Local heritage showcase
By Chrys Ayley
The Heritage Centre at Petone Library is going from strength to strength as people recognise the significance of the family and social history stored there. Hutt City Libraries marketing manager James Lamb says Jackson Street and Petone is all about heritage and to have a heritage showcase in Britannia Street just fits perfectly. Following refurbishment last year Petone Library gained 20 per cent extra public space and has dedicated it to local history and genealogy. The collections include material on local identities and families, businesses, clubs, political, economic and social history covering Lower Hutt, Petone, Eastbourne and Wainuiomata. Photographs that were originally kept in the Lower Hutt War Memorial Library were transferred to Petone and plans are underway to digitise the collection and display them on its web site which would be the first step in ?showcasing Petone to the world,? Mr Lamb said. Petone Library senior customer services team member Ros Booker who manages the heritage section says the most widely used facility is the historic photograph collection. People who have moved to the area might want to see what their house looked like or be interested in knowing what the Gear Meat factory looked like, she says. ?It?s amazing what people come in for,? she says. Ms Booker also receives requests for information by email such as helping to find siblings and solving family puzzles. Local cemetery records, newspapers and directories form part of the massive collection available for public inspection. Recently Ms Booker and the Sexton of Taita cemetery helped a woman find the grave of her late sister which had been recorded incorrectly. ?It?s always lovely when you can fill in those gaps.? ?We are enjoying our partnership with the Hutt Valley Branch of New Zealand Genealogist Society and appreciate their assistance in some of the more obscure genealogical queries,? she said. Convenor of the Hutt Valley branch of the New Zealand Society of Genealogists Janet Price said their resources had been re-housed at the Heritage Centre since early this year. The public now has access to resources such as births, deaths and marriage records, books and CDs on researching family trees and has computer access to genealogy web sites. Photo caption:
