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Post by NZBC on May 1, 2007 20:59:50 GMT 12
There have been Chinese people living and working in Hataitai since the early days of the community. One of their first enterprises was market gardens along Moxham Avenue. CW Taylor recalled in his memoirs an incident which would have happened around 1905: One of the gardens was right opposite the school, laid out in neat beds of vegetables and watered by the Waipapa stream that ran through them. Charlie and his friends used to go and help in the gardens. They would get the young carrots that were weeded out, or help pick the young peas and be given some to eat. Although Charlie was friendly with the Chinese, some of the ¡°hard-case¡± boys would cheek them and then run away. The boys often played after school in an abandoned house on the edge of the gardens. One day the boys that used to annoy the Chinese came running through the long grass and into the house calling out to Charlie and his friends to hide as the ¡°chinks¡± were after them. They looked and saw the oldest Chinese man with a long knife they used for cutting vegetables coming towards the house. ¡°We were frightened, but the other boys crawled through a hole in the floor and hid under the house where they couldn¡¯t be seen, as it was dark there. The Chinaman came in looking for them, but we said we didn¡¯t know where they were.[¡]He hunted around, but finally went away to our great relief, as we thought he might hurt us with the knife, but he was a kindly old man, a great big man with a pigtail. All the Chinese wore them in those days and I think he just meant to frighten them. But it put a stop to the teasing that went on.¡± Taylor also says that around this time a Chinese man known as Charley Wong Fong came over the hill from Newtown twice a week to sell fruit and vegetables. He had a pole over his shoulder with a large basket of produce on each end, which he sold before returning home. Charley was well known and respected in the neighbourhood. www.heritagehelp.co.nz/chinese.html
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Post by NZBC on May 1, 2007 21:00:47 GMT 12
The Government was worried about foreigners in New Zealand during World War 1 and in 1917 compiled a Register of Aliens. The following Chinese men resident in Hataitai appeared on that list. Although some of them had been in New Zealand a long time, it was not possible for Chinese to become naturalised New Zealanders and so they were considered aliens.
Name age in 1917 approx arrival NZ occupation address ref Fong, Joe 40 1902 laundryman Moxham Ave 13440 Jew, Ngan 29 1906 fruiterer Moxham Ave 13440 Kee, Ho 53 1892 market gardener Moxham Ave 13698 Lum, Fond 64 1875 market gardener Moxham Ave 13440 Lum, Young 63 1893 market gardener Moxham Ave 13704 Mune, Chan 50 1903 gardener Moxham Ave 13704 Sam, Wong 45 1902 market gardener Moxham Ave 13698 She, Ngan 31 1901 fruiterer Moxham Ave 13440 Woon, Fan 38 1907 market gardener Moxham Ave 13440
By the 1920s there were several fruit and vegetable shops operated by Chinese. These included Joe Say in Waitoa Road, Qung Kee in Hataitai Road and later Moxham Avenue, and the Ngans at 6 Moxham Avenue who used part of their premises as a laundry depot for collars. In July 1920 Ngan Teen and Ngan King (aged 14 and 12) started at Kilbirnie School. Their parent or guardian was Ngan Fen of 6 Moxham Ave and their previous school was noted as "China".
In 1922 the Hataitai Municipal Electors¡¯ Association wrote to the council asking that it do a surprise night inspection of Qung Kee in Hataitai Road, stating ¡°residents have noted with apprehension the large number of Chinese, who are housed in these fruit shops, which suggests a total disregard of city bylaws regarding air space, etc.¡± The Council inspected various premises and found no major problems. They did advise Mr Ngan Gin on the corner of Moxham Ave and Waitoa Road that he might not use a shed at the rear of his premises as a dwelling house. The property owner was Mr Warden, a grocer in Courtenay Place who leased the Hataitai shop to Ngan Gin. Mr Warden wrote to the Council saying that Mr Ngan had used the shed as a dwelling without his knowledge. He went on in Mr Ngan¡¯s support: ¡°he tells me that he has a place to live in at the gardens down the road, by which I assume he means the Chinaman¡¯s gardens Moxham Avenue. In all other respects he is a law-abiding Chinaman and is clean and causes no annoyance to anybody.¡±
(c)April 2005 P. McKirdy
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