Be Our Guest entry: Letter, Margaret Elms
Maker
Elms, Margaret
Production date
27 Jan 2005
Object detail
Brief Description
Letter to the Be Our Guest competition by Miss Margaret Elms. She writes of her memories of the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake.
Margaret sent in a photocopy of a photograph of a man clearing rubble from Heretaunga Street, Hastings, with identifying details. Her grandfather, Leslie Ernest Elms, was a carrier at the time of the earthquake. He was on his way to collect a load in the country when the earthquake struck. He and his brother-in-law, Willie Charters, thought they had a flat tyre. (Willie Charter's father-in-law Thomas John Maye died in the earthquake). Leslie's truck is seen in the photograph. Margaret's father was the youngest of three boys and says the photograph was published in one of the Free Lance magazines after the quake.
The family lived in Jervois Street, and the earthquake did not do a lot of damage, but the chimney finally fell down at nine o'clock that night. Her father was four years old at the time. They lived in a Bell tent in their garden until the house was repaired. Her grandfather's carrying business is still in existence as L E Elms and Sons. Her grandfather died at 100 years and 3 months in 1990. Margaret's father, her brother and two nephews (great grandsons of Leslie) still run the business. They think it must be one of the few wholly owned family businesses in Hastings that is still operating.
Margaret sent in a photocopy of a photograph of a man clearing rubble from Heretaunga Street, Hastings, with identifying details. Her grandfather, Leslie Ernest Elms, was a carrier at the time of the earthquake. He was on his way to collect a load in the country when the earthquake struck. He and his brother-in-law, Willie Charters, thought they had a flat tyre. (Willie Charter's father-in-law Thomas John Maye died in the earthquake). Leslie's truck is seen in the photograph. Margaret's father was the youngest of three boys and says the photograph was published in one of the Free Lance magazines after the quake.
The family lived in Jervois Street, and the earthquake did not do a lot of damage, but the chimney finally fell down at nine o'clock that night. Her father was four years old at the time. They lived in a Bell tent in their garden until the house was repaired. Her grandfather's carrying business is still in existence as L E Elms and Sons. Her grandfather died at 100 years and 3 months in 1990. Margaret's father, her brother and two nephews (great grandsons of Leslie) still run the business. They think it must be one of the few wholly owned family businesses in Hastings that is still operating.
Maker
Production date
27 Jan 2005
Production place
Production period
Media/Materials description
A4 photocopied sheets; typed.
Media/Materials
Measurements
In Be Our Guest Folder No 2: Height x Width: 298 x 210mm
Signature/Inscription
Margaret, Signature
Classification terms
Subject person
Subject period
Subject date
03 Feb 1931
Credit line
gifted by Margaret Elms
Other number(s)
m2006/27/81, 34813
Public comments
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