Seasons of Summers

Essie Summers ‘From a Manse in Ayrshire’. Article in Scots Magazine, v.61, no. 6 (Sept 1954). Copy supplied by Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, N.Z.

At Weston, Essie met descendants of early Otago settler Thomas Burns. In her diary, his daughter Jane Burns (later Bannerman) recorded her early life in Scotland before the family’s emigration. The diary inspired Summers to write about Jane. This article represented her first prose publication in the UK. On display is the text published in the Scots Magazine (Sept 1954).

Essie Summers ‘From a Manse in Ayrshire’. Article in Scots Magazine, v.61, no. 6 (Sept 1954). Copy supplied by Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, N.Z.
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Essie Summers. ‘Poems of Essie Summers’ (unpublished). Typed copy given to her daughter, Elizabeth Jack.

Summers enjoyed early success with poetry. Her poem, Gipsy Heart, published when she was only 18, appears in both books of verse on display, compiled for her children. Her success in the genre resulted in poetry for public and private appreciation throughout her life. In the 1950s she experimented with short stories and wrote personal advice columns for the Timaru Herald.

Essie Summers. ‘Poems of Essie Summers’ (unpublished). Typed copy given to her daughter, Elizabeth Jack.
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Essie Summers. ‘Poems of Essie Summers’ (unpublished). Typed copy given to her son, William Flett.

Essie Summers. ‘Poems of Essie Summers’ (unpublished). Typed copy given to her son, William Flett.
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Essie Summers. ‘A Tribute’ [to Christchurch Cathedral]. Star-Sun Centennial Number, 1850-1950: Supplement to the Christchurch Star-Sun, December 16, 1950, p. 32.

For Christchurch's centennial celebrations in 1950, a local newspaper, The Star-Sun, invited creative submissions on Canterbury's First Four Ships. Summers' poem won and appears here.

Essie Summers. ‘A Tribute’ [to Christchurch Cathedral]. Star-Sun Centennial Number, 1850-1950: Supplement to the Christchurch Star-Sun, December 16, 1950, p. 32.
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