Case 2
- The man and his work
Robert McNab. The Old Whaling Days: a history of Southern New Zealand from 1830 to 1840. Christchurch: Whitcombe and Tombs Limited, 1913.
Robert had strong military interests and took part in rifle-shooting competitions. A prominent member of the volunteers, he was a lieutenant, then a captain in the North Dunedin Rifles and, after moving to Invercargill, captain of G Battery there.A firm believer in military preparedness, Robert successfully campaigned for the introduction of compulsory military training in New Zealand in the Defence Act 1909.
Robert McNab. The Old Whaling Days: a history of Southern New Zealand from 1830 to 1840. Christchurch: Whitcombe and Tombs Limited, 1913.
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Robert McNab. The Old Whaling Days: a history of Southern New Zealand from 1830 to 1840. Christchurch: Whitcombe and Tombs Limited, 1913.
After further overseas research visits to Sydney, the United States, England and France, Robert wrote this book, focussing on the heyday of bay whaling in New Zealand between 1830 and 1840. During his research trips, he uncovered such plentiful sources of new information that he felt no hesitation in revisiting the period from 1830-1835 which he had previously covered in Murihiku.
In 1913 he submitted Murihiku and The old whaling days as a thesis, and was awarded the degree of Doctor of Literature by the University of New Zealand in 1914 - thus becoming Dr McNab.
Robert McNab. The Old Whaling Days: a history of Southern New Zealand from 1830 to 1840. Christchurch: Whitcombe and Tombs Limited, 1913.
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Robert McNab (ed.). Historical Records of New Zealand. Wellington, Govt. Printer, 1908-1914.
An assiduous collector of primary sources for New Zealand's early history, Robert was invited by the Government to edit his material for publication. Based upon the Historical records of New South Wales (1892), the first volume of McNab's Historical records of New Zealand was published in 1908. The second volume appeared in 1914 and focussed on the logs and journals of European explorers who visited New Zealand before 1840.
An unabashed 'compilation historian,' Robert's historical method entailed thorough searching of primary sources before presenting the documents and information in a chronological narrative, for the reader to peruse and interpret.
