Alfred Baden Magee 1900 - 1987 - Carpenter and Battery hand at the Blackwater mine.

About this image

DescriptionAlfred Baden Magee 1900 - 1987. Alf Magee was a carpenter and battery hand at the Blackwater mine at Waiuta on the West Coast. He followed his father to work in the mines, first at Globe Hill and then in Waiuta at the age of 14. He is also remembered as a fine dancer. Because access to Waiuta was difficult, the town developed an incredible sense of community. The Miner's Hall became the centre of the town's social life. It was the setting for films, weddings, union meetings, the Saturday night dance, and the social event of the year, the Bachelors' Ball.
It was Alf's mother, Minnie, who set the standard for social niceties for the local dance hall. Mrs Magee arrived in the West Coast with three beautiful daughters, and as there was a shortage of single women in any mining town the Magee sisters were keenly sought after .... but any miner wearing hob nailed boots who had the nerve to ask one of the girls for a dance was quickly set packing.
The young miners soon learnt the correct dance hall etiquette. Highly polished shoes were the order of the day. It was said that it was Mrs Magee who won the west. Alf Magee was to become a much respected and liked member of the Waiuta community. Map^[1]ContributorAnn Salley Jones

Shown in this image

Location (city or town)WaiutaPersonAlfred Baden Magee Organisation (eg business)Blackwater mine

Category Information

Category TagGoldmining

From Facebook

Date Created23rd December 2022

OCR Text Transcription Edit Edit +-Close

Editing is temporarily disabled

Cancel Edit

Start typing here to find a location	Latitude	Longitude	Zoom	Actions

loading google map....

Save Cancel

Menu

Alfred Baden Magee 1900 - 1987 - Carpenter and Battery hand at the Blackwater mine.

Editing is temporarily disabled