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There was a major furore when women first rode bicycles even with modest appropriate
clothing as shown in poster at left. Bloomers (pantaloons with skirt), then pantaloon trousers
...then fitted pants, tight torso tops... scandalous! So wonder how the saucy posters shown
above that were later released were described?
John Read opened his first premises in Grahamstown, in 1867 with a
shop and timber yard that backed on to the mud and sea in Brown Street.
On the eve of a massive expansion of the township, John was poised to
prosper.
In later years John’s son Arthur could often been seen on his infamous
bicycle making deliveries – sometimes even balancing a plate of glass, as
he carefully pedalled down the streets of Thames.
John’s shop eventually carried the requisite supplies that suited the needs
of an expanding gold mining town – ironmongery, enamelled goods,
lampware, iron tubing, stocks and dies, saws, latches, bolts, hinges,
fenders, fire irons and mangles.
It was this feature of Read Bros that grew into their brand – whatever the
town needed, it could be purchased at Read’s, no matter how obscure
the item.
And today, Greg and I can attest to that. We had searched high and low
with no luck for live mouse traps that worked. We even tried the mega-
hardwares in Hamilton. We always make sure to call in at Read Bros
whenever we’re in Thames, and end up finding something
we’ve been looking for – and at the right price. This time it
was no different. Read Bros had a huge variety of mouse/
rat traps in several sizes. We found the perfect ones and
were finally able to catch our little invaders. We no longer
waste time looking elsewhere. We learned our lesson and
now go straight to Read Bros first!
Believed to be the oldest family owned business in NZ,
Read Bros Hardware will celebrate their 150th anniversary
next year. The fifth generation store owners pride
themselves on their selection – as well they should.
Even though this photo is not from
Thames, we couldn’t resist sharing
this motorbike found by Althea Barker
from The Treasury in Thames, as it is a
wonderful example of early transport.
“Clyno motorcycle with a wicker sidecar
and passengers, including a dog. Taken
circa 1920, by a photographer for
The Press newspaper, probably in the
Christchurch region.”
Bicycles Bring Out the Risque
THAMES READ BROS.
Bikes become motorised
A human-powered land vehicle with one or more wheels. The most
common type of velocipede today is the ‘safety’ bicycle.
The term was coined by Frenchman Nicéphore Niépce in 1818 to
describe his version of the Laufmaschine, which was invented by the
German Karl Drais in 1817. The term “velocipede” is today, however,
mainly used as a collective term for the different forerunners of the
monowheel, the unicycle, the bicycle, the dicycle, the tricycle and the
quadracycle developed between 1817 and 1880.
VELOCIPEDE: ve . loc . i . pede:
Alexander Turnbull Library, Ref: 1/1-008536-G.