Keeping in Touch – Post & Telegraph at Pukerua Bay

During the construction of the railway tunnels between 1884 to 1886 up to 400 men were employed at any one time by Samuel Brown the contractor. Many of the men lived at Pukerua in what was known as “the railway camp” or “Brown’s camp”. They lived in tents, whares and huts or stayed in “boarding houses”, which were probably just tents with wooden floors.

In September 1884 a Post Office and Post Office Savings Bank were established at Pukerua with John Laughton, the works manager, as postmaster. Many men had spent all of their first pay on alcohol and were absent the next day. Samuel Brown announced that from then on anyone absent after pay day would be dismissed and he advised workers to make use of the Savings Bank. This advice was heeded and there were no more absences following pay day. Laughton encouraged workers to save and on one occasion over £300 was deposited by Pukerua workmen into the Savings Bank. Once construction was completed the post and savings facilities were closed.

A telephone line was put in by the Wellington and Manawatu Railway Company. In 1885 this telephone was used to give news to Wellington of the tunnel tragedy in 1885 and to summon a doctor. (Evening Star, 26 January 1885, p4) In 1886 the W&MRC extended the telephone line to Longburn. At 90 miles long it was at that time regarded as the longest telephone line in Australasia. (Manawatu Standard, 29 April 1886, p3)

Horace and Norma Ames settled in Pukerua after their marriage in 1906. Horace continued with farm work and Norma set up the Pukerua Cash Store. A post office soon became part of the cash store. Known as the Waimapihi Post Office it opened on 11 July 1919 with Winifred Bullock, the wife of a railway porter, as the postmistress. Her initial salary was £3 a year. In 1921 Norma Ames took over as Postmaster and at this time the New Zealand Gazette announced the name change from Waimapihi Post Office to Pukerua Post Office.

In early 1923 a new train service began between Wellington and Palmerston North. This service quickly took the name Field’s Express after the Member of Parliament for Otaki, W.H. Field. He had been a staunch advocate for a cheaper and better rail service for the district. The train departed Palmerston North at 6.35am and Wellington at 6pm. The train stopped at every one of the 24 intervening stations and the journey took nearly four hours. Most importantly there was a posting box in the guard’s van at the rear of the train. This was the quickest way to post letters and mail was sorted in the guard’s van for delivery along the route. The New Zealand Gazette published the annual allowance for collecting the mail bag from the Pukerua Bay railway station. In 1923 Horace Ames received £12 per year for making the twice daily walk, a total of four miles per day. However, the mail bag was regularly thrown off the train as it passed the Ames homestead. (Personal communication: Bert D’Ath 2006).

The 1922 Dominion newspaper carried the following story:

Telephones and Mails: Needs of the Country;  P. and T.* Estimates Before The House; The Backblock Settlers

Mr. W. H. Field (Otaki) asked the Government to reduce telephone charges in the country districts. He pointed to the disparity between the low charges in the cities, where the telephone facilities were great, and the high charges in the country, where facilities were small. Mr. Field asked that special consideration should be given to growing country towns, such as Pukerua, which had neither road nor telephone communication. (Dominion, 16 September 1922, p6)

*P. and T. – Post and Telegraph

The Dominion on 24 January 1923 followed up with this story:

TELEPHONE OFFICE FOR PUKERUA BAY

The Postmaster-General (Hon. J. G. Coates has written as follows to Mr. W. H. Field, M.P.:—ln reference to your letter of September 16 in regard to the desire for the opening of a telephone office at Pukerua Bay. I have the honour to inform you that authority has been given for the opening of an office as desired, and that the work will be carried out as soon as possible, having in view other similar works. (Dominion 24, January 1923, p5)

The telephone office was opened on 22 May 1923 to send and receive telegrams via the Plimmerton manual exchange.

By 1925 the post office had postal note, telegraph and telephone facilities. Mrs Violet McKay became the postmistress in December 1928 and she held this office until 1940. She was followed by Mrs Cecilia Rosen, Mrs Isabel Lepper, Mrs Eveline Gilmour and Mrs S.R. Jenkins.

