1985

This page is dedicated to Mrs. Anne Wotherspoon and the late Mr. Alan Wotherspoon.

Mr. Alan Wotherspoon of Wellington, New Zealand, was the Education Officer on Pitcairn Island in 1956 and 1957. At that time he was one of my childhood pen pals.His letters were full of personal insights and wry humor. Mr. Wotherspoon is one of the people who inspired me to take up teaching as a career. Above, you can see him holding a "taw-aw" ("shoulder pole") loaded with about 100 lbs. of "plun" ("bananas"). Whenever a ship stopped, islanders would haul food 300 feet down The Edge footpath to The Landing, load it on a longboat and row to the ship to trade.

His letters arrived twice a year and were major "events" for me. Stamp collecting had begun to make me aware of the world around me, but receiving letters from the smallest "legtimate" stamp issuing place was an added thrill.

I owe a large debt of appreciation to Mrs. Anne Wotherspoon who lent the slides they took in 1957. A small selection of Mr.Wotherspoon's photos appear below.

The first photo shows the boat sheds at The Landing. The islander on the left is carrying a "shoulder pole" loaded with "trade." Longboats were rowed by a crew of 14 and one coxwain on the rudder. In bad weather, men often had to row all night just to return the 1.5 miles from a visiting ship. The new jetty stands where the rocks are on the right. The first rock is "Long Stone" and the second is "Flattie."

Here the islanders are rowing out to meet the Shaw Savill Lines ship, S.S. Athenic. Upon returning islanders begin the arduous task of hauling up the longboats by hand.

This is a photo of Islanders making a canoe. In the "old days" no nails were used. Most islanders are expert sailers. Len, Jim, Tom and Royal take it easy while being towed.

The islanders have always been surrounded by relics of the past. A major event of 1957 was the recovery of the Bounty's anchor from its watery grave. It had to be hauled 300' up The Edge. No wonder people like to play "tug-of-war" at holiday picnics !! The last photo was taken at Down Rope. Betty, Anne Wotherspoon and Leona are sitting near ancient polynesian petroglyphs.

Useful Links:

http://www.government.pn/homepage.htm
http://www.lareau.org/pitc.html
http://www.pisg.org
http://library.puc.edu/pitcairn/

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