Dutch Marines from Dutch East Indies

This photo shows the dismantling of Foxton's tram and trolley bus lines in March 2023. First installed as a local development and tourism project by local Ian Little in 1989, trolleys and trams were a familiar site in the town for many years. However, upon Ian's passing in 2012 the service gradually ceased, with the last trolley travelling its route in July 2016. Concerned about the state of the trolley lines, the Horowhenua District Council made the decision to pull them down.  This photograph was taken by Jacob Brookie who used a 1966 Marshal Press camera. These cameras were once the choice of newspaper photographers sent to press stand ups. Jacob stood on Foxton's Main Street opposite the Te Awahou Nieuwe Stroom cultural park. Wharf Street can be seen beyond the two men in the middle ground.

This humorous slide would have been shown during cinema intermission in Foxton. The design may have been a generic one used by many garages (the farmer's language seems more American than local) but the message was loud and clear!  This slide is in a similar style to another Foxton slide, O'Leary and Sons plumbers. Both feature eye  - catching cartoons which show the social embarrassment of not calling 'an expert' to do the job. MAVtech cannot find any record of when Evans & Cooper were operating. However, by the looks of the car the 1950s would be a good estimate. 

Every cinema advertising slide has a story to tell- and the story behind this one has changed a few times! Local businesses loved cinema advertising as it was reasonably priced and could be targeted towards local audiences- this slide would have only screened in Foxton. However, a few of the words on this slide have been edited out with tape. Foxton Motors still does panel beating, welding and engineering but the option of 'Duco Spraying' has been edited out and the breakdown crane service is not longer 'at all hours'. Another stickers shows that the business changed hands to a Mister/Misses 'Woodcock'. Did the new owner get sick of pulling cars out of ditches at 2am in the morning? The Foxton Historical Society shows a garage on Clyde Street as early as c.1909 and a garage is still on the street today. Due to the lack of images on this slide it is hard to date just when it was made.

This photograph was taken on the 15th of October, 2022 when the 21st Supply Company of the 2nd Combat Services Battalion exercised their right to march down Foxton's Main Street in full uniform and with weapons. This right, proven after a ceremonial police challenge, was granted to the Company for their service to the town after the 2004 floods and the RSA clubrooms fire. The morning of the march included an inspection by Mayor Bernie Wanden and an address by senior officers.  Taken by local photographer Jacob Brookie using a 1956 Lipca Rollop Automatic camera- used by keen amateurs in its day. Jacob stood on Foxton's Main Street looking towards the War Memorial Hall.

Who says cinema advertising had to be complicated? This slide, screened at the end of intermission, is as simple as can be! The Foxton Beach Store seemed to be the 'go to' place for everything- but in April 1928 it burned down in a fire. It is not known when this slide was made, but it could easily have been around this date given how simple it is!  A 1950s advertising guidebook stated that the screen advertising business was quite new in New Zealand. One thing the slide does not mention is where the store was located (neither does the report on the fire). However, given how small Foxton is it was probably assumed that everyone knew anyway!

At the end of intermission, just as cinema patrons were settling into their seats, the advertising slides were screened. The job of preparing, screening and storing these slides was usually the job of the apprentice projectionist. During the 'Carbon Arc' projector era (lasting until the 1960s) it took over four years to become a fully qualified projectionist so this was a job you got used to! Each slide was only shown for a few seconds to avoid the glass cracking from the projector lamp's heat. This meant that audiences never got to ask- why does that man have so many chickens on the BBQ? Should he buy a bigger one? How many people does has he invited? Will the meat cook evenly or will everyone get food poisoning? Whatever the answers were he looks very pleased with himself.... With the rise of the supermarket the local butcheries often closed down. We have slides from Foxton and Foxton Beach butchers but neither trade in the towns today. Companies records show that this business was registered on the 20th of June 1975 and was removed from the register on the 15th of June 1993. 

R.N Spiers, who feature in other MAVtech cinema slides as a timber merchant, have been recorded on Foxton's Main Street as far back as 1905 and as recently as the early 1960s. It seems that they also sold ovens as well! The 'Champion Commodore' was named after a senior navy rank (the former Holden car having the same background). A navy officer is seen, slightly out of focus, behind the women in this slide.  'Radiation (N.Z.) Ltd' made whiteware goods  and a 'Champion' range of kitchen appliances  was in stores from the 1920s up until the 1970s according to online records. A price list for Champion stoves from 1961 has been recorded.  The allure of automatic cooking was front and centre with this ad- 'just set it and forget it!'

Before most families had a motor vehicle, getting around by bicycle was as much for transport as it was for exercise. Cochran's Cycles is advertising the Raleigh series of bikes in this slide. Raleigh was formed in 1885 and still makes bicycles today- making it one of the oldest surviving brands in the bike business. Cochran's Cycles had a float in the 1955 Foxton Centennial Parade and this slide would date to around this era.