In December 1925, when Charles Gray advertised “63 Splendid Seaside Sections Overlooking Pukerua Bay”, a site for a Post Office was allocated on the corner of what are now Beach and Haunui Roads.

At a meeting of the Progressive Association held at Charles Grey’s house on Saturday 18 March 1933 at 8:00 pm “the desirability of establishing the Post Office at Pukerua Bay in a more satisfactory position was discussed at length.” The committee considered it was in the best interests of the Bay for the Post Office to be more centrally located. However, the rival Pukerua Bay Ratepayers Association had sent a signed petition to the Chief Postmaster against the proposed relocation from Mrs Ames’ store to Lindsay’s store just 300 metres along the road.

The Pukerua News for March 1948 reported that a meeting of the Pukerua Bay Progressive Association had decided to send a deputation to meet the Chief Postmaster to obtain the best possible postal facilities for the Bay. In April the deputation reported that “providing suitable accommodation could be found for postal facilities, (except letter deliveries) would be provided for the district. Applications for the position of Officer in Charge will be received by the department. It was hoped that residents will take full advantage of the facilities to be provided.”

On 24 June 1948 the Post Office and Money Order Savings Bank with a full-time postmistress was opened in the empty storeroom at the shop owned by Mr A. K. Lindsay. The telephone exchange was in the Post Office.

The 1948 Pukerua News carried this item:

New Post Office Opened                                                                                                                                                                  The new Pukerua Bay Post Office was opened for business on Thursday, June 24. During the day business was brisk, and there is no doubt that the Postmistress (Mrs D. Smith) will have her time fully occupied. Mr Lane, Postmaster at Plimmerton, considers this Post Office, for its size, to be the most compact and attractive he had seen for some time. Post Office hours are: Monday-Friday 9am to 5pm. Saturday, 9am to 11.30am. It is anticipated that sorting will be done by 9.30 daily. Telephone facilities would be provided. It would also be possible to make telephone calls after hours from Mrs Smith’s residence. (Pukerua News, July 1948)

On the same page, the Pukerua News also reported, “Some residents are under the impression that the Post Office has been taken over by Lindsay’s Store. This is incorrect, and we wish to state that the P.O. is independent of both local stores.”

In May 1949 the Progressive Association agreed to approach the Chief Postmaster to see if some arrangement could be made for the after-school delivery of telegrams, however the P & T Department said the number of telegrams did not warrant it. (Pukerua News)

Up until 1950 residents collected their mail from the Post Office and so street names and letter boxes were unnecessary. In May 1950 a house-to-house postal delivery began in Pukerua Bay. The Pukerua News reported, “This service was sought by the Progressive Association some time ago without results. The Postal Authorities apparently now consider the increased population warrants the introduction of a daily postal delivery in the Bay. It is suggested that, as there are no numbers on the houses, a letterbox with the name of the householder clearly marked would assist the postman (or postgirl) on the rounds. Residents are advised to await a personal visit from the postman regarding siting of post boxes before erecting them.” (Pukerua News, May 1950)

The main topic at the 5 August 1950 meeting of the Progressive Association was a discussion on ways to increase business at the Post Office. With the introduction of the daily postal delivery the future of the postmistress was threatened. Residents were urged to make use of the Post Office, “so the Bay could retain this long sought-after and generally appreciated amenity”. The Pukerua News added a footnote to the August issue to say, “the Authorities will take no action in removing the Post Office”.

Telephones

In the Local Topics column of the Pukerua News for September 1947 it was reported that, “Telephone facilities have been acquired by several Pukerua Bay residents recently. We understand other connections are to be made in the near future. It is suggested that a public telephone booth would be a great asset locally.”

June 1950 the Progressive Association wrote to the Post and Telegraph Department with a view to obtaining some form of all night telephone service, stressing the need in case of urgent calls for fire brigade or medical aid. Again on 2 February 1952, “as a result of two recent cases of very serious need to telephone Wellington after the Plimmerton Exchange was closed, it was resolved to write to the Postmaster General asking for the public telephone in the Bay to be an all-night service.” The motion was carried unanimously.

