VALUABLE PAPERS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26492, 20 June 1947, Page 4

VALUABLE PAPERS

EARLY DAYS OF OTAGO ON LOAN FOR HISTORICAL RESEARCH A considerable quantity of hitherto unexplored papers, dealing with the early records of the Otago Provincial Council, has been made available for research purposes to the Otago Centennial History Committee through the courtesy of Dr G. H. Scholefield, controller of Dominion Archives. The papers, which will be under the care of Mr M. Standish, a member of the Archives staff, are expected shortly, and will be examined by Dr A. H. McLintock and his assistants before they are returned to Wellington. They are contained in five large packing cases, and in addition to minutes of the Otago Executive Council from 1858 to 1876, they contain all the

letters addressed to the provincial secretary from 1862 to 1876, when the Provincial Government was disbanded.

The papers contain many letters complaining of lack of roads, some amazing stories of life in Dunedin in the ’6o’s, reports of new, but minor gold discoveries, letters from Gabriel Read, and reports of exploration of routes from Otago to the West Coast. Most of the papers came into the possesion of the Archives Department frem the Lands and Survey Department many years ago. The Centennial History Committee has also received from the Mitchell Library, Sydney, photostatic copies of the letters of the Weller brothers, whalers, who operated from the Otakou whaling station from 1833 to 1840. It has also received a copy of the Journal of T. Shepherd, of the brig Rosanna which visited Otago Harbour in 1826, carried out a survey, and made a map of the harbour. Advice has been received from the Mitchell Library of the despatch of a photostatic copy of the original indenture made between William Charles Wentworth, John Jones and the various Maori chiefs for the purchase of the South Island.