Early newspapers on exhibition in Wellington

Press, 5 November 1984, Page 24

Early newspapers on exhibition in Wellington

PA Wellington Early and unusual newspapers feature in a new exhibition at the Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington.

The exhibition features some of the first New Zealand newspapers, examples of eighteenth century Brit-’ ish newspapers, and souvenir issues printed on cloth and lappa, a bark cloth somewhat like tapa, produced in Fiji. “New Zealand had its first newspaper before the country was even colonised”, said Mr Philip Parkinson, the librarian who mounted the' exhibition.

“It was produced in London before the first ships sailed for Port Nicholson (Wellington) with the New Zealand Company colonists. Three months after their arrival they received the second issue of the ‘New Zealand Gazette’ and ‘Britannia Spectator,’ produced on the Petone foreshore on April 18, 1840”.

Many of the newspapers produced in New Zealand have not survived, often because of fires in newspaper offices.

The exhibition shows fragmentary files of several newspapers, including the “Wairarapa News” and

others, which have virtually disappeared. The National Library has begun a microfilming programme to film the newspapers that remain before they, too, are destroyed by accident or by decomposition.

“The quality of paper used after 1880 deteriorated quickly,” said Mr Parkinson. “Papers printed before that date are often in quite good condition”.

A big survey of surviving holdings of New Zealand newspapers, undertaken last year, will help the National Library to establish priorities for filming.