Monday, September 08, 2008
I’m really pleased to be here today to help launch Valleys and Bays.
Valley and Bays is a welcome addition to the written history of Hutt City, and it’s appropriate that we should launch the book in Petone, an area with a rich history. As most of you will know, it was just a short distance from here where the very first European settlers to New Zealand were welcomed ashore at Petone beach by local Maori, nearly 170 years ago.
It’s also appropriate that we host the launch here at the Petone Community Library – the new home of the city’s New Zealand, Local and Family History collections.
Valleys and Bays is an important contribution to the knowledge and understanding of our city’s history, and I want to congratulate its author, Alison Carey, who has clearly put in an enormous amount of time and energy into researching and writing it.
Most people will be aware of the history of street names like Percy Dowse Drive and who Percy Dowse is, but not of the many other streets across our city.
More often than not streets commemorate people, including famous writers, local and national politicians, explorers, military leaders, or local families or developers, as well as the city’s historical links to Maori. Unfortunately for most, while the name remains, the history behind it is now forgotten.
As a long-time resident of Hutt City who has moved around our fair city a bit, I have found it fascinating to learn the history behind the names of the streets I have lived on.
This book is useful - not only useful, but an important tool. I say important because it is vital for this history to be documented and remembered for it promotes pride in our heritage, in our place and our identity.
It is pleasing to note the support from the Lower Hutt Historical Society, as well as the historical societies of Eastbourne, Petone and Wainuiomata, in the publication of Valleys and Bays. It is highly symbolic of the way the city has come together since amalgamation, and I thank them for protecting, preserving and promoting Hutt City’s heritage.
Many others have made valuable contributions to the book and I thank them also.
The Council, too, is proud to have put its support behind the book.
Ladies and gentlemen, Valleys and Bays is a wonderful history of our street names and the people, stories, and events for which they are named. Anyone who wants to learn about the history of their community will love this book - I know I do.
It is now my pleasure to formally launch Valleys and Bays with my congratulations to Alison Carey.