Two interesting Hardy family photos

My intention when I started writing this blog was to focus on the two photos I had in front of me at the time. As I proceeded further into the blog and an exploration of some related information I became distracted by other aspects of the lives of some members of the Hardy family. As a result this is a longish read. However I hope it proves to be of interest.

A copy of the photo above sat on our mantlepiece at home for as long as I can recall. I knew my mother was very fond of it but I was a bit unsure about who it was in the photo. Mum told me it was my grandfather Merv Hardy. My sister Carol has a similar recollection. Apparently in the early days it was not uncommon for young boys to have a photo taken like this with long hair and lacy clothing. I just found it to be a bit odd and had considerable trouble accepting that this was my granddad Hardy.

I now have a copy of this photo that was given to me by my uncle David Hardy. It is accompanied by a note written by David that says "It is believed to be of Mervyn C Hardy..."On the back is written "Charles L Hardy No 10 Bulwer St, Ponsonby, Auckland, New Zealand." There is a pencil line running through that address and in pencil the address 8 Cox St. Further down in the name Lyall also written in pencil.

The backing of the photo may or may not be original. It is cut along one side in a very rough manner. The photo itself is cut into a circular shape. It is glued to the square shaped backing which is quite badly worn. It looks like it was proper photographer backing but there is no photographer's name anywhere. The photo is quite well posed with young Mervyn sitting on the arm of a fancy chair holding an apple, so I do consider it to have been taken by a studio photographer.

There is a further very roughly cut piece of card that has been cut into a square with a circular hole for the photo. The back of this card is printed with what appears to be a table of numbers related to transporting of various quantities and weights of cargo and the prices per cubic feet and by weight. Could this perhaps be a piece of card that was used by Charles L Hardy in his work as a carter? Alternatively was it a piece of card Merv Hardy had in his workshop? It seems most likely to be the latter.

Mervyn looks about age 5 or so to me in this photo. If that is the case the photo dates from around 1904/5. At this time Merv's parents Charles Lingham and Jane Anna were back in Auckland after a period living in Dargaville.

Note: I have seen Jane Anna's name written in a number of ways namely Jane Anna, Jane Annie and Jane Anne. On her published marriage announcement she is named "Jane Anna (Annie)". I suspect that Annie was the name she was more commonly known as by friends and relatives.

The matter of the street address of Bulwer St had me confused until John Hardy advised me that this street eventually became renamed Buller St. On looking at the location of this street I could quickly reconcile this with the proximity of Bayfield School where I know that Merv was a pupil. Also I have records of addresses for the Hardy family of Wharf Rd in 1902/3 and Cox St in 1911. A street directory record confirms Bulwer St as an address for Charles Hardy, a carter in 1911. As you can see from the map below these addresses are all in close proximity. They are also not very far from the Riley family home in Vermont St in Herne Bay.

I also have a copy of another very similar photo as shown below which I think also came from David Hardy. My cousin John Hardy has suggested this is a photo of Mervyn's brother Cyril. It is logical that similar photos would be taken of the two brothers. The copy I have of this photo is not an original and has no information accompanying it. However if you look closely it has very similar features of a circular framing. It seems as if it was put together in a manner that is almost identical to the photo of Mervyn i.e. a photo cut into a circle and pasted onto a square backing. Perhaps it was taken by the same photographer.

I have now put both photos in a frame that is hanging on the wall of my study. I like that the two brothers are side by side. Hanging below them is a framed copy of 1950 Calendar produced by Merv as advertising for his business at Gittos St Parnell.

Below is a photo of the two brothers Cyril on the left and Merv on the right wearing a hat. Cyril was born in 1909. My guess is that at the time of this photo Cyril was probably in his 20s and Merv in his 30s. There is a 10 year age difference between them.

Below is another photo of Merv. This is from the wedding photo of him and my grandmother Lillian. It has been colourised and a little bit enhanced.

This is the full photo.

Sadly I do not have a photo of Merv and Cyril's parents together nor do I have any other photos of Cyril. Below are some other photos that I do have.

The first photo is Merv's mother Annie Riley and his sisters Hilda, Edna and Lydia.

The photo below is earlier than the above. It shows Annie holding a new baby.I think the baby is Mervyn. He was born in 1899. That means the girls are around age 7 in the case of Hilda, Lydia is 6 and Edna is 5.

