From the setting up of the Waikawa Beach Ratepayers Association in 1974, before women were people too 😳:

Present: 27 Ratepaying residents, whose names are attached herewith, some of whom were accompanied by their wives or friends.

@Miraz In light of that, I wonder if “friends” was code for partners? Or do people in NZ normally bring random friends to a meeting to set up a homeowner’s (er, ratepayers) association?

@smokey Who knows what was normal here then! I suspect though it does just mean friends. At that time it was a tiny beach community (now it's just very small) and it was probably school holidays. People would have had ‘baches’ — sheds or garages to camp out in for a weekend.