Abstract of Walter EXCELL, 2021
Item — Box: 45
Identifier: H04510002
Overview
Interviewee: Walter Excell
Interviewer: David Van Tongeren
Abstracter: Unknown
PLEASE NOTE: THE TIMINGS IN THIS ABSTRACT RELATE TO THE ORIGINAL TAPE VERSION OF THE RECORDING AND NOT TO THE DIGITIZED VERSION
Recorded: 7th September 1994
Side A
00.13 Introduction MR WALTER EXCELL, LEET STREET, INVERCARGILL
00.44 Mother’s name: MARGARET YOUNGSON, a farmer’s daughter and tailoress
00.64 Father’s name: WALTER EXCELL (SNR)
00.97 Sisters: MARGARET AND JOYCE
01.12 Brothers: ERNIE, GEORGE, ALBERT (SQUIB), ALF
01.25 Educated AT NIGHTCAPS, OHAI (LITTLE WAIRAKI SCHOOL), SOUTHLAND BOYS HIGH SCHOOL (CONON STREET) and (HERBERT STREET), DUNEDIN TEACHERS TRAINING COLLEGE
01.77 Sole charge TEACHER in small country schools. Taught in ten small primary schools in SOUTHLAND as a relieving teacher
01.86 Bought up in NIGHTCAPS and OHAI
01.96 Joined unemployed miners and went down to BLUE CLIFFS to fish for flounders. Found it more profitable to sell flounders locally TUATAPERE. He was the deerstalker among them. They lived on flounders, venison and potatoes
02.13 Taught in full-time position at HAMILTON BURN SCHOOL
02.26 Courting a girl called MARY FORBES who later became his wife
02.34 Dismissed from teaching when war came along and he became a conscientious objector
02.38 Sentenced by the COURT to “detention for the duration”. For keeping a diary he was transferred to WAIKUNE PRISON”
02.59 Got married in 1938 to MARY FORBES in FIRST CHURCH
02.97 Released from prison in 1946 he was de-barred from teaching in state schools because of his being a conscientious objector
03.03 Worked as a trucker in the BLACK DIAMOND mine until mine was worked out
03.21 Started work in a mine at WAIRAKI
03.56 Took a position in WANGANUI as a TEACHER at “Friends School”
03.70 Moved back to INVERCARGILL and got a position teaching at SOUTHLAND TECHNICAL COLLEGE
03.92 Belongs to NZ FOREST AND BIRD SOCIETY
04.30 Relieving teacher at TOKANUI, staying at HAGAN’S BOARDING HOUSE (tells tale of BOB the drover)
04.56 Detonating Fish – ERNIE and I decided to try something different, fishing with electric detonators
End of side A
Start of side B
00.05 WAIRAKI MINE dug under the township of OHAI, buildings started falling down
00.23 Mine horse falls down mine
00.34 Was a TEACHER at the time the LINTON MINE blew up (tells of accident and what caused it)
00.71 Deer hunting at TEANAU in 1940s
01.00 Punt over the WAIAU RIVER not a bridge
01.70 Boating up DUSKY, DOUBTFUL and MILFORD SOUNDS.
02.65 MOSSBURN – DUNROBIN. Very heavy snow in those days – tells of snow raking
02.83 Sent friend in AUCKLAND a letter on which he wrote “this envelope has been soaked in 5gm of pure SOUTHLAND water which may be recovered by sucking the envelope.”