This photo of Charles Lingham was taken from the Hardy family photo and has been colourised and enhanced a little. I believe that he was about age 26 in this photo.

Charles Lingham was the eldest son of Charles and Alice Hardy. He grew up during the period when his father Charles was harvesting the kauri that were growing on his 200 acres in the HorseShoe Bush near Dairy Flat. Charles Lingham worked in the family logging operation up to the time he married in January of 1892 at age 26. He and Annie then moved north to Dargaville where he worked for the well known Mitchelson timber business. This may have been a business with which Charles senior transacted some sales of his timber.

I have a copy of an interview with Merv's sister Edna that was recorded in writing by her son Syd Pilkington in 1970 when his mother was age 73. Amongst other things she mentions that her father worked at "Joe Mitchell's" Timber Mill in Dargaville. I think Edna has misremembered the name and that it was Mitchelson who employed Charles. She also states that she was born in a house they lived in that was one of four little square houses in Dargaville. I assume these were houses supplied by Mitchelson. Edna also refers to a house the Mitchelsons lived in that was "...quite a house" ie very grand.

The years that the Hardy children were born in Dargaville were; Hilda 11 December 1893, Lydia 27 May 1895, Edna 3 November 1896 and Mervyn 8 March 1899. A note written by David Hardy states that Charles and Annie moved back to Auckland three weeks after Merv was born. Cyril was born on 7 May 1909 in Auckland.

Below is the story of Mitchelson and his involvement in the timber industry. I note that Mitchelson moved his head office from Dargaville to Auckland in December 1898. Charles and Annie moved back to Auckland around 1901/02. Charles then worked as a self employed carter based in Ponsonby and using a horse drawn cart. He was then age 35.

Charles was very involved in the sport of woodchopping. Below is evidence of his participation as a handicapper. My mother was always keen to watch the woodchopping at the annual Easter Show and would always remind me of her grandfather's involvement in the sport. I suspect that her father Merv was a regular attender at such events and took her along.

The article below appeared in the Auckland Star of 21 October 1936. Charles was then age 70.

The photo below was published in the Auckland Sun of 26 November 1928.

The article below recorded Charles suffering a kick from one of his horses at age 58 in 1924.

The map below shows Tole St in Ponsonby. Number 8 is marked by the red flag. Note the Tole Reserve at the end of the road. Perhaps this was the paddock where Charles kept his horses. Note also the proximity to Ponsonby Rd. One of my favourite Ponsonby cafes, Mekong Baby, is close to the corner of Tole St.

Below is a photo from the early 1900s showing a horse drawn cart travelling along Ponsonby Rd. Interesting that we have a "modern" electric tram alongside horses pulling a cart and that as late as 1928 Charles was still using horses in his carting business.

The photo below is Merv standing alongside the delivery truck he drove for Laidlaw Leeds (later to become Farmers). I understand he was around age 16 at the time of this photo.

In due course Merv was involved in the operation of the Farmers Free Bus. The caption on the photo below tells the story. It mentions that Merv was foreman of the Farmers Garage from 1920 to 1933.

Cyril Hardy

I have repeated below some information about Cyril from an earlier post I wrote about him.

A special aspect of Cyril's life as an entertainer is that it brought him onto a stage alongside my grandfather Arthur Austen. There was no connection between the Hardy and Austen families when this occurred. It was purely a coincidence. I am sure Cyril if asked about this would have said it was "..in the stars".

Below is a photo of my "Pop" Arthur Austen.

Cyril's first appearance on stage which was at the West End Theatre on Ponsonby Road, occurred in March 1926. He was age 17 at the time.

Cyril remained a single man throughout his life and he pursued a career in the entertainment business as "Artist Handini- Hardy".

Cyril specialised in building and playing unusual musical instruments such as the Glassaphone- this is a number of glasses filled with water to varying depths with musical notes produced by passing a finger along the rims of the glasses. One review of a performance refers to Cyril as having "....showed wonderful skill in producing music from a kerosine tin, also on bottles and a saw. Mr Hardy had to respond to encores, and played on the Flaxatone, one string violin and the Swanee Whistle."

For many years Cyril appeared as a member of Neville Carsen's Revue Company. Neville Carsen ran this revue company for some 50 years. A review of a performance in January 1938 at the Auckland Mental Hospital gives insight into the range of skills shown by Cyril as follows;

"Handini (Mr Cyril Hardy) proved to be an entertainer of exceptional versatility, keeping the audience thoroughly interested with juggling, balancing feats, trick piano playing and magic using only plain sheets of paper to produce remarkable results."

