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- By Janet Pates, Tuakau and District Museum
What a difference a year makes! Over this time a range of willing hands, both voluntary and professional, have been working on Tuakau Museum’s ambitious Feather Cottage project.
Gone are the patched weatherboards and sagging verandah. We’ve added a disability ramp and front porch, replacement verandah, neat new baseboards, spouting and water tank. After four months of being shrouded in scaffolding (loaned free of charge by Counties Scaffolding), the building has a fresh coat of paint in traditional colours.
As a result, instead of standing out like the proverbial sore thumb, the cottage now blends comfortably into its surroundings. Once a few final exterior tasks are completed, the push will be on to complete the interior.
It may be a little premature to say the end is in sight, but it is perhaps not too far over the horizon, and plans are well in hand for the future use of the building.
Meanwhile, the day-to-day doings of the museum continue. In February, we catered for an afternoon tea at a book launch by the Franklin branch of the NZ Genealogy Society. We recently entertained the St Andrew craft group to morning tea, and we have three more group visits scheduled to take place shortly.
As usual, the museum arranged a display in the foyer of the Tuakau Town Hall for the Tuakau Anzac service. Featured in the display were photographs of those men of the district who lost their lives in the First World War. Of the 32 listed on the Town Hall memorial plaque, the museum was able to locate photographs of 27 of them.
All of these activities require the support of a band of willing volunteers. As well as the office holders who devote many hours to their tasks, others make their contribution.
For instance, the Thursday morning working bee has Melanie and Barbara scrolling through a collection of newspaper cuttings to digitise Tuakau’s newsworthy past. Wiremu can usually be found outdoors, keeping the surroundings up to scratch.
Our market day stall with its preserves made by Jean brings not only profit, but connection with the community, while others give up their Sunday afternoons to man the opening hours roster.
These are but a few examples. Without their support and that of others, including local businesses, the museum could not carry out its role in preserving the community’s history that we might know and learn from.
