Home-A past pupil goes to war

Kilbirnie at the time of World War One

At the Turnbull Library we looked at pictures of Kilbirnie. Before 1900 there were very few houses and lots of paddocks.

This picture was taken in 1916 there were more houses now. More people came to live in Kilbirnie after the tram tunnel was opened. Read about the tram tunnel on Heritage Help and see all the events on the poster when the tunnel was opened in 1907.

The school is in the middle of the picture. The streets are not busy there are no cars or people. The hill would be a good place to play. We do our school cross country on the hills today.

In this photo taken in 2015 you can see some of the houses are still being lived in, the church is now built of brick and the school has new buildings. The school is the blue building in the centre of the photograph.

The school headmaster's house is the only part left of the old school. It is now a play centre.

Acknowledgements

Kilbirnie 1915
Aldersley, David James, 1862-1928. Kilbirnie, Wellington. Original photographic prints and postcards from file print collection, Box 15. Ref: PAColl-7081-18. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand.http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22375232