In another review Cyril is referred to as Professor Handini providing "modern magic".

By the 1940s Cyril had become involved in state school entertainment as an entertainment organiser.

Conscientious Objector Appeal

Cyril appealed against being asked to serve in the armed forces in World War 2. His appeal is recorded in detail in a number of newspaper reports published in both New Zealand and Australia. Cyril's personal belief in "the stars" attracted newspaper headlines as in the example below.

Cyril is recorded as having enlisted as a private in the Army Medical Corp (no. 48464) and embarking New Zealand from Wellington in 1941. A newspaper report in the NZ Herald dated 2 October 1942 included Cyril amongst the returned men arriving home from the war.

Cyril moved around New Zealand and Australia during his lifetime. Electoral roles show the following addresses;

1935 at 50 Seaview Tce, Mount Albert ( his father Charles Lingham Hardy and his second wife Hannah also at this address);

1938 at 6 Weld St, Wadestown Wellington;

1946 at 32 Mt Albert Rd with Hannah Hardy (Charles L had died in March 1945);

1949 at 32 Mt Albert Rd (Hannah at this time living in Remuera);

1954 at 36 Park St, Monee Ponds, Victoria, Australia;

1963 at 190 Forest Rd, Hurstville, NSW, Australia;

1963 at 450 Evans Bay Rd, Wellington;

1978 at 56 Merivale Lane, Christchurch.

In March 1982 Cyril wrote a postcard to his brother Mervyn Hardy from his then address of Meadow Park Motor Camp at 39 Meadow St, Papanui, Christchurch. In this card he wished Merv a Happy Birthday and asked after several of the members of the Hardy family in particular his sister Hilda's children Christine and Heather Smith. The motor camp is Cyril's last recorded address prior to his death in 1986.

A transcript of the above..

4 March 1982

Dear Mervyn and Edna,

I was glad to receive your letter and the news. I never feel as well as I used to and have been advised to "stay put". Of course I would love to see some of the Aucklanders- and relations who can come down this way. Do You see anything of Christine and Heather Smith? We have plenty of good musical shows on and they are well staged- though "pricey". How are the family? What news of them? Has Sylvia Poynter had her book published as yet? I think that you had a friend in the motor bis (at Avondale) who bough the "Royal Kingsland? Still showing pictures I believe! You must have known the three Parkinson boys- Alf- ??- and Frank. Memories of an Era! Happy Birthday. What is Edna's?

Love, Cyril.

Cyril died 12 August 1986 age 78.

I was curious about the mention of Sylvia Poynter. I looked for some information and soon found why she was of interest to Cyril. Sylvia was a performer on the stage from the very early days of live shows. Cyril and Arthur would have both known her and possibly shared the stage with her.

Sylvia Poynter

I was not able to find a book published by Sylvia Poynter. However I did find the article below with help from the Auckland Public Library. The Library also provided me with access to s series of interviews recorded by Sylvia in which she provides her recollections of stage shows over the many years during which she was performing.

Heather and Christine Smith were daughters of Merv and Cyril's sister Hilda. Hilda also had a son named Roddy. He was a twin to Heather. They were both born on 22 July 1925. I have not found a date of birth or death for Christine. I believe she never married.

Merv and Cyril's sister Hilda

Hilda's full name was Hilda Olive Houghton Hardy. The Houghton in Hilda's name comes from her grandmother Charlotte Dix's home town of New Houghton in Norfolk England. The first Earl of Orford Sir Robert Walpole, the first Prime Minister of England, built Houghton Hall a grand stately home. It is located about 6 miles from the Royal Family's Sandringham estate.

Heather Smith

Heather Smith was spoken about by my mother on many occasions. It is possible I was taken along to one of the performances she arranged for her pupils to display their skills. Music recitals were a common thing and my sister Carol often played piano at recitals arranged by her teacher Mrs Milverton-Carter. I definitely recall going to a few of those.

The newspaper article below relates the esteem in which Heather was held in respect of her musical teaching skills.

