Community Contributed

Foxton 1888 - 1988 Foreword

Kete Horowhenua2020-03-23T16:52:48+00:00
History may seem to be just a chronicle of past events and so there is a natural tendency to look upon those events as something which just 'happened'!

How wrong! Apart from natural disasters, it is PEOPLE who make things happen and the editor of this First 100 Years of Foxton Borough, Mr Tony Hunt, has done a commendable job of associating 'happenings' with the people who brought it all about, making this book alive in its warmth of appreciation for readers.

The historian is firstly reliant on the surviving records of the day which tend to deal largely with the famous or the infamous and to ignore many of the lesser lights of bygone days who in their own way were equally, if not more, important in their contribution to what is now our heritage. Only countless hours of dedicated sifting, digging, ques­tioning, brings to light the human touch in anecdotes or recollections by children and grandchildren which give a real insight into the lives and times of those who have gone before us and so, the writing of this past 100 years has been a daunting task by any standards. A labour of love, well done.

To those whose early roots lay in Foxton, the experience will be one of pride in the reading of this contribution to our knowledge which not only records the past, but more importantly recognises those who, in their own way, made it all happen at all levels of the society they served, in the days of their lives.

May we never forget the debt of gratitude we owe to our forbears and ever be stimulated by their example.

Robert Fraser MAYOR 1988.