H0627 Selwyn Philip Fosbender

Interviewer: Cathy Macfie

Date: 3 October 2023

Abstracter: Maree Haggerty

TRACK 1

00.0 Introduction

TRACK 2

00.00 Joseph and Elizabeth Fosbender, Selwyn’s GRANDPARENTS, came out from GERMANY and settled on Bay Road. Selwyn’s father reported he was born there. Selwyn does not recall how many children there were, but that ‘there was quite a few of them.’ They then moved to NEW RIVER FERRY on the ORETI RIVER where they set up the NEW RIVER FERRY HOTEL. It was right by where the bridge is today. Back in these horse and draught days, the ferry was the main mode of transport to get across the river. They would wait at the ferry, until the tide went down, then go around ORETI BEACH as it was to the ‘main road’ to RIVERTON. The grandparents looked after the travellers.

01.20 Selwyn was not sure but believes there was ‘some sort of a row went on’, where his grandfather threw himself in the river, and died. This was recorded in the diaries (his father’s). The sons tried to save him but believe he may not have wanted to be saved.

01.50 The sons then spread out amongst the district buying land. One of them owned land where FOSBENDER PARK is now, at OTATARA.

02.00 Selwyn’s father leased land at SANDY POINT from the council (presumed). He used to farm this land, along with the land Selwyn lives on, with cattle and sheep. He had a hut down at SANDY POINT and went between each location. He rode around most of SOUTHLAND buying cattle and he would drive them home on horseback.

TRACK 3

00.01 Interviewer describes what the hut that Selwyn’s father stayed in looked like from a photo supplied by Selwyn as being ‘a very basic timber shed’. Selwyn’s father would go down and stay for a couple of days before returning to ‘the hill’ (current location). Stock was shifted between both places. He was a great dealer in cattle, this is how he would have made his money.

00.39 Selwyn’s current residence was first owned by his father. Unsure of the builder’s name, but it would have been built prior to, or in the early 1900s. Selwyn’s father was the youngest of the children. The uncles all farmed in the district.

01.30 Selwyn’s father would buy the cattle, bring them back and fatten them up to on sell and make his money. He would travel around SOUTHLAND by horse back with a cart/gig. In a diary entry from 1909, his father recorded he ‘drove to town’, with no description of what the vehicle was.

02.02 When Selwyn’s father was courting his first wife, he would pick her up and head down to SEAWOOD BUSH or down to BLUFF, travelling quite a distance.

02.21 There is a photo of his father with a horse and foal. He believes he breed the horses himself based on this. Selwyn remembers one of the neighbours telling him a story about his father stallion. Explains. Selwyn believes his father was one of the best horsemen around.

03.16 His father would go inland to DIPTON and WAIAU, anywhere up country where he could get cattle. He would also go to AWARUA BAY and down to GREENHILLS. His father did a big muster for Bill Boyd who used to farm at GREENHILLS, at the time of year they built the health camp down there. He recalls a story his father told him about mobbing up all these cattle with a bull that was giving him trouble. Explains.

05.02 When travelling around SOUTHLAND as a Stockman buying the cattle, his father would pay six pound a head for them and sell them for eight. He would buy sheep over at the sale yards, which were run by the McKenzie’s. Selwyn was recently talking to Jim McKenzie who remembered Selwyn’s father coming into see his dad. Explains. The cattle would be driven back to the farm at NEW RIVER FERRY, distance was no object.

06.20 He also went to BILL HOLMS at WAIMAHAKA. Selwyn had tried to find in his father’s diary, where his father and uncles had masted a mob of cattle over SOUTHLAND and brought them back to ‘here’. Explains. His father was still riding horses at 86 when he died. Selwyn remembers his father would roll up a sack and put it across the front saddles, this then became Selwyn’s perch until he bought Selwyn a pony. Explains.

07.55 Selwyn recalls he was always with his father, whether it was going to town in the Chev or sitting on the saddle on the rolled-up sack. If there was something playing up in the cattle department in the paddock in the rough block, he would get put on a tussock by his father and told to ‘stay there until it was sorted out.’ Or he would be ‘sat up’ on a high post and told the same thing. His father was never short of a manuka stick.

TRACK 4

00.00 Discussion turns to Selwyn’s father’s marriages. The first wife was JEAN [MARY JANE] ANDREWS who lived in town. Many evenings were spent taking Jean out for drives in the gig, an example was going down to AWARUA BAY and driving around there. Another place they used to go to was SEAWARD BUSH. Jean was of ill health, Selwyn’s father looked after her ‘pretty well’ by making sure she got medical attention in hospital. They got married around early 1900 (exact date unknown). There were no children from that marriage. One of the entries in his father’s diary was ‘get ready for the marrying,’ next day was ‘got married.’ They then caught the train from INVERCARGILL to KINGSTON; they jumped on the boat and went up to QUEENSTOWN for the afternoon. Selwyn is unsure when Jean passed [28 Apr 1948].

