Bulls? big bank robbery the stuff of local legend

"I don't think I've ever been so frightened," an elderly woman said yesterday, recounting the armed robbery of a Bulls bank on March 25, 1946.
She was a 21-year-old ledger keeper when masked men entered the BNZ.
A shot was fired into the wall behind the teller, starting a story that has blurred with time.
The ledger keeper, who still lives in the Bulls area, called the Chronicle to clarify what happened.
Her memories flooded back when the bank building, now used by New Zealand Souvenirs and Gifts, was charred by fire on Tuesday afternoon.
Locals wondered whether fire had obliterated the legendary bullet hole. It seems the wall had been repaired long ago and, in any case, several coats of paint had been applied over the years. Folklore, of course, has momentum.
The ledger keeper requested anonymity yesterday but happily talked about the crime that grabbed the 1946 headlines.
She scolded the Chronicle for not remembering that the teller was hit over the head with the gun (the newspaper had been told that a bullet creased the teller's head).
"I was there, so I know all about it. Next time, get your facts right (chuckles). He was hit over the head with the butt of a stolen revolver.
"But he did fire a shot into the wall. There was a bullet hole, and everyone used to come in and have a look at it."
She said the baddies had intended to rob the Bank of New South Wales on the other side of the street. It was sale day and Women's Institute day. So in 1946 they collided with the reality that you can't get a park when you need one.
The BNZ, which had just reopened after lunch, became the alternative target.
The ledger keeper said one of the robbers snarled at her to keep still. She was petrified anyway.
"Their heads were covered ? they'd cased the joint."
She said the teller, an older man, went home after the robbery.
"The manager opened up, did a rough balance and we carried on," she said. "We were tough. We didn't have any counselling. I got a fortnight's holiday for good service." The ledger keeper said she understood the robbers did a lot of skiting in hotels about what they had done.
"I think that's how they caught them."
Meanwhile, the cause of the fire is unknown. Fire safety officer John Hotter said it originated near the shop counter. An insurance company is having electrical items tested.
The building, which does not have a Historic Places Trust classification, suffered only superficial damage.