Pukerua Bay numbers were listed under the Plimmerton Exchange. These telephone connections were made using a party line. A party line would be shared by up to 10 homes, with each phone assigned a specific ring sound so the correct person would know to pick up the receiver. Everyone heard every ring however so if someone didn’t pick up, the phone would ring until the caller hung up. While party lines meant more homes could have a telephone and more people could be connected, they were also renowned for bringing problems like usage allocation, eavesdropping and endless ringing. or the party line, “enabled us to have three-way conversations, especially handy when we were sorting out our social life.” (Angela Ryan: personal communication 1999)

The following reminiscence was recorded for the 1999 Pukerua Bay Exhibition at Pataka:

Only the post office and local store had a telephone. The first phones introduced to our homes had a ten party and an eight party-line. The phones rang in Morse code our ring was ‘R’ or short-long-short. You had to listen carefully for your ring and if the phone did ring everyone knew who it was for and who was using the phone. Had you lifted your receiver you would of course hear the conversation taking place.

There were two gentlemen who were quite certain that a particular Joe Blogs listened to all conversations as a pastime. They decided to trap him one evening when one Gent rang the other as planned. The conversation developed into a full-blown argument and so absorbed in the argument had our Joe Blogs become he answered ‘Yes’ automatically when one of the gents having the argument said, ‘That’s right isn’t it Joe?’ (Early resident’s reminiscence, Pukerua Bay Exhibition Pataka+Museum 1999)

The post-war development along Rawhiti Road and its adjoining side roads created a building boom in Pukerua Bay, and everyone wanted a telephone connection.

Harry Harrison, later a Postmaster in Plimmerton, recalled the early 1950s, “In the past no one bothered to apply for a phone as there was no chance of a connection. You only got one if somebody relinquished their connection for one reason or another such as leaving the village. When the word got around that a new exchange was on the way the applications came flooding in. We were swamped with them. All the people in PKB who did not have one, wanted one.”

In April 1952 five sites were selected as options for the new telephone exchange. Site 1. was the preferred site but unavailable and so Post & Telegraph opted to purchase site 3 on Muri Road. for £390. The proclamation to take the land was published in the New Zealand Gazette 4 December 1952 p1989.

It was deemed necessary that the building be erected quickly and so the standard type “A” telephone exchange building was approved. On 1 October 1952 the Director General of the Post Office wrote to the Commissioner of Works stating, “the pressure of other urgent jobs and the need to proceed quickly with the Pukerua Bay building it now seems necessary to place the work with a private builder.” It was not until December 1953 that the build of the exchange was completed. The following was released to the Evening Post for publication on 18 December 1953:

Press Statement for Mr J. J. Maher, MP

This is what Pukerua Bay has wanted for a long time – a first-class local telephone system, said Mr J. J. Maher, MP, commenting on the new automatic exchange which was cut into service at Pukerua Bay this afternoon.

Pukerua Bay is a growing settlement in its own right and it is only fitting that it should have its own exchange, said Mr Maher. Up till now the system has been quite out of touch with present-day needs and only a very small minority of the residents has been able to have any telephone service at all.

Now this is all changed. All those in the settlement who want it have a first-class automatic service with the very latest in equipment. An important point, too, with the new exchange is that Pukerua Bay people are no longer restricted to the hours of attendance observed by Plimmerton exchange either for local calls or toll calls. Local calls will be handled automatically and expeditiously day or night, and while Plimmerton will normally be the parent exchange for toll calls, when Plimmerton is closed these calls will be handled by Wellington.

The new Pukerua Bay exchange is serving 115 people, including 36 who used to be on long lines from Plimmerton manual.

So that residents might know what was involved in installing this exchange, Mr Maher mentioned that, apart from the building, 3,200 feet of junction cable and 12,000 feet of subscriber cable had to be laid; 20 circuit miles of aerial wire, 20 cable terminals and 91 poles erected; 59 new houses wired for telephones and 94 new telephones installed.

All this work, together with the equipment installed in the exchange, cost £20,900, said Mr Maher, and for the service Pukerua Bay is now getting it was worth every penny of it. (Blair Collection)

The cost of calls from Pukerua Bay to Wellington was ten pence (10d) and to Plimmerton or Paekakariki, three pence (3d).