01.32 Selwyn’s dad stayed on at the family home as a single man before meeting Selwyn’s mother and marrying. He always had a watch and chain which had a policeman’s whistle on the end, in his pocket of his waistcoat when they went to town. Selwyn shares a memory of going into the bedroom when his father was getting ready to go to town, he would open his wallet up and give Selwyn threepence for an ice cream, he did not need to ask. He would show Selwyn the policeman’s whistle and share a story about blowing it outside the POST OFFICE and ‘his mother came running.’ The story was that he would give it to Selwyn when he passed. Selwyn’s mum would go ‘crook at him’ for fIlling Selwyn up with ‘a load of nonsense.’

02.22 Selwyn’s mum name was ESMA EDNA MOFFAT. Esma was brought up in TWEED STREET where Carson’s Panel Beating is now, at the bottom of the overbridge. Selwyn thinks she went to MIDDLE SCHOOL and then ST JOSEPHS. After she left school, she worked in the BROWN OWL RESTAURANT in town. From there she moved to DUNEDIN, working in various restaurants as a waitress. She worked for the Barling’s who owned the SAVOY RESTAURANT. They were very well-to-do people that lived at GLENFALLOCH on the road to PORTOBELLO in a beautiful home.

03.22 Esma then came back to INVERCARGILL getting a job as a housekeeper with Claude Capell, at HAWEA, who owned a ‘stop-over sort of place’. There was not much at HAWEA in those days. Selwyn is not sure where his dad met Esma, apart from the affectionate story regarding the policeman’s whistle. Following the marriage, Selwyn was born as the only child. Selwyn thinks there may have been a daughter that was ‘lost’ before birth. Selwyn’s dad was seventy-six when he was born, he was still very active. Selwyn reflects on how good his parents’ relationship was, that they never fought. Esma was an outdoor person as well and liked being out on the farm. Selwyn remembers her being on a horse a few times, but not a lot.

05.07 Selwyn shares a story about the use of tractor following the death of the old draught horse and the use of the Chev car on the farm. Explains.

TRACK 5

00.00 Men would come and work on the farm, but not permanent. Selwyn talks about a community at SANDY POINT that his father visited to get men to work on the farm. They would drink CABBAGE TREE WINE and get up to a lot of ‘shenanigans.’ One was Tom Scott, and another George Prinz. Selwyn thinks Prinz was a boxer from Australia, he would fight for money and always win, they then bought more grog. Selwyn is not exactly sure where they camped, it would have been a pretty basic existence. In addition, some neighbours and brothers would come and help in the early days. The details are from the diary’s, before Selwyn’s time.

01.56 When Selwyn was little, his dad was ‘pretty much’ self-sufficient with the help from his mum. She was a ‘dab hand’ at driving in staples on posts. Being an outdoor lady, she was quite happy to be out of the house helping, whether it be picking up firewood, fencing or shifting sheep. Explains.

02.49 When they had time off, they would go to RIVERTON to the beach, anywhere where there was water, because Selwyn’s father loved swimming. He was still swimming in his eighties. Selwyn himself was terrified as he watched his dad bobbing around out the back of the breakers wearing an old pair of suit trousers as a bathing suit. Explains. His father knew every inch of the beach; they would drive around the beach passing through the WAIMATUKU at low tide to arrive at RIVERTON in either the Morris Minor or the Chev. Explains.

04.47 Reflection on the how the diary plays a significant part, although hard to read, with a few gaps, his father did list most things. The entries start in about 1909. His father was never still, he was always doing something. Explains.

06.01 Selwyn was 10 years old when his father died in 1964. Selwyn reflects on how much his dad meant to him, with the memories of him being so vivid. He remembers his mum coming to him on the night he passed away, waking him, putting her hand on his shoulder to say, ‘I think your father has passed away.’ When he woke up in the morning there were many people in the house, including the police, the priest, and Selwyn’s Godparents.

06.43 Selwyn recalls a memory of his father going missing one night when he was about eight years old, and the police were called out to find him. Explains. He was found down by the mouth of the WAIKIWI STREAM.

TRACK 6

00.00 Discussion changes to Selwyn’s schooling. He was educated at ST JOSEPHS, initially being driven by his mother, and then travelling by bus. He then went to MARIST on Tay Street which was a joint primary and secondary school at the same location. The first year at the secondary school was in Tay Street. Then they built the new VERDON COLLAGE out at Rockdale Road. Selwyn was a first day pupil here, at the brand-new school.

