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Pictures From the Past
This picture was taken on a notable Gisborne day in 1906 when the railway was opened. The man in the bowler hat is D. H. Clayton, father of Mrs H. M. Greig, of Waerenga-a-hika, who sent in the picture, and the tall man is Thomas Todd.
In the days of the silent pictures, orchestras in the pit played appropriate music throughout the programme. In many cases these combinations reached a high standard, and the Palace Theatre in Gisborne (now the Regent) was reputed to have one of the best in the country.
This 1927 picture is from Mr Lewis.
Standing: W. Norman, J. Davies, E. Johnston, W. Firth. Seated: G. Hogan, J. Vita, S. T. Lewis (conductor), H. Langley, R.M.S.M.
Absent: Miss H. Henrikson, J. Marsicano, W. Staines.
There are still a few early Ford cars about, but perhaps none as old as this one. Picture from B. Heikell, Tokomaru Bay, shows early tourists setting off from Tokomaru on a trip to New Plymouth.
In such a car, this must have been a considerable undertaking. But the early "Tin Lizzies", as Henry Ford's mass-production "people's car" was known, earned a high reputation for reliability. And if they did go wrong, almost anybody with a spanner and a screwdriver and a rudimentary knowledge of mechanics was able to fix them.