Be Our Guest entry: Letter, Nola Olive Hyslop
Maker
Hyslop, Nola Olive
Production date
07 Jun 1988
26 Dec 2005
Object detail
Brief Description
Letter and photo to the Be Our Guest competition by Nola Olive Hyslop ( nee Johnstone ). She writes about her memories of the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake.
The letter was written by Nola Hyslop in 1988 for her granddaughter's school project. It recounts Nola's experience of the 1931 earthquake, in which her mother Bridget Mary Johnstone ( nee Dooley ) was one of the nurses killed when the hospital in Napier collapsed. An eyewitness account said that she had been trying to rescue two children at the time. They saw the hospital collapse just as Nola's mother was coming out.
Nola was at Napier Central School when the earthquake struck. She made her way alone to her home, which was opposite the Napier Hospital, and was shocked by the sight of the hospital which was just a pile of rubble. She became scared and fearful because it was where her mother worked. Her own house had also collapsed. Her older brother and sister arrived home, and together they wandered across to the Botanical Gardens where they saw the bodies of those killed lying underneath white sheets. They wandered around feeling lost and bewildered that afternoon, and noticed that everyone except them seemed to have their mothers with them. At around 4.30pm that afternoon they saw their mother's name on a list of the dead which had been pinned to a lamp post.
Their father arrived home and they slept on the ground, under a tree at a friend's place, and then moved to the Nelson Park camp. Nola and her youngest brother and sister were then sent by train to Auckland, and on to Motohui Island. On their return to Napier they were sent to the Children's Home in Priestly Road, which she describes as being awful. Nola expresses how upset these memories make her feel. After completing her letter, Nola added further information about the geographical changes and damage to the area.
Nola's granddaughter Lynley and her family wanted to donate the letter but she also wanted it to be returned to any family member if they wanted it back in future. It was photocopied and returned to her in March 2006.
The letter was written by Nola Hyslop in 1988 for her granddaughter's school project. It recounts Nola's experience of the 1931 earthquake, in which her mother Bridget Mary Johnstone ( nee Dooley ) was one of the nurses killed when the hospital in Napier collapsed. An eyewitness account said that she had been trying to rescue two children at the time. They saw the hospital collapse just as Nola's mother was coming out.
Nola was at Napier Central School when the earthquake struck. She made her way alone to her home, which was opposite the Napier Hospital, and was shocked by the sight of the hospital which was just a pile of rubble. She became scared and fearful because it was where her mother worked. Her own house had also collapsed. Her older brother and sister arrived home, and together they wandered across to the Botanical Gardens where they saw the bodies of those killed lying underneath white sheets. They wandered around feeling lost and bewildered that afternoon, and noticed that everyone except them seemed to have their mothers with them. At around 4.30pm that afternoon they saw their mother's name on a list of the dead which had been pinned to a lamp post.
Their father arrived home and they slept on the ground, under a tree at a friend's place, and then moved to the Nelson Park camp. Nola and her youngest brother and sister were then sent by train to Auckland, and on to Motohui Island. On their return to Napier they were sent to the Children's Home in Priestly Road, which she describes as being awful. Nola expresses how upset these memories make her feel. After completing her letter, Nola added further information about the geographical changes and damage to the area.
Nola's granddaughter Lynley and her family wanted to donate the letter but she also wanted it to be returned to any family member if they wanted it back in future. It was photocopied and returned to her in March 2006.
Production date
07 Jun 1988
26 Dec 2005
26 Dec 2005
Production place
Production period
Production technique
Media/Materials description
A4 photocopied sheets of a handwritten letter.
Media/Materials
Measurements
Height x Width: 297 x 210mm
Classification terms
Subject person
Subject period
Subject date
03 Feb 1931
Credit line
gifted by Lynley Edwards
Other number(s)
m2006/27/176, 36490
Public comments
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