At the February 1954 meeting of the Progressive Association:

The Secretary was instructed to write to the Director General Telephone Division asking that a list of new telephone subscribers be supplied to the Plimmerton Post Office. And also to inquire as to the method of communication between Pukerua Bay and the Plimmerton Fire Brigade when the plumbers and telephone exchange was closed.

The response from the Director General was,

The method of communicating with the fire brigade when the Plimmerton exchange was closed, was: Pukerua Bay should dial “0” for toll and ask Wellington operator for the Postmaster Plimmerton – details of the location of the fire should be passed on to the postmaster who will operate the fire siren and inform the Fire Brigade of the whereabouts of the fire. N.B. This service is provided by the postmaster in his private capacity.

In 1955 a request by the Progressive Association for a telephone at Pukerua Bay Railway Station was declined but in 1957 the District Traffic Manager, New Zealand Railways had a change of heart. The Progressive Association responded, “On behalf of the residents of Pukerua Bay, my Association wishes to express its thanks to your department for arranging for the installation of a public telephone at Pukerua Bay Railway Station. Over the past three months, when perishable goods have arrived at the station, the telephone has proved itself a much-valued amenity. Thanking you for your cooperation in this matter.” (Box 126/51 Pataka Art+Museum)

In 1968 the Post Office introduced ‘FREDA’ and Pukerua Bay joined the Flat Rate Extended Dialling Area so it was no longer a toll call to anywhere in Wellington and the Hutt Valley. Pukerua Bay telephone subscribers were allocated 3-digit numbers. With the introduction of free dialling in the Wellington area 399 was added ahead of the three digit number and the prefix 2 added at a later date. However old-time residents often still quote their original 3-digit number to other locals.

In 2011 Pukerua Bay was a town with 500 or more phone lines with a broadband connection between 10Mbps and 20Mbps in reach of local residents. More recently with the introduction of the fibre network many users have opted to keep in touch using their cell phones only and landlines are regarded as old fashioned.

Pukerua Bay Post Office

To cope with further growth in the district a new building for the Post Office was constructed next door to Lindsay’s Store. It was opened on 8 January 1958 and, with the following postmistresses appointed.

Mrs R. Einam               1954

Miss C. M. Wright       1966

Mrs S. M. West           1968

Mrs E. Bailie                1974

There was great excitement in the Bay when the safe at the Post office was blown open.

Two Safes Blown Locally During Weekend

Wellington’s latest safe blowing gang has struck again, blowing open two safes at the weekend. The premises were the Pukerua Bay Post Office and the Nestle’s Company in Ghuznee St. The amount stolen from the Post Office is as yet undisclosed, but the crack men took over £50 from Nestle’s. The police believe it is the same gang which got a sizeable sum from J C Hutton’s in Petone last week. Chief Detective Inspector WS Craigie said, “the Nestle blowing was a good professional job.” The safe-blowers used a carpet from the floor of the manager’s office to deaden the blast. The police think the men are using gelignite stolen from an Island Bay quarry a week ago and some of which was found near Rarora*. With the amount of gelignite still missing, the police are expecting an upsurge in safe blowing. (Evening Post, 26 February 1962)

* Raroa Road, Aro Valley, Wellington.

Street Names and Numbers

Another important issue for residents of the rapidly growing Pukerua Bay was the naming of streets and then the numbering on letterboxes.

The 1964 Annual Report of the Pukerua Bay Progressive Association proposed the renaming of streets on the western side of the Bay. West Street changed to Kapekape Place, Charles Street to Kotipu Place and South Street became a continuation of Rawhiti Road. This necessitated the renumbering of houses starting from the northern end of Rawhiti Road.

It became evident that the Association’s requests to leave the numbers alone was being ignored. Many people wrote individual objections to the county clerk, and the Association arranged for a petition requesting the County Council to reconsider its action. The petition was signed by 80% of the residents of Rawhiti Road.

No official notification was given to say why Donlin Road was not renamed, although it was unofficially understood to be a result of objections by residents living in Donlin Road. Mr Ryder Fletcher, a committee member of the Progressive Association consulted Pererika Tahiwi, an Otaki work colleague, for guidance on the Māori names.