In the process of researching Heather's life I was surprised to find that on her death at age 88 in 2013 she had her ashes scattered at the Whangateau Cemetery. This cemetery is located north of Warkworth. I have not seen any record of Heather living in this area. For most of her life Heather was in the Mt Albert and Freemans Bay areas. However there is a Riley family connection with Whangateau. Brian Riley who was a son of Oliver and Elizabeth Riley had moved to a farm at Whangateau in the 1940s. That farm is currently still in the ownership of one of Brian's sons Peter Riley and is a place I have visited in order to meet some of my Riley cousins. Sadly Peter is now quite unwell and the farm is for sale at present.

On seeing that Heather had a headstone at Whangateau I decided to visit the Whangateau Cemetery. Below are some photos I took.

It is a quite small cemetery and is located up a steep narrow hill off the main road that takes you toward Leigh through the small village of Whangateau.

This very nice poem stands very near to the headstones of those who have had their ashes scattered nearby.

Below is the quite unassuming headstone for Heather. I am not aware of any connection with the Torkington family who have plaques near Heather. However I did a google search on the name Grace Torkington. This brought up a soprano named Grace Torkington who was performing on radio and at live concerts throughout the 1940s. I am not sure if this is the same person and I have not found any evidence of Heather performing with her. However it is interesting that this singer came up as a search result even if it is just a coincidence!

The headstones below mark the burial places of Brian Riley and his wife Valdora. They are the opposite end of the cemetery. These headstones are very different to any others in the cemetery.

Here is a closer view of Valdora's headstone.

Here is a closer view of Heather's headstone. I

Heather's twin brother Roddy was an accountant who subsequently became a solicitor. Below is an article about his admittance to the Bar. I have copied this from Joy Carter's history of the Riley family.

Below is an article I found that records Margaret's admittance to the Bar. It also mentions that her husband Roddy expects to qualify as a solicitor.

The Riley Family Tree information provided to me by Joy Carter indicates that Roddy had a second marriage and that his second wife was Suzanne Golberg. The family history records compiled by Dulcie McClure also state that Roddy was married to Suzanne Goldberg. I have assumed that this was the well known artist who was the daughter of Merv Hardy's very good friend Charlie Goldberg. Charlie Goldberg and his family were the subject of one of my earlier blogs. It seems reasonable to assume that Roddy and Suzanne may have met through Merv and Charlie's friendship. However a point to note is that Roddy was some 15 years older than Suzanne. I have not found any formal evidence of a marriage between Roddy and Suzanne.

Joy Carter's note shown above indicates that Roddy's first wife Margaret who was a barrister was admitted to the Bar in 1959 and that she put Roddy forward for his admittance. The newspaper report above suggested it would be during 1959. The 1963 Electoral Roll shows that Roddy and his wife Margaret Louise Smith lived at 8 Whitaker Place, Auckland Central and they were then both listed as solicitors.

In the 1978 Electoral Roll Roddy is living at 9 Upland Rd, Remuera. Margaret is not shown at this address. Suzanne graduated from Elam Art School in 1961 and was in England in 1965. She appears to have resided for a time in Taupo in the 1970s during which time she had some exhibitions of her art- see the article below. She is said to have rarely exhibited in the 1980s and then reappeared in the 1990s with several exhibitions in Remuera. She died in 1999 at age 59. Roddy died in 1991 at age 66.

Reading between the lines it seems to me that by 1978 Roddy is no longer with Margaret and might be with Suzanne from around that time - assuming she has moved from Taupo back to Auckland. Perhaps her period of not exhibiting in the 1980s was during her time with Roddy and maybe her re-emergence in the 1990s followed his death in 1991.

Suzanne's father Charlie Goldberg is well remembered as a great motorbike racer. He also raced bikes at Western Springs and like Merv his work was in the motor trade.

The photo below includes Merv. He is standing in the middle wearing a stylish hat.I think the rider sitting on the bike on the left may be Charlie Goldberg and that this photo may have been taken at Western Springs.

Charlie's daughter Suzanne was one of New Zealand's great artists. I included information about her in an earlier blog where I covered the story of Charlie Goldberg. The information In this blog comes from that earlier research plus some new matters connected to researching her relationship with Roddy Smith.

The article below summarises Suzanne's artistic career.

The article below mentions Suzanne's time in Taupo.

The photo below of Suzanne is dated November of 1969. She was then age 29.

Below is a self portrait of Suzanne.

Here is an example of her landscapes.