Source: Radio New Zealand
A postcard featuring two wahine by a river was sent from Dorothy Theomin to her cousin Allison Hallenstein, of the Hallenstein retail dynasty, in 1910 during her travels in the North Island.
Dear Little Alison,
Another postie for your book. I wonder if you can put it in for yourself – or perhaps you had better ask mother or nursie.
Love from Dorothy
Dorothy Theomin with her mother Marie
Olveston Historic Home Facebook Page
Dorothy’s family home was Olveston, the stately house that’s now one of Dunedin’s top tourist attractions, which she gave to the city after her death in 1966.
The Theomins were a very philanthropic family in Dunedin who made their fortune with firstly a tannery then the Bristol Piano Company, Olveston’s manager Jan Davies told RNZ’s Nine to Noon.
“[David and Marie Theomin] gave a lot to the community. David, one of his favourite sayings was, once you’ve looked after your dependents, your family, your friends, all the rest is on loan.”
Alison’s granddad, Bendix Hallenstein, founded the retail clothing company – which still bears his name – in 1873. He and Dorothy’s father David were both high-profile Dunedin identities, Davies says.
Both were members of the Ferndale Club and donors to the Dunedin Public Art Gallery.
Olveston is unique among stately homes in New Zealand, Davies says.
“It was really one of the very few in the world that was left lock, stock and barrel. So, everything in the home when people visit is original to the home, 240 pieces of artwork, all the original furniture, china, silverware. It is absolutely amazing.”
Davies was contacted by a collector in Auckland called Leslie in March this year, she says.
“Leslie collected over many years, postcards and other memorabilia from throughout New Zealand. And Leslie’s downsizing and she called us and said she’d like to return the postcard to its rightful place and asked, would we accept it back into the collection? Because we don’t accept anything into Olveston that’s not associated with the family.
“And we said we would be more than happy to take it back into the collection. So she sent it back to us.”
Dorothy, unusually for the time, didn’t keep diaries so the card gives an insight into her life, Davies says.
“As far as the actual postcard itself… it’s capturing two Māori wahine, a child, Akuna on the riverside of the Whanganui River, but taken in Taumarunui. So it is really very, very special.”
On the colour card, Dorothy, who was 22 at the time, suggests her cousin, might like to add that to her collection, Davies says.
“She mentions that maybe she would like to get her mother or nursie to add it to her wonderful little book there.”
Dorothy was quite the adventurer, Davies says.
“She wasn’t sat at the writing desk doing a lot of writing. She was climbing mountains. She was out there raising money for the causes, sending care packages with Red Cross.”
She was also an avid mountaineer, Davies says.
“Dorothy actually donated to the New Zealand Alpine Club, all of the photographs that she took while mountaineering, and letters that she sent back to her parents.”
The letters show Dorothy went through the Copland’s Pass 11 times, she says.
“And that’s no walk in the park. You had to be well trained to actually do this. So, like I say, she was out there doing it. She was living life to the fullest.”
An Auckland collector returned the card to Olverston.
Olveston Historic Home Facebook Page
Dorothy never married, she says.
“At the time when she was about, where she would have got married, not a lot of young men came back from World War I. They had to be Jewish as well. And so, I believe it was really quite slim pickings.
“But she wasn’t down in the mouth about it. She got out there and she still lived a very, very full life.”
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand