Northern Rhodesians Worldwide

Message Board

Dawie - Congratulations on reaching the Millennium Milestone along the Great North Road ! Arthur Northerners ! More contributions from the growing number of GNR members. Best of all this month and first in the queue is another brilliant photo from Mike Wilson taken from the top of the CPC tower - this time a photo of the only CENTRE OF THE UNIVERSE - well for me at least. This shot overlooks Central Street and I can actually see the roof of my old house where I lived around the mid 1950's, second from the end. The Kafue is just visible and in the larger photo Mike sent me I can see the Kitwe Stream and location of the bridge over it as Central Street ends. The spot I learned all about fishing, Brenda Bleksley's house, the bush I explored with my pals. This was as far EAST as you could get in Nkana at that time, and the best place to be. The photo must have been taken some time after we left here for Riverside as the trees and bush are well thinned out in the photo. This was my home playground, a place etched into my memory for as long as I live. Thanks Mike you are a star ! Arthur Hi again Arthur, Here's the second shot from the CPC mast. The hardest job was getting the camera and tripod up the mast. Mike Wilson Hi Arthur: In reply to Marge and Steve de Lange's posting,and excellent photos from the 60s, I hereby enclose further recent (April 2000) photos of Mindola Dam, picnic/braai area, and a couple of the Bird Sanctuary and Dambo. Some photos for possible publication on the GNR website - all of Zambian or possible Congolese art: Three paintings: An old one in oils on canvas by Tshisanda - we bought it about 38 years ago in Chingola, but I think it is of Katanga origin Two more recent ones by Malunga - one char, the other watercolour bought in April 2000 outside Nchanga hotel, Three beaten copper plaques of a hunter, a woman and a smaller image of a huntsman - also about 38 years old. Other people must have even better examples of Zambian/Rhodesian art as treasured souvenirs - let's see some more photos in this vein. Bob Allan Melbourne Arthur please put these on for me while they are topical, thanks pal.Johnny. Here is the proof that you wanted Tina, as you can see they are exhausted from a heavy session this weekend in the village hall of the mining village of Wombwell, I deliberatley averted the camera lens as you can imagine from the rear of these pussies as it is not a pleasant sight to see, Imagine what your bottom would look like if it had been strummed on with a very rough tongue and two very tight Banjo strings for about 16 hours this weekend, hope this satisfies your curiosity Tina, and dont believe that Codswallop that little girl from Australia sent in about camera's. Regards Johnny. Johnny - As you know I will only post up stuff related to the homeland, be it people, places, animals, sunsets or whatever, so this one nearly went in the bin. However, I seemed to recognise something familiar in the shot and then I remembered, my Davy Crockett hat I had to make myself when my mum wouldn't buy me one from the OK Bazaars because they were too expensive. I was pretty good with a .22 airgun and the metal corrugated roof of our house was a good place to dry out the skin. It was the best one in the street and only had one extra hole in it. If they ever come back into fashion I think I will have no shortage of material round here - not sure how I'd dry them out though. So your hat just made the Message Board. - Arthur Arthur, I wonder if anyone remembers Andrew Hayward who ran a photography business in Kitwe. He gave me this knife when he sold me my first Pentax SLR, and got me started in a lifelong hobby. Dave Hounsell Thought somebody might like to see these old photos Mufulira guest house circa 1940's Hotel Mufulira circa 1940's Flying Club Mufulira Tenders for Sunderland flying boats on the Zambezi Barry Morton Arthur, herewith a photo you may not have. Anglican Cathedral taken around 1995 Regards Alister Watson Lusaka 1950-2001 Dear Arthur, I have just realised that I never responded to your e-mail. Here are three pictures of Livingstone in 1973. You'll recognise the main thorougfare and the Zambezi River. Cheers for now, Chisanga Hi Arthur My Dad once a year would take his students into the Northern Rhodesian country side for six weeks to carry out hands on survey work in the field. Sometimes a Farmer would pay a small fee to have his farm surveyed, where each field was laid out including gates and corner posts. Fields were all shapes and sizes to take in account the terrain and dry water beds and other potential hazards. This would all be incorporated into lessons as a challenge for the budding students to resolve. The Field trips were during the winter months so it must be February/March for I recall steaming breaths some mornings when we got up. Before starting schooling we would as a family spend the whole time at camp and once I started my school days it was only during the school holiday period that we would join Dad in the field for a two to three week period. The camps were always very comfortable where there was no electricity. The only concession