According to this cinema advertising slide a glass of wine is perfect with every meal! Specialist stores like the 'Wine Cellar' flourished until 1989. That was the year supermarkets could stock wine on their shelves. Beer followed a decade later.  According to a 1981 edition of 'The Chronicle', the Wine Cellar moved into it's building in 1974 after extensions provided the space. Another report shows it still there in 1983. By the 1970s having hand coloured (or dyed) cinema slides was becoming less common. Instead, actual colour photographic transparencies were being sandwiched between two sheets of glass.

R.N Speirs had a big presence in Foxton and MAVtech has a range of cinema advertising slides showing them advertising timber and cooking appliances! This particular slide is advertising an infra-red electric heater. Foxton has plenty of late 19th/early 20th century villas and Foxton Beach is famous for it's batches. Both have plenty of character and charm but not a lot of insulation! A heater would be just the thing during a cold, wintery day.  This slide would date from the 1960s (approximately).

There were many small New Zealand soft drink companies trading in the mid-20th century and it seems that Foxton Fizz had some competition! 'Shamrock' branded soft drinks were made and sold by O'Connor's Cordials and online records suggest that this company was based in Levin. The slide screened during cinema intermission and shows a group of happy children at a birthday party complete with novelty hats! The colour fading out on the slide would have emphasised the Shamrock logo and the contented faces. Shamrock labels have been found dating from the 1950s. This slide comes from the 'Foxton' collection of slides. Rather brave of Shamrock to advertise in Foxton Fizz territory! Foxton's own fizz managed to survive the battle with international soft drink brands (just) but Shamrock didn't live up to it's lucky name and has long since disappeared. 

Whites Radio Service was trading on Foxton's Main Street in 1960 and stayed in it's site as late as 1987 (and possibly later) according to Kete Horowhenua's Foxton Historical Society posts.  There was an earlier radio shop, owned by a Mister R.Cull, on the same site in 1941.  In 1960 there were just over 577,000 New Zealand radio licences in 1960 and this number was just under 700,000 a decade later so Foxton's radio shop must have been very busy indeed! Even when television arrived it was not portable so radio remained competitive.  But this slide, played during cinema intermissions, was not advertising radios. Instead it was advertising records. With the very conservative stewardship of the New Zealand Broadcasting Service (later the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation) Kiwi airwaves didn't feature many of the most daring rock and pop tracks and none of the protest songs sung on university campuses. If you wanted to hear them you needed to buy a copy of your own! Note the 'Disneyland' name on one of the pictured labels. Who said Foxton was missing out on overseas trends in music! MAVtech, the keeper of this slide, is home to Radio Foxton which broadcasts on 105.4FM- FM radio wasn't an option in the 1960s. Note: This slide has some damage- especially to it's top left hand corner.

Most cinema advertising slides were examples of local advertising- but few were as local as this one. There has been a Manawatu Hotel on Foxton's Avenue Road since the late 1890s and when this slide was made (probably in the 1950s) the hotel was only a few houses away from the Coronation Hall cinema where this slide was likely screened! How many cinema patrons stopped by the bar on the way home to talk about the film? Or had some dinner at the Hotel before taking their seats?  'Beer gardens' only appeared in New Zealand from the late 1940s so Foxton was part of a trend and trying to keep 'good taste'. The term 'Mine Host' is a jovial expression for a bar landlord/manager and is an old term for 'my host' which survived in popular culture. Ernie Head is 'mine host' when this slide was shown- replacing the former host whose name was covered over.  After closing for a time the Manawatu Hotel reopened in 2013 is still trading as of 2023. Coronation Hall is now home to the MAVtech Museum but still has its projectors and 200 seats- perfect for the monthly movie night! 

In the middle of the 20th century the high streets of small town New Zealand were full of specialized businesses and crafts which today are only found in the main centres. Take D.A. Blackburn- a repairer of watches located on Foxton's Main Street.  Before the arrival of cheaper watches which are easier to replace than repair, there were many such craftspeople in business. However- maybe Blackburn was too specialized for a town of Foxton's size. Kete records show him in business in 1960 but not in 1955 or 1965, so his shop didn't last as long as many others who took out cinema advertising in Foxton. Blackburn also sold watches and clocks- all tested and guaranteed! 

This local Levin business appears to have a long history. There is a record of it existing as early as the 1940s, run by a Mrs. Weir. In 1981 the business was still there (but there is no record of who owned it by that stage). This cinema advertising slide would have been screened during intermission- but only for a few seconds to avoid the projector's heat cracking the glass! In the era before television, going to the cinema was a frequent past time and if you paid extra to be seated upstairs in the 'dress circle' you generally dressed in nice clothes. What better audience to advertise cold waving, colour shampoos, hair tinting, razor cutting and facials!  Imagine this ad stretching over a cinema screen- now that would be impact....

