. Explains

01.03 MUSIC genre COUNTRY AND WESTERN orientated but a mixture not always strictly COUNTRY AND WESTERN.

01.25 LOCAL DANCES and learning the words for the GRAND MARCH. Explains

03.38 CHARLIE LAMB (?) lived in QUARRY HILLS married to an AUNT MARGARET SHETLAND who was his MOTHER’S SISTER.

04.53 Explains how to do the GRAND MARCH at dances.

05.47 Keen FISHERMAN. TROUT in the river then to the ESTUARY and then out to SEA. Catching SEA RUN TROUT. Went fishing with WATTIE STRONACH. Explains

07.29 Started fishing in Fortrose with BOB LAMB and was joined by JIM MCKENZIE from SEAWOOD DOWNS. Fished mainly from a boat. Explains

09.02 If he got a decent fish bigger than 6-7 pounds would stuff it.

09.37 Went fishing at STEWART ISLAND with ERNIE HOPKINS and RICH (?) BRADSHAW who married a girl FARLEY whose family owned the SAWMILL at PROGRESS VALLEY.

10.57 Played RUGBY for SOUTHERN STAR. Played front row prop.

11.58 Played for SOUTHLAND 1959 – 1961 at RUGBY PARK

12.59 LIFE MEMBER with TOKONUI RUGBY.

13.37 WAIKAWA ROVERS RUGBY that FATHER and FATHER-IN-LAW played in. Describes

End of Track 3

Track 4

01.03 Use of tractors and working of the land. Used a Model M tractor. Explains

04.30 Winding up interview.

End of Track 4

Dates

  • 2020

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Extent

From the Record Group: 1 folder(s)

Language of Materials

From the Record Group: English

Creator

Repository Details

Part of the Southland Oral History Project Repository