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Les Arnold back home to Whataroa from war, 1943.
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Description1943...les Arnold ,Whataroa ,home from Army Service. With pals: Joe Curtain, George Thompson, Harry Thompson, Bill Curtain.Date of Photo1943Map[1] ContributorShirley Arnold
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Location (city or town)WhataroaPersonLes ArnoldBill CurtainJoe CurtainGeorge ThompsonHarry ThompsonLandmark (Place)Ford's Brewery HokitikaEventLes Arnold soldierBeer bottles
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Date Created31st July 2019CommentsGraham Bishop The labels on those beer bottles are very likely to be from Fords Brewery’s Hokitika .
Glenn Johnston Yes the labels look to be one of the versions of the Fords Pale Ale XXXX with the glacier scene. Appropriate for South Westland drinkers! The glacier picture was captioned "the best spot in Westland" which no doubt was also meant to describe the quality of the beer. Bill Curtain on the right had a daughter, Jeanette, in the same class as me through Primary School.
Bev Freitas Graham Bishop
Good spotting Graham Bishop,
James Codyre I remember Bill Curtain as a top chopper?
Shannon Ford Graham Bishop wish we still had a Brewery!
Don Hutton James Codyre Bill was a champion axeman. He worked in a shop in Revell St, Hokitika in the later 1950s.
James Codyre Did he have a brother Joe?
Myron Caldwell Shirley Arnold. was Les related to tommy Arnold up at Inangahua. If my old memory serves me right, there was some relationship there.
Ave Muir Remember them all, two uncles in there
Ave Muir Wayne Searle George and Harry, mums (Elsie Routhans) brothers
Margaretandles Reynolds Ave Muir Me too Ave. Both nice guys.
Valda Ford What a memorable picture , Shirl.. sure jogs some comments
Doreen Thomson Knew all of them very well Les was a great friend Bill painted my house inHokitika Harry and George were my husbands brothers cool photo
Donna May My lovely Grandad x
Kay Unkovich Great to see this photo Uncle Joe and Dad .... thanks Kay ex Curtain
Arthur Dehn Hi I am Arthur Dehn and I knew less. Arnold Roy Arnold who fixed our car 1940s
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn you lived on flat road before Malcolm Mcbrides?
Arthur Dehn Yes my Dad built that house in 1927 , I was born in 1933 , went too school in 1938 , we moved to chch in 1946 .are you Roy or Les,s daughter ,? I used to drive to school in my Brother s little Austin 7 car during the war yrs ! Lovely to hear from you !!
Arthur Dehn My Brother,s name was Colin and he went to school with Allen but Les was older
Rod Berry Five notable men back in a day. Joe Curtain was my foreman at CFM Belfast freezing works on the lamb chain 1960's. Harry's brothers, George and Browny Thompson least and managed Berrys butcher shop at Hari Hari early 60's. Bill Curtain from Hokitika was a champion axeman and represented NZ. A special photo Shirley Arnold.
Glenn Tomlinson Off the topic Shirley but can you tell me whereabouts of Brian and Gwen please
Miles Pupich Love the history that comes from these old pics / contacts.
Angela Curtain What a great photo of Dad and uncle Joe, thank you for putting it on. Cheers Angela Curtain.
Janette Curtain The lad's eh looking pretty cool. Thanks guys
Donna May My lovely Grandad x
Kay Unkovich Great to see this photo Uncle Joe and Dad .... thanks Kay ex Curtain
Arthur Dehn Hi I am Arthur Dehn and I knew less. Arnold Roy Arnold who fixed our car 1940s
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn you lived on flat road before Malcolm Mcbrides?
Arthur Dehn Yes my Dad built that house in 1927 , I was born in 1933 , went too school in 1938 , we moved to chch in 1946 .are you Roy or Les,s daughter ,? I used to drive to school in my Brother s little Austin 7 car during the war yrs ! Lovely to hear from you !!
Arthur Dehn My Brother,s name was Colin and he went to school with Allen but Les was older
Arthur Dehn Shirley Arnold Shirley did you know Roy Arnold had a yellow dog and his name was Woofler and he used to ride on the back of Roy's model t truck and he would bark at all the dogs when they drove down Flat road
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn I am married to Ken who is Les's son.