Declining voter turnout is an issue in Aotearoa's politics- but even when voter turnout was high the authorities wanted to make sure everyone was enrolled. This advertising slide would have been screened in cinemas alongside commercial advertising and ads for upcoming movies. With the average Kiwi making seventeen trips to the cinema a year in 1960, this was one of the best ways to reach an audience.  This slide bears the markings of 'Screens Advertising Limited'- one of the two main providers of cinema advertising. It's competitor, 'Dominion Screens Limited', was part of Amalgamated Cinemas and only serviced Amalgamated chain theatres. 'Screens Advertising Limited' looked after the second big chain (Kerridge-Oden) and the smaller independent theatres such as Foxton's Coronation Hall. By the late 1950s, 'Dominion Screens Limited' offered to screen short films for advertisers as well. As early as 1940, 'Screens Advertising Limited' had Art Directors to help advertisers design their slides..

Sidney Holland was the first National Party Prime Minister of New Zealand, serving from 1949-1957. Although his face emboldens this cinema advertising slide few people directly voted for him at the time- the First Past The Post electoral system meant that you only voted for your local candidate. However, as party leader Holland was presumptive Prime Minister if his party took power. Slides like this one would have been screened across New Zealand by almost all political parties. MAVtech has a range of these slides which we are uploading to Kete. Interestingly, Holland's is one of the few we have with the portrait of the party leader.

Cooking with gas became popular in New Zealand from the 1880s, with local Councils often providing the infrastructure and service. To make sure the service remained profitable, Councils advertised the benefits of gas to those still using coal ranges. The Levin Borough Council used this advertising slide in cinemas to spread the word about the benefits of gas cooking. Other slides in the series (available to view on Kete) talk about the virtues of gas for hot water supply. Local Government lost control of gas (and electricity) supply during government reforms in 1989.

This slide was shown to cinema audiences at the end of intermission- paid for by the Labour Party as part of their campaigning. Most political parties used the cinema for electioneering and these slides provide a glimpse into elections long since decided. Given that this slide says 'Thanks to Labour' it was probably made when Labour was in government. The fashions suggest that this could have been at the end of Walter Nash's term in 1960- although it may have been for the 1949 election when Peter Fraser was in charge. What is really interesting about this slide is it's definition of 'everyone'- a close look at the faces shows a range of ages and a mixture of men and women. However, there is no cultural diversity in this smiling constituency. It is true that Aotearoa has become more diverse in recent decades, but even when this slide was made its photographs did not represent 'everyone'. 

Political party slogans have changed over the years, as seen in this vintage cinema advertising slide. Showing the 'nuclear family' depicted in advertising and literature of the time, the slogan itself could easily double as a Hollywood mafia threat!  It probably wouldn't have been read like that at the time though! This wasn't the only slogan which would be seen as suspect today- the MAVtech Kete collection has a National Party slide whose meaning might be misinterpreted... During the 'first past the post' elections voters only elected their local candidate. As a result,  relatively few of our vintage political slides show the party leader. Most profile who was standing to be the local Member of Parliament or they showed a 'values' picture like this one.

Political slogans have changed over the years and this 1950s cinema electioneering slide shows by just how much! Most political parties do not employ forceful slogans like this one today. The message of this slide comes across as an order rather than an appeal about policy or values! However, there may be an explanation for this. The first National Government called a snap election during the 1951 waterfront strike (also known as the waterfront lockout) which lasted for 151 days, involved 22,000 striking workers and the passing of emergency legislation. Prime Minister Sidney Holland called a snap election on the issue of managing the strike.  Given the air of emergency which existed at the time, this slogan would make a lot more sense. However, there is no concrete information to suggest it was made during this election.

If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'. The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time. MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television! These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: iSite & Visitor Information Coordinator Sarah Ward

If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'. The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time. MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television! These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Digital Inclusion Coordinator Leala Faleseuga

 If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'.  The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time.  MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television!  These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Digital Inclusion Coordinator Leala Faleseuga, dressed as Erin from the Paper Girls graphic novel series. 

If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'.  The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time.  MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television!  These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Services to Older Adults Librarian Jen Walton & Library Comms Coordinator Nicky Jenkins.

 If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'. The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time. MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television! These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Services to Older Adults Librarian Jen Walton

 If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'. The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time. MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television! These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Information, Research and Local History Librarian Kiri Pepene

 If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'. The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time. MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television! These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Collections and Content Librarian Larissa Dixon

If you came into the library on Wednesday 1 March, you could have been forgiven for thinking you'd taken the DeLorean back to the 1980s. Staff were dressed up to celebrate the opening of the exhibition 'Rewind to the 80's'. The exhibition was a collaboration between Libraries Horowhenua and MAVtech, the Museum of Audio and Visual Technology (Foxton). It was a nostalgic flashback to the technology of the 1980s, an important decade full of momentum and transformation, with a new millennium on the horizon. Much of the technology we enjoy today stems from innovations from this time. MAVtech scoured their archives to find some fantastic examples... there's even a space helmet television! These images are scans of Instax Square photos - actual film photos! Pictured: Library Communications Coordinator Nicky Jenkins ​