03.07 GAVIN BRIGHTON – the story of the “first and only train holdup in SOUTHLAND”
03.36 NURSE SARAH WATT – the story of the “triplet lambs”
03.56 WALTER EXCELL (snr) the story of the “local carrier and WALTER”
03.78 WALTER EXCELL (snr) the story of the “hairdresser and the gold”
03.94 WALTER EXCELL (snr) the story of “Judas and the dunny tin”
End of side B
Interviewer: David Van Tongeren
Abstracter: Unknown
PLEASE NOTE: THE TIMINGS IN THIS ABSTRACT RELATE TO THE ORIGINAL TAPE VERSION OF THE RECORDING AND NOT TO THE DIGITIZED VERSION
Recorded: 7th September 1994
Side A
00.13 Introduction MR WALTER EXCELL, LEET STREET, INVERCARGILL
00.44 Mother’s name: MARGARET YOUNGSON, a farmer’s daughter and tailoress
00.64 Father’s name: WALTER EXCELL (SNR)
00.97 Sisters: MARGARET AND JOYCE
01.12 Brothers: ERNIE, GEORGE, ALBERT (SQUIB), ALF
01.25 Educated AT NIGHTCAPS, OHAI (LITTLE WAIRAKI SCHOOL), SOUTHLAND BOYS HIGH SCHOOL (CONON STREET) and (HERBERT STREET), DUNEDIN TEACHERS TRAINING COLLEGE
01.77 Sole charge TEACHER in small country schools. Taught in ten small primary schools in SOUTHLAND as a relieving teacher
01.86 Bought up in NIGHTCAPS and OHAI
01.96 Joined unemployed miners and went down to BLUE CLIFFS to fish for flounders. Found it more profitable to sell flounders locally TUATAPERE. He was the deerstalker among them. They lived on flounders, venison and potatoes
02.13 Taught in full-time position at HAMILTON BURN SCHOOL
02.26 Courting a girl called MARY FORBES who later became his wife
02.34 Dismissed from teaching when war came along and he became a conscientious objector
02.38 Sentenced by the COURT to “detention for the duration”. For keeping a diary he was transferred to WAIKUNE PRISON”
02.59 Got married in 1938 to MARY FORBES in FIRST CHURCH
02.97 Released from prison in 1946 he was de-barred from teaching in state schools because of his being a conscientious objector
03.03 Worked as a trucker in the BLACK DIAMOND mine until mine was worked out
03.21 Started work in a mine at WAIRAKI
03.56 Took a position in WANGANUI as a TEACHER at “Friends School”
03.70 Moved back to INVERCARGILL and got a position teaching at SOUTHLAND TECHNICAL COLLEGE
03.92 Belongs to NZ FOREST AND BIRD SOCIETY
04.30 Relieving teacher at TOKANUI, staying at HAGAN’S BOARDING HOUSE (tells tale of BOB the drover)
04.56 Detonating Fish – ERNIE and I decided to try something different, fishing with electric detonators
End of side A
Start of side B
00.05 WAIRAKI MINE dug under the township of OHAI, buildings started falling down
00.23 Mine horse falls down mine
00.34 Was a TEACHER at the time the LINTON MINE blew up (tells of accident and what caused it)
00.71 Deer hunting at TEANAU in 1940s
01.00 Punt over the WAIAU RIVER not a bridge
01.70 Boating up DUSKY, DOUBTFUL and MILFORD SOUNDS.
02.65 MOSSBURN – DUNROBIN. Very heavy snow in those days – tells of snow raking
02.83 Sent friend in AUCKLAND a letter on which he wrote “this envelope has been soaked in 5gm of pure SOUTHLAND water which may be recovered by sucking the envelope.”
03.07 GAVIN BRIGHTON – the story of the “first and only train holdup in SOUTHLAND”
03.36 NURSE SARAH WATT – the story of the “triplet lambs”
03.56 WALTER EXCELL (snr) the story of the “local carrier and WALTER”
03.78 WALTER EXCELL (snr) the story of the “hairdresser and the gold”
03.94 WALTER EXCELL (snr) the story of “Judas and the dunny tin”
End of side B
Dates
- 2021
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Extent
From the Record Group: 1 folder(s)
Language of Materials
English
Creator
- From the Record Group: Van Tongeren, David (Interviewer, Person)
Repository Details
Part of the Southland Oral History Project Repository
