Sixth New Zealand Contingent for South Africa | Wellesley Street
1901 (John Coomer) - 2023
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1901 image: John Coomer | Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections 1729-113
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Above: January 30, 1901. A crowd gathering at the intersection of Wellesley and Queen Streets to farewell the Sixth New Zealand Contingent on their departure for South Africa. It had been about a week since the death of Queen Victoria and flags were flying at half-mast from the Public Library clocktower and other buildings. The troops would march from their camp at the Domain to Railway Wharf to embark on the troopship Cornwall.
Below: About 30 minutes later, at 15:50 by the Public Library clock, the procession appears. Coomer and his camera have moved further out into the road.
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1901 image: John Coomer | Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections 1729-143
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Below: A couple of minutes later, at about 15:52, Coomer must have climbed up on the horse-drawn cart (seen near the middle of the road in 1729-143 above) for a more elevated viewpoint.
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1901 image: John Coomer | Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections 1729-011
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The photographer on the veranda
Below: In this detail from Coomer's second photo, (1729-143, made at 15:50), a photographer is seen shooting from a veranda roof. The following image must be the resulting picture (or so I assume). The clock in this image also shows 15:50. Published in the New Zealand Graphic of 9 February 1901.
Auckland Libraries Heritage Collections NZG-19010209-0254-01
