It is generally believed that the Dunedin Archery Club was the first of the modern clubs to get started. Although no early minute books are available for reference or confirmation of this fact due to the fire that completely destroyed the clubhouse and its contents in the autumn of 1949. However, two references from the Fred Lake (Surrey, England) collection of archery literature show quite clearly that this was correct and that the club was formed in 1938 by Mr. N. J. Ryan.
This club operated successfully during the war years with around thirty members from the armed forces shooting regularly with the club. The club's existence therefore was due to Mr. N. J. Ryan's interest in archery which commenced in 1937 a few months prior to the Christmas holiday break of December and January of that year. He had rented a "crib" (a bach to North Islanders) at Brighton about nine miles south of Dunedin for his family to spend their summer vacation in.
Mr. Ryan, or Nick as he was known to his friends would never envisage a holiday just lying in the sun, so in his search for some sort of family activity came up with the idea of archery. In order to make archery gear he had to undertake research in the Public Library and as a result found references and articles in an old last century archery book, in the Badminton Sports series, and also the Encyclopaedia Britannica. The books instructed the use of yew for the manufacture of the bows but he was unable to find any seasoned yew timber and had to substitute with other timbers. He finished up making three bows, one from ash, one from Oregon and one from a branch of the small native tree, Horoeka, or Lancewood.
The bowstrings were made from light sash cord similar to that used for the heavier type venetian blinds and without protective arm guards these strings raised blue and red welts on the shooters' arms. The arrows themselves were made from 1/2-inch white pine doweling and fletched with goose feathers. There were no arrow rests on the bows themselves and the arrows had to be fired off the top of the hand and as the split goose quills were glued on top of the shafts rather than inserted into a groove many small pieces of flesh were removed from the index finger and knuckle.
They did not have a proper target so shot down the beach at a distance of twenty or thirty yards in a clout fashion by shooting at an elevated angle and landing their arrows down onto a marked area. One day on the beach Mr. Nick Ryan, his son Des and his friend Tony De Courcy, were approached by a husky young man in his mid-twenties by the name of Frank Wheeler. He told them that he owned an English bow and arrows and would bring them out to Brighton the next day. He did and the Ryan’s were fascinated to see a yew bow and six well-made arrows. The bow was very short - only about 4ft 6 inches long - and was laminated with yew on the outside and ash in the middle, black horn tips and a felt-type handle. The arrows were slim, attractively crested and had horn nocks. Mr. Nick Ryan was captivated with this equipment and with more research from America where archery was really getting into full swing, he spliced two hickory pick handles together to make his first efficient bow.
Archer activities were soon under way at a place close to the Beverley Begg Observatory, which was appropriately known as Robin Hood Park. This park was the top part of the disused quarry, which had been flattened out and made into a soccer field. The Ryan family which consisted of Mr. Nick Ryan, his son Des, his daughter Sheila and son-in-law Horace Sullivan were soon augmented by others such as Herbie and Eunice Myles and Hud Brookes. This was in 1938 and Mr. Nick Ryan's enthusiasm soon infected several old friends including Eric Strang and Eric Davis while others not known to him at the time were also to become interested in the sport, for example Frank Walker and Hughie Butel. Later the City Council granted a lease of a portion of Jubilee Park for the use of an archery range and clubhouse site.
An old photograph in the Ryan family collection shows a group of archers taken at Jubilee Park Dunedin among which are Mr. Nick Ryan and Mr. Eric Strang of the Dunedin club and Mr. Ian McVinnie of Oamaru.
The date was the 17th November 1940 and the occasion was an archery contest between Dunedin and the Oamaru club. This shooting match preceded the opening of the Dunedin clubhouse, which took place in August of the following year.
Their first targets that they made and used at Robin Hood Park were simply just round scrim sacks filled with straw, which soon broke up. They improved upon this with square wooden frames with scrim backs and fronts and stuffed full of straw but even these did not last long as the arrows invariably hit the wooden frame and broke and the straw became lumpy. When they moved to Jubilee Park in 1941 Mr. Nick Ryan in an endeavour to improve on the targets wound and glued six-inch strips of corrugated cardboard together, but it was only when he purchased Dr. Elmer's book on archery from the United States that he was able to make targets that stood the test of time. These targets were made from three-inch diameter straw rope and were sewn together as they were fed between the spokes of two horse carriage gig wheels, which he had mounted on an axle and frame.
Mr. Nick Ryan's contribution to the establishment of archery in New Zealand was immense and his devoted efforts were not only responsible for the formation of the Dunedin club in 1938 but also the New Zealand Archery Association itself which was registered in Dunedin on the 16th February 1943. Mr. Nick Ryan is known today as the "Father of Archery in New Zealand". During the war years rifle ammunition became unavailable and many men who had previously shot at targets with a rifle now turned their attention to the use of the bow and arrow. Archery in Gisborne became established for this reason. The Gisborne Rifle Club, which had been formed in 1941 by MR. W. J. Burton and others soon, used up their existing supplies of ammunition and as a result an archery section was formed within the club the following year. This archery section of the Gisborne Rifle Club operated for the next ten years until the Gisborne Archery Club Inc., was formed in 1952.
The Auckland Archery Club was formed for the same reason on the 11th November 1944. The foundation members included two riflemen in Tom Bryan and Jim McDougall, one bowhunter in Wattie Harriman along with Jack Draffin, Roy Baird, Mr. Rennie snr., Mr. Rennie jnr., Mr. and Mrs. Fearon. Mr. Bryan had made a trip to the South Island, where he met up with Mr. N. J. Ryan of the Dunedin club and was soon encouraged into the interests of archery. On returning to Auckland, he got Mr. McDougall interested and together they were instrumental in forming the Auckland club.
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