Early Childhood Memories of Robin Archer .....

Here is some early memories of my childhood with my mother Alice Archer (nee Roberts) and my father Chas Archer (Charles William Archer)......

I was born in Gore in 1930 but my earliest recollection of my mother and father was when we lived in 20 Nelson Street, Invercargill.  I was probably 4 years old and I remember going out to the footpath to watch my father going off to work on a motorbike. 
I think my father was a keen 'bikie' riding an Indian model with wide handle-bars.  One Easter before they were married they went to the Riverton Races on the motorbike - in those days Ha car was quite something.  The roads were all gravel in the late 1920's. 
One of the big competition was the race of motor cars to see who could get back to the Wallacetown Hotel first after the races were over.
Chas and Alice joined the race on the Indian motor bike. They went famously and eventually the only two cars ahead of them were racing side-by-side on the gravel, so somewhere about Makarewa they took to the grass with Alice on the back screaming for Chas to go faster - so that they won a notable victory. I next remember living in Robertson Street, Invercargill and I remember Rayna (Telfer) and Linley (McMeeken) as babies.  I went to Middle School but cant remember my father there because I thing he was busy working building houses.  He built 13 houses in 13 months with a partner, a Mr Calder.  When they split up Chas had 36 pound for all the work, so he decided to go out on his own.
I believe he was very well known through his athletic ability and he also played ruby for every sub-union at that time because he worked all over Southland trying to keep earning money as a carpenter.
Pioneer - He played for Pioneer in the 1929-30 as he worked on the Regent Theatre.  He played for Ohai when they won the Western competition , telling me the team were still in their rugby togs in the hotel bar at 10'oclock that night.
Balfour - He played for Balfour when he worked on the Plains Station Homestead, and of course he played for Pirates in Invercargill. So he played for Eastern, Norther, Western and Town.
There were two other sub-unions on those days Southern and Wakatipu.  I think he must have played for Southern because he worked in the Dairy Factory at Seaward Downs, becoming Factory Manager at a pretty young age.
His first house on his own was for a Mr Richardson in Mataura, and he used to travel to Mataura on the Exxpress train on Sunday night and back to Invercargill by train on a Friday evening.  I remember my father well at this time, because he took me up to stay with him for one week in my school holidays.  His next house was in Gore built for Mr Jim Windle, a son of Harvy Windle of Preece & Windle, menswear retailers in the Main Street.  Jim Windle was a member of the Pioneer Athletic Club for professional athletics and his father was one of it's main supporters, so that was probably the connection that gave my father his first home to build in Gore. At that time we were living in Invercargill in Robertson Street, however soon after my father started the house for the Windles in 1936 he rented a house in Frank Street at the end of Elizabeth Street, any my mother moved to Gore.
I still remember the day we arrived in Gore as it was a sad day leaving Invercargill and my Grandparents who had been very supportive while Mrs A. had her first four children.
We spent most of our school holidays at 11 Gordon Street, Invercargill and many weekends as well right through until our Uncle returned from the war in 1945.
Our mother must have been a very busy woman indeed in those years in Frank Street.  She had a young and growing family to look after as well as carpenters and sub-contractors to feed and clean up for.  It was an old house and the water tank was often frozen up in the winter, and I remember our father going out with a bucket and a tomahawk to bring back a bucket of ice to melt on the coal range.