Skip to main content

Story: English language in New Zealand

Beachcombing, 1907

Image
Beachcombing, 1907

West Coast miners who worked the black sand for gold were known as beachcombers. This word came to have a wider meaning and now refers to hunting for objects along shorelines. This man was photographed looking for gold at Charleston on the West Coast in 1907 – the newspaper caption describes him as beachcombing.

Using this item

Auckland Council Libraries − Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero o Tāmaki Makaurau, Sir George Grey Special Collections

Reference: AWNS-19070214-12-1

Permission of Auckland City Libraries Tāmaki Pātaka Kōrero must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

All images & media in this story

How to cite this page

Dianne Bardsley, English language in New Zealand – The development of New Zealand English, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/40324/beachcombing-1907 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Dianne Bardsley, published 3 December 2012.