When the new names were formally accepted residents were asked to ensure their letter box was suitable for the purpose and to have their house number displayed. Until numbers were permanently allocated, the name of the occupier needed to be plainly indicated on the letterbox.

The Pukerua Bay Gazette in February 1964 reported that Pukerua Bay mail was being tampered with in various areas of the Bay. It was thought that it was probably children but it was pointed out that “it is a criminal offence to interfere with the mail and children could be brought before the court for this act.” Perhaps it was bored children during the long summer holidays.

Following WWII and the growth of Pukerua Bay on the western side of the highway, the Post Office became an integral part of daily life in the village. It provided a letter, parcel, and telegram service. Toll calls were costly and letter writing was the usual way of keeping in touch. One woman who regularly wrote to her mother in Britain would say to her little daughter when they were at the post box “Post the letter to granny”. The daughter had no concept of time and space as one day she asked, “Does granny like living in there?” Stamp collectors appreciated the care the postmistress took to frank the stamp on a First Day Cover. These are specially printed envelopes with a stamp that has a postmark with the date when stamps of that design were first sold.

Savings Bank

The Post Office Savings Bank facility was an essential part of daily life. In many small towns and rural communities it was the only financial service available. The Social Security Act 1945 introduced a family benefit for each child, regardless of household income. Initially the benefit was not paid for children of unmarried mothers but protests against this led to their inclusion.

The benefit was usually paid directly to the mother’s Post Office Savings Bank account. In 1946 the payment was 10 shillings per week per child (equivalent to $52 in 2024) In 1958, the ‘black’ budget changed the Family Benefit rules to allow families to capitalise future payments into a lump sum amount, up to a maximum of £1,000 per family, to use as a deposit on a house.

As well as mothers collecting their family benefit payment there were also those who were entitled to a widow’s benefit, war veterans’ pension or superannuation and all of these went through the Post Office. The School Savings Bank scheme was introduced in 1934. One day a week was ‘banking day’ at school, the deposit was entered into the pupil’s book and then the cash taken over to the Post Office. In 1982 the Minister of Finance, R. D. Muldoon set the rate of interest applicable to school savings accounts at 10 percent per annum. This was lowered to eight percent in 1982. Saving was also encouraged using a Post Office Savings Bank money box. The first style was like a treasure chest and later in the style of a closed book. These money boxes could only be opened with a key held at the Post Office.

There was excitement at the Post Office to end the 1985 year:

Trio held after armed robbery

Several thousand dollars were taken from the Pukerua Bay Post Office when a lone, elderly woman was held up at gunpoint.

Three men have been charged with aggravated robbery and unlawful possession of a pistol after an armed hold-up at the Pukerua Bay Post Office on New Year’s Eve.

The men, two from Wellington, aged 26 and 29, and one from Wairarapa, aged 23, appeared in the District Court at Wellington on Wednesday and were remanded to Monday.

The arrests were made after a robbery of about $5OOO in cash from the Post Office about 9.45 a.m. on Tuesday. Soon after the robbery a lone constable, Bruce Horne, stopped a utility vehicle in Plimmerton. He discovered two men hiding under a canvas cover in the back of the utility and held them at gunpoint until police reinforcements arrived. Constable Horne said that he radioed for back-up and took a revolver with him from his car, because he knew a firearm was used at the post office. (Press, 3 January 1986)

One man pleaded guilty and the other two were each sentenced to four years jail. At their sentencing the judge noted, “You took the money, a little under $3000, and the postmistress was pushed into a room,” said His Honour. “She apparently suffered no other harm. She wasn’t bound or gagged, but it must have been a distressing incident for her.” The Postmistress was 65.

To make the Post Office more visible from the road the Chief Postmaster wrote to the Commissioner of Works at the Ministry of Works and Development in March 1986 noting, “The regrowth on the trimmed trees and shrubs has now reached the stage where they are again obscuring the office from the road. This situation is not acceptable.” Arrangements were to be made to plant lower growing shrubs.

It was a great loss to the residents of the Bay when the Post Office closed on 5 February 1988. It was one of eight post offices being sold in the Wellington region. It had provided an excellent service but was also a meeting place for many people. It was hoped the building could be converted into a café but access was an insurmountable issue and it became a private home instead.

By Margaret Blair