The Howick & Districts Historical Society was recently handed a copy of ‘The Book of Howick’ published to
mark Howick’s centennial in 1947 – a somewhat dry and earnest souvenir booklet that could easily languish on a shelf.
However the book we were handed has been added to and embellished with dozens of news items and clippings of random events and happenings in Howick over the years.
The book is signed by a WP Payne whose eclectic interests range from the pub burning down in 1927; Jean Batten, aviatrix, being presented to the King and Queen in 1938; Miss Nixon’s garden and her poems; the opening of the concrete road in 1931 – even the fact that in 1951 Howick’s constable was the tallest in the Force at 6 feet 7 inches.
It is a treasure trove of someone with a great affection for Howick and we’d love to find WP Payne or his descendants or even someone who knows who he was.
- Marin Burgess, President, Howick & Districts Historical Society
