History

In New Zealand terms, Mt Albert is no youngster. Samuel Marsden is reputed to have climbed the mountain almost 200 years ago, and centuries before that Wairaka made this place her home

Long trail from early refuge to smart suburb

Mt Albert is one of Auckland’s oldest suburbs – a place far from the city in the 19th century that gave refuge to pioneers looking to escape from the bustle of “downtown”. But centuries before, Maori had made it their place. Read more

Chronicling the days of 20th century Mt Albert

Mt Albert library holds two catalogues of stories from local people about life here, documented around the time of the millennium. We publish them here to give an insight into how things used to be. Read more

Growing up here ‘couldn’t have been better’

To encourage others to share their stories, Barbara Drumm (mum to nine great kids, including champion cricketer Emily and MAGS headmaster Pat) penned these memories of growing up in Mt Albert. Read more

Tracing stories behind street names

Find a street with an interesting name, and most of us ask, “Where did that come from?” Sometimes the answer is easy; other times it’s not. In the end some intelligent guesswork can give strong clues. Read more

Fine book documents Mt Albert’s rise

Deborah Dunsford’s book, Mt Albert Then and Now, is a fine record of the history of our suburb and a tribute to the work of the Mt Albert Historical Society. Here are six excerpts to widen understanding of our history. Read more

Great stories of hard and carefree days

The Historical Society holds some great stories in its newsletter archive about simple life from days long past. Mt Albert Inc has found a couple more to add to its reservoir, bringing you more memories of the good old days. Read more

Timeline charting our rich history

Charting the development of Mt Albert from the early settlement by Maori and the arrival of the first Europeans  through to the election of Jacinda Ardern became a matter of what to leave out. Read more

Newspaper columns from our past

The National Library’s Papers Past website leads to tens of thousands of original newspaper cuttings – many of them featuring Mt Albert in our Stepping back in time column. For our column archive: Read more

CAPTIONS: Mt Albert in 1924, with Californian bungalows in the foreground, and the rail bridge across New North Rd (built in 1913). Picture courtesy Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries; Watercolour of Alberton viewed from the east. Artist is unknown but painted around 1880s-1890s. Picture courtesy of Albert House Collection, Heritage NZ;  School milk for children in the 1940s. Picture courtesy Alexander Turnbull Library;

Mt Albert Service Station, owned by Daniel Langdon Arrowsmith, around 1938. Picture courtesy Dan Gaye Arrowsmith; Mt Albert resident Barbara Drumm. Picture by Bruce Morris; The Mt Albert Shoeing Forge run by blacksmith Harry Pooche at the corner of Asquith Ave and New North Rd after 1919. Picture courtesy McGehan Collection, Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries; early Mt Albert home 1900c Picture courtesy Sir George Grey Special Collections, Auckland Libraries

The Maddaford clan: (From left): Terry, Wendy, Rex, Pamela and Tony.