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Te Ao Hou, June 1960, Page 51

“Historic Wellington”. Alexander, John H. Wellington: A. H. & A. W. Reed. 48 pages. 6s. 6d. With “Historic Wellington” Mr Alexander has made a notable contribution to the preservation of our provincial history. Although he could be criticised by the purists for the historical content of his text Mr Alexnder is primarily concerned with recording for the future a visual record of early Wellington. His collection of drawings has done this admirably and will serve for many years as a source of reproduction for future historians, biographers and admirers of Wellington's early buildings. There is no orderly presentation of material in this book, but each section with its drawings is a delightful story in itself well written by Mr Alexander who, with the aid of a keen human insight, gives a down-to-earth readable interpretation of the history of each family or building. He includes early churches, commercial and government buildings, the homes of old well known Wellington families and then moves out into the country portraying expertly, among others, the old homestead of Hakaraia Rangikura at Rangiuru Road, Otaki. All told this is an excellent publication which Wellington can be proud of. My only criticism (and I have left this to the last so as not to obscure the good I wanted to say about it) is that Mr Alexander failed to record in his illustrations the old home of Edward Gibbon Wakefield on the Terrace. In view of the very large part played by Wakefield in the early Wellington story I would have thought this would have been a “must” in any illustrated record of historic Wellington. J. F. ROBERTSON.