A to Z of Tauranga Museum: B is for Bathing Suits

 

Image courtesy of Tauranga Museum, Robert Gale Collection, 0005/20/539

As the Bay of Plenty summer continues to be hot and locals and visitors alike flock to the coast, it’s hard to miss how deeply beach culture is woven into our identity. From sun-soaked days on Mount Maunganui beaches to the salty breeze off Te Awanui, these experiences have shaped our city’s character for generations. The Tauranga Museum holds a treasure trove of artifacts that tell this story.

Gifted by Tauranga Historical Society, Tauranga Museum, 0230/11

Its collection captures the essence of seaside leisure: beach umbrellas for shade, surf boards for thrill-seekers, picnic baskets for family outings, and even a bottle of Q-tol – the once-popular lotion that soothed sunburn long before we understood the importance of sunscreen.

                                1930s swimsuit, made in England.               Early 1980s Expozay, made in Tauranga.
                                       Tauranga Museum, 0151/16                           Tauranga Museum, 0032/14

But the real stars of the collection might be the bathing suits. With 83 suits spanning more than a century, this collection charts the evolution of beachwear - from modest woollen costumes to sleek Lycra designs. Many of the suits reflect not only innovation in materials and design but also changing attitudes toward fashion and freedom of expression.

For example, the museum holds two Jantzen swimsuits that were manufactured in Wellington by A.J. Coleman Ltd under licence from the American brand.  They were the height of style in their respective decades. During the 1930s and 40s, new fabrics emerged, sleeves vanished, and bold colours became the norm – as seen in a striking bright blue swimsuit:

1930s-1940s Jantzen swimsuit. Tauranga Museum, 0019/00

 Moving forward to the 1970s, and designers were embracing Lycra, a revolutionary fabric that allowed for greater flexibility and comfort. This floral swimsuit illustrates the shift toward vibrant patterns and figure-hugging styles that defined the decade:

1970s Jantzen swimsuit. Tauranga Museum, 0266/11

Beach Culture and Bathing Costumes

Swimming in Tauranga harbour, circa 1910s: From left to right, Rennie Daines, Connie Humphreys, Mamey Hesket, Rennie Hesket. Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries, Pae Korokī Photo 04-041

While it may be the dead of winter, the importance of beach culture to our city’s identity has been on my mind. Happily, the TaurangaHeritage Collection has a fantastic array of artifacts connected to long hot summer days spent at the beach, from parasols and skurfing boards to picnic baskets and Q-tol.

Indeed, our collection of eighty-three bathing costumes, spanning more than 100 years, highlights innovation in materials and design as well as changing attitudes around what we are willing to expose to the sun, and each other. While Victorian morals had swimmers completely covered, and often in tents or bathing machines, by the 1910s Edwardians were seeking more practical costumes which would allow for movement, and fun, in the water. The push for more freedom was championed by celebrities such as Annette Kellermann, a professional Australian swimmer and diver credited with being the first woman to wear a one-piece suit.

Left: A ‘Petone’ Canadian style swimsuit made in New Zealand. Tauranga Heritage Collection 0044/12. Right: Postcard of "Miss Annette Kellermann, Champion Lady Swimmer and Diver of the World." Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0095/23

Known in this part of the world as a ‘Canadian’ swimsuit, presumably after its country of origin, the costume seen above was made by the Wellington Woollen Manufacturing Company and sold under the brand ‘Petone’. This style was worn by men, women and children and simplified earlier bathing costumes. Often made from machine-knitted cotton, this suit is woollen and has two buttons along the shoulder line to make it possible to get into (the shorts are attached to the top), and a small label declares that it is ‘OS’ or one size.

Left: ‘Pacific’ swimsuit. Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0385/87. Right: Kitty Hardy (centre) with two companions at the main Mount beach circa 1920s. Borrell Collection, Tauranga Heritage Collection

Other New Zealand textile manufacturers also entered the swimwear market in the 1910s. Lane, Walker Rudkin Ltd, who up until the early 2000s was one of New Zealand’s most successful clothing companies, is well represented in our collection. Initially known for its ‘Pacific’ brand, the company went on to make swimsuits under their ‘Canterbury’ label and were also licenced to make ‘Speedo’ and ‘Catalina’. In the 1930s they pioneered the use of elasticised woollen fabrics and were quick to capitalise on the trend of men baring their torsos.

Left: Speedo bathing trunks. Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0015/00. Right: Standing in shallow water at Mount main beach from left, Ira Taylor (wearing Speedo), Yvonne Tootell, Alectina Gunn, Barry Tootell and Monty Tootell circa 1940-41. Arabin Collection, Tauranga Heritage Collection

In the 1930s and 40s new fabrics were introduced, sleeves disappeared, and the two-piece reappeared having first been worn in ancient Rome. Swimsuits in vibrant colours were produced and sold with matching rubber caps. The American label ‘Jantzen’, licenced to New Zealand company A. J. Coleman Ltd, transported Hollywood trends to our beaches with stars Ginger Rogers and Loretta Young featured in their 1930s advertisements.

