Love, cows and rugby: First impressions of the Feavers’ photographic practice
If you want to understand life in Ōpunakē in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Feaver Collection offers three clues: love, cows, and rugby. In cataloguing some of the earliest photographs in the collection, which date from 1895 onwards, I have found evidence of all three.
In the winter of 1907, Charlotte Dinah Pentelow married William Rodger Parsons in Oaonui, a tiny town north of Ōpunakē. This outdoor photograph captures a a celebration of one of life's most important occasions. The wedding party poses in their finest clothes, creating a record of a day that was likely remembered for years following. The Taranaki Daily News reported afterward that the young couple, ‘who were the recipients of numerous presents’, departed for their new home at Pihama.
Once the fun of wedding celebrations ended, everyday life would have quickly returned. Across the Waimate Plains, dairying was shaping both the landscape and the rhythm of daily life. Photographs from this period show children and adults proudly standing alongside their homes and herds, reflecting the central role farming played in supporting families and building the region's reputation as the dairy powerhouse of New Zealand.
Of course, rural communities needed more than work alone. Rugby provided a source of pride, rivalry, and entertainment. In 1908, the Waimate Senior Rugby Team won the Taranaki Senior Championship with a decisive 14-0 victory over Ōkato. Rugby historian Arthur Swan later described this success as the beginning of the club's "Golden Age". For local supporters, rugby offered more than a game. It was a chance to represent the district, settle local rivalries, and enjoy a well-earned Saturday afternoon.
Together, these photographs tell a story greater than the individual moments they document. They reveal a community where families were formed, livelihoods grew, and community connections were forged through sports. More than a century later, love, cows, and rugby remain familiar threads in the story of Taranaki.
Sources:
Arthur C. Swan, Waimate Rugby Football Club 1884-1958. Waimate Football Club, Manaia, 1958.
George and Jean Richards, And Then There Was One. New Plymouth, 1995.
Wedding Bells, Taranaki Daily News, Volume L, Issue 60, 16 August 1907, Page 2,
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/TDN19070816.2.7