November 2006 - ISSN No.1175-9631
Staff of the New Zealand Police Museum
Changes have been in the air for familiar faces Sophie Giddens and Kamaya Yates, and a new face has joined the Police Museum staff.
Sophie has moved into the Collection Officer position recently vacated by Kamaya. “Every day provides amazing new discoveries about police history. I also enjoy meeting people who are passionate about their own role in police history. It is really exciting and I am looking forward to challenges in the New Year.”
Kamaya was appointed Museum Manager in April 2006. “My first important task was to work with Sophie to appoint a new Customer Services Officer. It was a long but rewarding process and we were really fortunate to be able to select a very talented person.”
Emma Godwin has a Master of Arts in history and has ambitions to be a curator in the future. I am really pleased to have the chance to work with the team at the New Zealand Police Museum. It’s exciting to be in an environment that is undergoing innovative change. I am looking forward to the next couple of years when I will have the opportunity to contribute to some very interesting projects such as the International Police Museum Conference.
120th Police Anniversary celebrated
Over 400 staff gathered in the firearms range on Friday 1 September, to celebrate the founding of the New Zealand Police.
At the parade the Police Minister gave an address to staff and unveiled a copy of the proclamation from the then Minister of Defence John Ballance to Governor Jervois seeking royal assent to the Police Force Act, which came into effect on 1 September 1886.
The proclamation, which dates back to 1886, was discovered by Joe Franklin in 1978 in the basement of an old police station. However, it was in storage and only rediscovered this year in the New Zealand Police Museum’s archives. Collection Officer Sophie Giddens explains, “as our collection remains largely unaccessioned it means that a lot of Police treasures remain unknown. It was lucky we decided to work on that particular storage area right before the Police anniversary.” A copy of the 1886 proclamation is on display at the Police College reception, while the original copy is now stored in a safe within the museum.
25th Anniversary of The Royal New Zealand Police College - Open Day
Earlier this year The Royal New Zealand Police College celebrated 25 years at the current site in Porirua. The celebrations climaxed with the open day on Saturday 1 April, which saw a huge crowd at the College, ensuring the 10/8 Café and other food stalls did a roaring trade.
The Police Museum was home to police dog puppies on the day, counted 2,252 visitors through its doors, nearly three times its previous open day record, while 4,369 were counted entering the displays in the gymnasium. “The police dog puppies were very popular and so were our soft toy police dogs!” said Collection Officer Sophie Giddens.
The drug dog and forensic displays were so popular a half-hour queue built up during the afternoon. Meanwhile people packed around the sports field to see the General Purpose Dogs demonstrate their obedience and agility.
The crowd was entertained with skits showing how police dogs are used operationally. Following this, the AOS arrived by helicopter to demonstrate how the Police respond to armed incidents.
Along with children’s TV show What Now, which spent the morning at the open day, a big hit with kids was the tightly choreographed display by 20 police motorcyclists and the performance by the Police Pipe Band where the children were invited to take a closer look as the pipe band played.
The arrival of a group protesting in support of Louise Nicholas was moved on by College staff with the support of several members of the public, who expressed anger that the protestors had chosen a family occasion for their protest.
However, feedback was overwhelmingly positive and a letter from Acting Commissioner Steve Long congratulated College staff on the very high standard of the three anniversary events, acknowledging that the work put into organising them was well above and beyond everyone’s normal duties, but that the public relations outcomes will be immeasurable.
“These events have continued to demonstrate your ongoing pride in New Zealand Police ... thanks for a wonderful experience.”
A thank you email was sent via the Police website... “I want to say a big thank you for the police open day - I really enjoyed it. From Jack, 3 yrs old.”
The next open day is scheduled for February 2008 to coincide with the 100th Anniversary of the New Zealand Police Museum and to close the International Police Museum Conference to be held at the College.
Vintage vehicle rolled out for anniversary
A vehicle from a bygone era was on display at the NZ Police Dog Section’s 50th anniversary - a 1965 Holden Ute fashioned into one of the country’s first police dog vans.
“This van was modified specially to fill the growing needs of the Police Dog Section. It is no doubt the first of its kind,” says NZ Police Museum Manager, Kamaya Yates.
“It was probably used to carry prisoners before it took on a new life as a police dog van.”
As part of the Dog Section’s 50th anniversary celebrations, the vehicle was transported between Auckland and Trentham under the watchful eyes of Owen Knowles and Ken Adams from Car Haulaways Ltd.
