Story: Whitebait and whitebaiting

Boys with nets

Boys with nets

On an island in the Hokitika River in 1932, these boys pose with their home-made scoop nets. They are, from left, John Cameron, Jack Harding, Neoly Saxon and Jock Tulloch. Catching whitebait offered anyone a chance to get some income – in those days the going rate was five shillings a pint. In 2006 this equated to roughly $40 a litre – not bad pocket money.

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West Coast Historical Museum
Reference: Auckland Weekly News, 31 August 1932, p. 38

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How to cite this page:

Carl Walrond, 'Whitebait and whitebaiting - Nets, screens and canneries', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/11702/boys-with-nets (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Carl Walrond, published 24 Sep 2007, reviewed & revised 23 Jun 2023