01.14 Selwyn had holiday and weekend jobs at neighbours’ farms, driving tractors etc. At 16 years of age, his mother could see Selwyn was not enjoying school. She took him into BITUMEN DISTRIBUTORS on Mercy Street. She told him to ‘call everyone Mister.’ She introduced him to Mr Chisom, who said, ‘he isn’t very big’ and his mother replied, ‘but he can work.’ Mr Chisom responded with ‘that is what we want here, leave him with me.’ He was the most bumptious person he has ever met, but a good boss.

02.27 Selwyn remembers going out to MAKAREWA in a van with a Peter Fahey, to a road construction job, out near the school. He goes on to explain meeting Tommy Warnick and his hat with Tommy Traffic on it, he had previously worked for Selwyn’s father during the depression on a scheme for digging ditches on farms, called the FOUR B’S SCHEME. Explains.

04.10 At 18 years of age Selwyn got his HT (Heavy Traffic) License, he started driving machinery, trucks, carting gravel all over Southland. He worked seasonally for a tar selling gang, tar selling many roads in Southland including the Milford Airstrip (when new), and roads in MANAPOURI and TE ANAU, including the road up to the dam.

05.11 Selwyn shares a story about a traffic cop that would come to where he was working at MAKAREWA and hide his vehicle amongst the work machinery to catch drivers going over 20mph. He got talking to him (Lieutenant Ray Mills) one day and he suggested during the off-season Selwyn could look at joining the ARMY, he gave Selwyn the name of a person to talk to at the Army Drill Hall, a ‘chap Whitaker.’ Explained. He joined the ARMY, doing base training in BURNHAM. Because Selwyn was a small fella, they gave him ‘a bit of stick,’ but they always looked after him.

TRACK 7

00.00 Selwyn was with the TERRITORIAL ARMY between 10-15 years part time with the rank of CORPORAL. He attended an annual six-week camp, trips around Southland and one to FIJI. He had to learn to iron and wash, if you were not up to standard you ‘paid for it on parade.’ Explains. He reflects that this was one of the better times of his life, teaming up with a crowd of guys that had your back. He never regretted joining only giving it up to take over the farm. 01.42 Talks about having good mates at BITUMEN DISTRIBUTORS. He then worked at the FREEZING WORKS, ALLIANCE LORNEVILE PLANT, starting on the slaughter board as a labourer, tying tickets for the Graders. When a new beef house was built, he worked there, as it was better pay and less hours which worked in, as he still had the farm to run. Heck McCulloch was the boss, he also gibed about Selwyn stature. Selwyn worked there for about 18 years until it was closed, stating it was the best place he ever worked. Explains.

05.32 After the beef house, he then went to the fellmongery on night shift, he ‘didn’t think much of that’. After having an operation on a shoulder injury, he returned to work on light duties. The guy that ran the light duties department, knew Selwyn from the ‘beef house days’ and offered him a job in the pet food area. Explains.

07.22 Selwyn left the works just before retiring age. Explains.

TRACK 8

00.00 Interviewer prompts discussion about the farm. Selwyn still resides in the same property he was bought up in. Following Selwyn’s fathers passing, his mum remained there until her passing at the age of eighty from cancer. She loved the place, doing a lot of work on the farm, having a lovely garden and fruit trees.

01.04 By this stage Selwyn had built a home across the paddock keeping an eye on his mum and bringing up his own family of seven children, six girls and one boy. His mum loved her grandchildren and enjoyed them being so close. Following the breakup of his marriage he decided he wanted to shift back onto the family land where he was brought up. After his mothers passing, the house had become ‘somewhat derelict.’ He demolished the old house, cleared the grounds, and built himself a new home after selling his own farm to finance it. He plans to remain there for the remainder of his own life. He now leases some of the farm out and runs a few sheep and cattle to keep himself and his children interested. Selwyn is happy with what he is doing, finding retirement ‘great.’ The original home Selwyn owned, he sold to one of his daughters. Currently two others have already built and live on subdivided sections, with another one waiting to do the same. Selwyn enjoys his grandchildren being so close and now also has a great grandchild.

03.47 Interviewer reflects on how lovely the view is from the window, with Selwyn confirming that it has hardly changed over the years. The best part of it is that Selwyn himself was brought up there and it is where his father and uncles farmed in the same area, sentimentality comes into it. Selwyn reflects on the age of his father and feels he would have liked to have had more time ‘to have grown up with him and help him farm.’ Many of his fathers’ brothers farmed out in that area along with their mum and dad (Selwyn’s grandparents). It is a special place to Selwyn, holding many memories.

END OF INTERVIEW