|
|
|
|
What's on at the Hocken CollectionsOn this pageRelated InformationHappy Birthday HectorHector's Map of the Otago Province16 March 2011James Hector was the first geologist to examine the rocks of Otago (including Southland). Between 1862-64, at the height of the Otago gold rushes, he explored and mapped a huge area, collecting samples and looking for minerals such as gold and coal. Hector moved to Wellington to set up the New Zealand Geological Survey and Colonial Museum in 1865. This web feature deals with his work in Otago between 1862-64. 16 March celebrates James Hector's birthday.
100 years since the opening of the Hocken Library31 MarchThe 31 March 2010 marks the centenary of the Hocken Library's opening. To commemorate our first hundred years of documenting history we have created a collection of digital images to showcase some of the art that was part of Dr Thomas M. Hocken's original gift. These images give us a privileged insight into the collector's world and demonstrate the Dunedin surgeon's interest in the early years of European contact in New Zealand, which focussed on Otago and the Southern Provinces. Collecting historical pictures primarily for their informational value, he would often annotate them enabling the content of the images to be readily available to future generations of researchers and historians. At the time of his death in 1910 he had amassed 437 pictorial items, a collection of more than 4,000 printed volumes, as well as photographs, manuscripts and maps. The Hocken Library's founding gift and Dr Hocken's abiding interest in the history of Southern New Zealand continue to shape what the Hocken collects and preserves today for the future benefit of the people of New Zealand. ContactSharon Dell
|