Kōrero: Lighthouses

Keeping a lighthouse involved the whole family. Keepers’ wives had extensive domestic duties, and children, especially the boys, helped with station jobs. But although the children spent a lot of time away from other adults, many families swam and picnicked together, and children may have seen more of their fathers than their mainland counterparts. In this 1927 photograph the keeper of the Cuvier Island lighthouse is showing his daughter how to look through a telescope.