Left: A green Jantzen suit made of tufted cotton, also known as chenille, featuring adjustable straps. Middle: This suit has “Shouldaire” technology which allowed the wearer to drop their shoulder straps for ‘strap-free tanning’ - it was controversial when launched by Jantzen in 1931. Right: A bright red woollen Roslyn suit. Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0071/18, 0268/11, 0060/93

Post WW2, achieving the right look was often more important than a swimsuit’s practicality or even durability. Boning, firm bra cups, and rubber lining were deployed to give the wearer an hourglass shape. The Princess Bathing Suit, which generally had a sweetheart neckline and a tight skirt covering the front, and sometimes the back, epitomised the glamourous style of the 1950s.

Left: This striped suit was designed to highlight the wearers femininity and features ruching, a synched waist, and removable straps for sunbathing. Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0021/08. Right: ‘Bathing beauties on the beach’ Matakana Island, circa 1950s. Te Ao Mārama - Tauranga City Libraries, Pae Korokī Photo 01-334

Bikini clad sun-bathers on the main Mount beach. Neal Collection, Tauranga Heritage Collection

The 1960s saw the explosion of youth and surf culture which pushed for change. The bikini began to outsell the two-piece, with ‘Bond-girl’ Ursula Andress and magazines such as Sports Illustrated playing their part in its popularity. Men’s swimwear also shrank with ‘briefs’ making an appearance at the 1972 Olympic games. During the 1970s swimwear designers finally let go any inhibitions and embraced the benefits of Lycra - a relatively new fabric that allowed everything to stay in place. String bikinis, thongs, shear fabric and cut-outs were increasingly popular as ‘sexy’ became fashionable. 

Left: Expozay bikini. Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0014/00. Right: Emroce 'G's up She's in it' bikini. Tauranga Heritage Collection, 0164/23/1-2

In 1976, locals Judy and Tony Alvos were inspired to start their own swimwear company, Expozay, which embodied this spirit. By 1982 their designs were being exported around the world and the company employed 120 people, making over 1000 swimsuits a day – right here in Tauranga. Today the local swimwear industry continues with businesses such as Papamoa based Emroce garnering international attention with its focus on eco-conscious design and fabrics, as well as inclusivity. In 2023 we were delighted to add several of Emroce’s swimsuits to our collection.

Elva's Wedding Dress

Image courtesy of Brain Watkins House Collection. Ref. 2005-0093

A bride for the first and only time at age of 72 Elva Brain chose for the occasion a silk crepe and lace dress that she had worn as a much younger woman.

Image courtesy of Brain Watkins House Collection. Ref. 2004-0550

These images of her wearing it are obviously in different decades and demonstrate her frugality in 1964 when she married long time family friend Willie Watkins.

Image courtesy of Sun Media Ltd.

The dress is still in very good condition and part of the Brain Watkins collection. Here you can see it laid across the bed in the master bedroom on display for the recent wedding display for the  Tauranga Historical Society’s annual fundraising Garden Party.

How the Society’s annual Garden Party began

As the Tauranga Historical Society prepares for their annual Garden Party, to be held on Sunday March 1st, let’s look back at the Society’s first garden party which took place on Saturday December 1st, 1979.

Garden party visitors at the Brain Watkins House, 1 December 1979
Image: Tauranga Historical Society Collection

Hailed as a ‘Victorianarama Garden Party and Picnic’ the invitation promised entertainment for ‘edification and pleasure’ and included the Otumoetai College Choir, a piano accordionist and an organist. Undine Clarke’s dancers were also part of the line-up. Undine, ‘who pioneered the art of dance in Tauranga’, taught ballet, Spanish, musical comedy, ballroom and traditional highland and on the day her students performed ‘period and national dances’, no doubt on the grass between the flower beds. Spinning and weaving demonstrations also kept the crowd, of approximately 150 people, entertained.

Otumoetai College Girls’ Choir with Bob Addison, who was a teacher at the College at that time
Image: Tauranga Historical Society Collection

Spinning and weaving demonstration under the pack porch of the Brain Watkins House
Image: Tauranga Historical Society Collection

Several prizes were awarded to those who came in Victorian dress. According to The Bay of Plenty Times “the best dressed Victorian lady was Mrs Fay Steel of Welcome Bay, wearing the wedding dress of Mrs Harry Graham’s grandmother. Mr B.C. Julian won the best dressed gentleman’s prize and the child’s prize was won by Becky Hyde. Miss Violet Macmillan wore the best Victorian bonnet.”

Mrs Fay Steel and Mr B.C. Julian, winners of the period attire competition
Image: Brain Watkins Collection

Although on the day a great deal of fun was had there was a serious side to the gathering. The goal being to introduce members of the Tauranga Historical Society to the Brain Watkins House. Earlier that year the house had been gifted to the Society by Mrs Elva Brain Watkins. Society President Mr Eagle was reported as saying, “we are still flexible in our plans. It is up to our members to suggest how they would like to see the house used.”

Mrs Flo Pearson and Mr Duff Maxwell of The Elms Mission House wearing Archdeacon Brown’s top hat with Mrs Pat Eveson, the well-known TV personality

More than 40 years later the Society continues to maintain the house for the enjoyment of Tauranga residents and of course hosts a fabulous Garden Party every year.

Talented dancers perform moves from the 1950’s at the Tauranga Historical Society’s Vintage Garden Party, Sunday 3 March 2019
Image: Lee Switzer, Private Collection