being a blue 'saucepan radio' hooked up to a largish battery for news broadcasts and evening background. I recall listening to Superman, up, up and away also Dick Tracey. Cooking was fuelled on a log fire or primus stove with lights being a 'Tilley Lamp' and hurricane lamps all fuelled with paraffin. I am told when I was two that one morning Mom pulled back the blanket to get me up and curled up under the blanket with me was a snake. With the nights being chilly the snake must have thought it had discovered a lovely warm spot! At a different camp, my sister and I were woken up in the middle of the night by the folks where we and our beds were covered in red ants. I recall standing to one side whilst our pyjamas were quickly removed and ants being brushed off with bare hands. The ants did not bite us for some reason but it put paid to the rest of the night. There were thousand upon thousands, a dark river meandering from out of the darkness, through the tent and on to the darkness on the other side. Sunrise next morning there was no sign of a red ant, only the ones stepped upon during the night. The black and white picture is of me, up a tree, wearing my Broken Hill School uniform. The other picture is of an oil painting that my mother did and I imagine that the black and white picture gave her part of the camp scene. When my parents immigrated to England Mum as a hobby took up oil painting and went to night school for a year or so. Sadly Mum developed breast cancer and she undertook to create a Rhodesian painting, one for each of here six children before succumbing 1985. This is my painting of the bush camps that I loved as a youngster. Mum loved her country, Southern Rhodesia, with so much passion and was very taken with trees and flowers. For me it captures the Northern Rhodesia as I grew up in and the full wild beauty of it all. I attach and if you feel the picture suitable then would share this with the Northerners. Bob Eglington Dear GNR Friends I wanted to get this off before more time passes. We have alluded to our recent "Irishness" around St. Paddy's Day on the GNR. Here is some pictorial evidence of what the Magee family has been getting up to. Firstly ignore the printed dates on the picture. I must redo or remove the date settings. The pictures with the dog and lots of curtains are setting up at Dallas Irish Fest 2003 where we help run the wolfhound booth. The boy is my 17 year old Chris, all 6 ft. 5" of him. The dog is our rescued Irish Wolfhound/Great Dane cross, Cozy. Doesn't she have the best grin? The more eagle-eyed among you may notice that I am wearing a Welsh dragon. This is because it was St. Daffyd's day, look you, and we wanted to be fair. Anno Domini none of us can do much about but a good sense of humour helps! We have a great bit of craic every Sunday afternoon. I play celtic music informally with a gaggle of amateur musicians. My part is vocals and guitar back up. The guitar back up is simple but still like being part of weaving a carpet, divising the best background shades for the main colors and type of each individual work. This year this all turned into a last minute gig on the Jameson's Whiskey Float in the Dallas parade. Chris and Cozy came too. My dear husband Ted gets around as much as he can but he sustained a major back injury so you will only see him in a few of the capers depicted here. He is in the third picture down in "irishness-c.jpg". He is reading quietly at the far end of the picture in a grey T-shirt with a splash of red on it. Anyway, I hope you find this enjoyable. Here's to your health, happiness and good fortune and I hope it will not be too long until we all meet / meet again. Tina Magee (née Wallace) Here is some more from Hartley Heaton's Lusaka Golden Jubilee 1963 brochure. A page about the Statue of Physical Liberty Some advertisements from the booklet which may bring back a memory or two. Dave Gray Thanks for your posting on the Astra bioscope in Kitwe, do you know that date it opened? I also remember the Saturday matinees which were great, you always wanted to go back the next week to see how the hero of the day got out of predicament at the end of every episode. I missed the one where he was tied down to a conveyor belt on his way to a large timber saw. Here's a scan from an April 1959 Rhokana Review detailing "what's on" that month at the Astra and the Rhokana bioscopes. (Guy Hobbs - I have only six more mags left to scan from the two volumes - I will e-mail you shortly) Mike Wilson sent me the negative of the last Astra photo and as Mike pointed out there is a quite a bit more of the Nkana Hotel car park showing on it. When I have a moment more I will see what I can do with the photo. To those of you waiting for a response - I hope to start on my e-mail backlog tomorrow - but please don't hold your breath, I also have a few message board messages that need a reply and I haven't forgotten. Thanks to all for the usual brilliant contributions. CJ - Wot another black hole ! Ha..Ha.. Happy Birthday ! Will you be at the Livingstone Lark ? Arthur Arthur Steevens — Click here to contact me Stockport, United Kingdom Sunday, April 20, 2003 at 00:28:47 (UTC)