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn les and Allan in 1938 !
Manage
Image may contain: 1 person, sitting and outdoor
Arthur Dehn Thankyou for the picture of Les and Allen on the motor bike , I was just 5 and started school at that time
Arthur Dehn What building was that in the background ?
Rod Berry Five notable men back in a day. Joe Curtain was my foreman at CFM Belfast freezing works on the lamb chain 1960's. Harry's brothers, George and Browny Thompson least and managed Berrys butcher shop at Hari Hari early 60's. Bill Curtain from Hokitika was a champion axeman and represented NZ. A special photo Shirley Arnold.
Glenn Tomlinson Off the topic Shirley but can you tell me whereabouts of Brian and Gwen please
Manage
Angela Curtain What a great photo of Dad and uncle Joe, thank you for putting it on. Cheers Angela Curtain.
Janette Curtain The lad's eh looking pretty cool. Thanks guys
Rob Lunn
I am fairly sure I have my facts right here but it is a very long time ago Les was a gentleman and a scholar who was associated with Ross Motors and then Ross Holdings who were instrumental in the formation of Transport West Freighters back in the day I worked for them in Ikamatua in the early to mid eighties and Les was still on the scene in the office then he looked after his men and I have fond memories of my interactions with him a nice guy!!!
Malcolm Lutton
Rob Lunn i work for ross motors when it was formed
13h
Reply
Shirley Gardiner
Rob Lunn
I worked in the Hokitika depot from 1979 to 1987. Les was a great mentor & taught me a lot. He was also a family friend, having grown up with the Arnold family in Whataroa.
Doreen Thomson
Les Arnold was a good man and very good employer there were many men who drove trucks for him and would probably not have even got their truck license if not having a job with them including his own boys
Janette Schroeder
The Curtain brothers are related to me thru my great grandmother
Ken Duncan
43 so he was either wounded or on the first Furlough from 2NZEF, there were a lot of problems when those fellas were told to go back. when it was over.
Kevin O'Regan
A gentleman and great businessman along with brother Alan
Kevin O'Regan
South Westlands loyal Caltex fuel distributor as far South as Paringa
Dave Williams
A true westcoast hero RIP
Margaret Mulloy
George Thompson a great person
Glenn Johnston Yes the labels look to be one of the versions of the Fords Pale Ale XXXX with the glacier scene. Appropriate for South Westland drinkers! The glacier picture was captioned "the best spot in Westland" which no doubt was also meant to describe the quality of the beer. Bill Curtain on the right had a daughter, Jeanette, in the same class as me through Primary School.
Bev Freitas Graham Bishop
Good spotting Graham Bishop,
James Codyre I remember Bill Curtain as a top chopper?
Shannon Ford Graham Bishop wish we still had a Brewery!
Don Hutton James Codyre Bill was a champion axeman. He worked in a shop in Revell St, Hokitika in the later 1950s.
James Codyre Did he have a brother Joe?
Myron Caldwell Shirley Arnold. was Les related to tommy Arnold up at Inangahua. If my old memory serves me right, there was some relationship there.
Ave Muir Remember them all, two uncles in there
Ave Muir Wayne Searle George and Harry, mums (Elsie Routhans) brothers
Margaretandles Reynolds Ave Muir Me too Ave. Both nice guys.
Valda Ford What a memorable picture , Shirl.. sure jogs some comments
Doreen Thomson Knew all of them very well Les was a great friend Bill painted my house inHokitika Harry and George were my husbands brothers cool photo
Donna May My lovely Grandad x
Kay Unkovich Great to see this photo Uncle Joe and Dad .... thanks Kay ex Curtain
Arthur Dehn Hi I am Arthur Dehn and I knew less. Arnold Roy Arnold who fixed our car 1940s
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn you lived on flat road before Malcolm Mcbrides?
Arthur Dehn Yes my Dad built that house in 1927 , I was born in 1933 , went too school in 1938 , we moved to chch in 1946 .are you Roy or Les,s daughter ,? I used to drive to school in my Brother s little Austin 7 car during the war yrs ! Lovely to hear from you !!
