Central Otago Heritage Trust's (COHT) oral history programme has been boosted by a $11,430 grant from Central Lakes Trust (CLT) in the August funding round. 

The oral histories recorded by the trust have included local personalities like Snow Farm co-founder Mary Lee and former Tarras School principal of 25 years Noelene Pullar.  

COHT oral history manager Carolyn Squires said the stories are considered to be a shared taonga (treasure) and essential to have recorded, preserved, shared and celebrated on an ongoing basis.

The programme preserves “our unique history shared through the spoken word, and make these available for the public to enjoy and listen to on our website,” Carolyn said.

The CLT grant will support the project for another two years, through to July 2025.

Currently there are 84 oral histories in the collection, and 12 are available online for anyone to listen to, (including residents of Hāwea, Tarras, Cardrona and more).

Interviews are carried out by volunteers, and the project aims to collect 30 oral histories a year. 

Each oral history can involve 16 or more hours to complete, covering preparation, pre-interview meetings, recording and editing. 

So far volunteers have spent 2,160 hours working on the oral histories. 

Carolyn said COHT OHP currently has a full quota of volunteer interviewers but they do need assistance from someone who has expertise in using software to edit audio content. 

The collection of interviews cover a wide range of topics including farming, viticulture, health, dance and community engagement. 

“We are interested in collecting more oral history recordings on the stories of different ethnic groups across Central Otago [too].”

For more information contact [email protected] or visit the OHP website.

PHOTO: Central Otago Heritage Trust