Alyce Charlesworth, Curator- Whangārei Museum
Whangarei Agricultural and Pastoral Society has been a proud showcase of all things farming since 1877 with the annual event occurring around the first weekend of each December. Folk from the city and surrounds would get a taste of farm life with displays from a different world; of the hard slog and not-always-green pastures.
Being a neighbour to Barge Park brings many events to our doorstep. The Kiwi North team will hop over the stile (a fence climbing step) and head down to the show to exhibit alongside other traders, educators and industries inspired by nearly 150 years of this local tradition. Currently on display in Whangārei Museum is a piece of this history- a silver epergne (pronounced [I] + [PURN]). The ornate silver centrepiece is a frame usually bearing dishes, candle holders or vases and it was used as a prize for the Whangarei A + P Society. A silver plate etched and attached shows it was won by Mrs D.J Fraser for her floral entry in 1927. This artefact was donated to the Whangārei Museum in 1990 by The Whangarei Ladies Gardening Club after a ‘gigantic spring clean’ unearthed the epergne at their premises.
In 2023, the home industries schedule will still exhibit a ‘Home Grown Section’ with bouquets, blooms, and other entries repeating the efforts of the past. In the craft section miniature sculptures, carvings and now a lego model category put makers on the map. Within the Whangārei Museum Archives a little red certificate from 1916 details First Prize for a dressed doll category. And while the doll in question is a mystery, the maker is not as written on the back is a short life history of Miss Edith Amy Crisp who entered the competition at 12 years old. She later became a nurse and finally ended up gardening in the sea air of Parua Bay.
Perhaps even more iconic than the floral entries at the A+P show is the livestock- lovingly bred, trained, and groomed for the limelight. They represent the best pedigrees of the breeds we see in paddocks around the region and in the ring, they are judged to become champions. One such champion was a local jersey cow named Vivandière. The now yellowing award from 1924 details her milk and butter-fat records as she is admitted to the Register of Merit by the Director of the Dairy Division. Her portrait as a 2 year old shows a pretty haltered creature that could be a poster child for the jersey breed.
This weekend the show will be in full swing again, bringing the showgrounds alive with the rural community infiltrating the city edge. Meet the Kiwi North team at Site Number 8 and have a look at Vivandière’s award, speak to the Conservation and Native Species team about their favourite creatures and witness another A+P show to go down in the history books.