Arthur Dehn My Brother,s name was Colin and he went to school with Allen but Les was older
Rod Berry Five notable men back in a day. Joe Curtain was my foreman at CFM Belfast freezing works on the lamb chain 1960's. Harry's brothers, George and Browny Thompson least and managed Berrys butcher shop at Hari Hari early 60's. Bill Curtain from Hokitika was a champion axeman and represented NZ. A special photo Shirley Arnold.
Glenn Tomlinson Off the topic Shirley but can you tell me whereabouts of Brian and Gwen please
Miles Pupich Love the history that comes from these old pics / contacts.
Angela Curtain What a great photo of Dad and uncle Joe, thank you for putting it on. Cheers Angela Curtain.
Janette Curtain The lad's eh looking pretty cool. Thanks guys
Donna May My lovely Grandad x
Kay Unkovich Great to see this photo Uncle Joe and Dad .... thanks Kay ex Curtain
Arthur Dehn Hi I am Arthur Dehn and I knew less. Arnold Roy Arnold who fixed our car 1940s
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn you lived on flat road before Malcolm Mcbrides?
Arthur Dehn Yes my Dad built that house in 1927 , I was born in 1933 , went too school in 1938 , we moved to chch in 1946 .are you Roy or Les,s daughter ,? I used to drive to school in my Brother s little Austin 7 car during the war yrs ! Lovely to hear from you !!
Arthur Dehn My Brother,s name was Colin and he went to school with Allen but Les was older
Arthur Dehn Shirley Arnold Shirley did you know Roy Arnold had a yellow dog and his name was Woofler and he used to ride on the back of Roy's model t truck and he would bark at all the dogs when they drove down Flat road
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn I am married to Ken who is Les's son.
Shirley Arnold Arthur Dehn les and Allan in 1938 !
Manage
Image may contain: 1 person, sitting and outdoor
Arthur Dehn Thankyou for the picture of Les and Allen on the motor bike , I was just 5 and started school at that time
Arthur Dehn What building was that in the background ?
Rod Berry Five notable men back in a day. Joe Curtain was my foreman at CFM Belfast freezing works on the lamb chain 1960's. Harry's brothers, George and Browny Thompson least and managed Berrys butcher shop at Hari Hari early 60's. Bill Curtain from Hokitika was a champion axeman and represented NZ. A special photo Shirley Arnold.
Glenn Tomlinson Off the topic Shirley but can you tell me whereabouts of Brian and Gwen please
Manage
Angela Curtain What a great photo of Dad and uncle Joe, thank you for putting it on. Cheers Angela Curtain.
Janette Curtain The lad's eh looking pretty cool. Thanks guys
Rob Lunn
I am fairly sure I have my facts right here but it is a very long time ago Les was a gentleman and a scholar who was associated with Ross Motors and then Ross Holdings who were instrumental in the formation of Transport West Freighters back in the day I worked for them in Ikamatua in the early to mid eighties and Les was still on the scene in the office then he looked after his men and I have fond memories of my interactions with him a nice guy!!!
Malcolm Lutton
Rob Lunn i work for ross motors when it was formed
13h
Reply
Shirley Gardiner
Rob Lunn
I worked in the Hokitika depot from 1979 to 1987. Les was a great mentor & taught me a lot. He was also a family friend, having grown up with the Arnold family in Whataroa.
Doreen Thomson
Les Arnold was a good man and very good employer there were many men who drove trucks for him and would probably not have even got their truck license if not having a job with them including his own boys
Janette Schroeder
The Curtain brothers are related to me thru my great grandmother
Ken Duncan
43 so he was either wounded or on the first Furlough from 2NZEF, there were a lot of problems when those fellas were told to go back. when it was over.
Kevin O'Regan
A gentleman and great businessman along with brother Alan
Kevin O'Regan
South Westlands loyal Caltex fuel distributor as far South as Paringa
Dave Williams
A true westcoast hero RIP
Margaret Mulloy
George Thompson a great person
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West Coast New Zealand History (24th Apr 2025). Les Arnold back home to Whataroa from war, 1943.. In Website West Coast New Zealand History. Retrieved 29th Apr 2026 00:00, from https://westcoast.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/25753