Last year, the Police Museum transferred its vehicle collection to Auckland’s Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT) on long-term loan. However, the vehicles are available for use at police request.
A 1929 Model T paddy wagon, a 1950s Humber Super Snipe and a 1946 Ford Coupe are just some of the vintage vehicles available from MOTAT for police events.
‘Massey’s Cossacks’ storm 1913 Strike exhibition
Police museum staff dressed as 20th century constables for the opening of the 1913 Strike exhibition at the Museum of City and Sea in Wellington in August. The exhibition details a waterfront battle between police and striking wharf workers.
The three-week strike, which effectively put a stranglehold on cargo transport and choked the Wellington harbour with ships laden with goods, prompted the Massey government to employ 1,500 farmers and civilian volunteers as ‘special constables’.
The special constables, who quickly became known as Massey’s Cossacks, were each issued with an armband, a regulation baton and a lapel badge and had all the powers of a regular police officer. Unfortunately, the police ran out of batons so many special officers bought their own or fashioned them from wheelbarrow spokes or axe handles.
NZ Police Museum Manager Kamaya Yates says the employment of temporary constables set a certain precedent for NZ Police. “The issue of temporary constables comes up now and then throughout the history of the New Zealand Police. During the 1951 waterfront dispute and the 1981 Springbok tour, plans were drawn up to use special constables. It all goes back to this time,” she says.
As well as donating their time, the Police Museum staff also donated some hand-carved batons and pillar-lock handcuffs for the Wellington-based exhibition which ran until 25 November.
Kamaya says the Police Museum is working on collaborating with more museums and galleries, so that the general public can gain a better idea of the role of police in New Zealand history.
Photo top: NZ Police Museum Collection Officer Sophie Giddens looks at some pillar-lock handcuffs at the opening of the 1913 Strike exhibition Wellington’s Museum of City and Sea. NZ Police Museum
Photo bottom: Emma Godwin and Kamaya Yates arrest a riotous wharf worker in a mock demonstration of the 1913 Strike. Police Museum staff dressed as 20th century constables for the opening of the Museum of City and Sea’s Strike Exhibition.
Our favourite Police Museum objects
“It’s a weapon of mass destruction we received in 2005. It was seized from a house in Hastings. There was a guy who was making them. I like it because it shows the ingenuity of people and it’s a lovely reminder of why the Police need tools like Tasers and OC spray,” says Museum Manager Kamaya Yates.
“My favourite item would have to be a memo that was written by Commissioner Dinnie in 1908 asking for anything interesting that the Police came across to be forwarded to him for safekeeping. That was the start of our collection really. I wonder if he had this vision, when he sent that memo out. I noticed that there is a spelling mistake. It’s a reminder to check your spelling because you never know what is going to be history,” says Collection Officer Sophie Giddens.
“I love Rhys the stuffed dog. I have a real attachment to Police dogs because I had one once. She was a German Shepherd or GSD (German Shepherd Dog) as they call them. She was just a big sook, I’m not surprised the Police didn’t want to keep her. Apparently Rhys was a good tracking dog, that’s why they put him in this position. The kids just love to stroke him, they always ask ‘how do you freeze him?’ “, says Customer Services Officer Emma Godwin.
Police Museum Manager awarded US study exchange
Police Museum Manager Kamaya Yates has been selected as one of four people from the lower North Island for a one-month Rotary International Group Study Exchange to the US in April 2007.
The Rotary programme is an annual scholarship enabling young professionals to share their knowledge and learn more about their own vocation from professionals working in the same occupation in the US.
Kamaya will be travelling to New York State with three other participants from the lower North Island. They are Porirua Prosecutor Sergeant Jason May, a scientist and an interpreter for the deaf.
Kamaya and Jason are among a growing list of police staff chosen for the study tour. Among them has been former Commissioner Rob Robinson who participated some 25 years ago and last year Upper Hutt Youth Aid Officer Constable Jeff Scoringe took part.
Kamaya will be hosted by Rotarians throughout New York State while she spends time imparting her experience and knowledge about running the New Zealand Police Museum to a wide range of groups and learning from museum professionals there.
“I’m particularly interested in visiting the New York Police Museum and a new National Law Enforcement Museum that is being built in Washington, DC. There is also a highly regarded children’s museum in Poughkeepsie just north of New York City.
Kamaya has also recently benefited from a Te Papa National Service grant for museum professionals, which enabled her to attend a week-long Strategic Leadership Course run through Victoria University and Te Papa National Services.
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