HOWICK WOMEN'S BOWLING CLUB INC

A Perspective
The Club was founded in 1950 by Mrs Nancie Mold together with Mrs Edith Simpson, Mrs May Schofield,Mrs Doris Parker, Mrs Isabel McCulloch, Miss McLean and 3 others. They started bowling in 1951 using the men's green situated in Uxbridge Road where Keall House now stands.

With the development of Nixon Park in 1958 the Club moved to the small pavilion in Sale Street alongside what is now Trevor King Green.
The ladies received a 'Licence to Occupy' under the Reserves and Domains Act 1953 for 33 years from 1st October 1959 at a rental of one shilling per annum, and became an independent club. The Club flagpole of heart kauri was originally erected at the home of Captain Irving of the Fencibles. In time his residence passed to Mr Geoff Clifton and when the flagpole was taken down it was presented to the Howick Bowling and Croquet Club Inc where Mrs Phyllis Clifton was a member.

Nixon Park is named after Miss Amelia Maud Nixon who was a well-known local identity.

The Club badge was struck in 1965 when permission was granted from the Howick Borough Council to use part of its crest.
The badge depicts the ship "Minerva" one of the first three ships to bring settlers to Howick in 1847.

On 9th October 1971 a new and larger extension to the original pavilion in Sale Street was officially opened and in 1975 the Club celebrated its 25th Jubilee. All members were presented with a silver tea caddy spoon suitably engraved.

In the early 1990's a joint meeting of the men's and women's clubs decided that amalgamation was the way of the future and the installation of the 2 artificial Supergrass greens was begun. The Nixon Park Bowls Board was formed at this time comprising members from both clubs, to manage the Club assets, employ staff and control legal and contractual matters thus leaving the Clubs' Executives to concentrate on administering the game. The redevelopment of the Park and the total of five playing greens has been a tremendous asset to Howick. The sharing of joint facilities include the renovation of the old clubrooms and this was achieved through the many hundreds of hours of volunteer labour. The building was officially opened in September 1995. In that same 1995/96 season the club hosted the mens national tournament which was a resounding success and a wonderful effort from both clubs.

We now enjoy an excellent two storey clubhouse and are recognised as one of the top clubs in New Zealand with excellent facilities to support year round play.


A short video on renovations

This clip was extracted from a DVD made of the major renovations of Club House and Artificial Greens.
Fred Chipperfield, the narrator, passed away April 2012.

President Pauline Murdoch Coming Up Champ of Champ Events

Men's President's Message

I am very pleased to be elected President of the Howick Bowling Club and hope that I can do justice to the position. We have a fantastic group of volunteers in the Club and I would like to think that they will continue to support me. The continued refurbishment of the greens and the new seats for "A" green, plus the new roof is in keeping with the high standards of the club. In this financial climate we must not forget our sponsors and thank them for their contributions. The playing strength of the senior players in the Club looks very strong this season and also our 1-5 year players show a great deal of promise. Good Bowling to you all Ron Blucher President

At The End Of A Long Long Day