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Hope Saddle Accommodation house
No remnant of the old Hope Saddle Accommodation building, which was later known as the Moorhouse Creek Accommodation house, now exists, except for a few old fruit trees. The house site now lies under...
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1918 Influenza pandemic in Nelson
The 1918 influenza pandemic has been called "the world's biggest disaster of the twentieth century"1, and its lessons continue to be significant. The outbreak killed more people than World War I - an...
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The Native Tenths Reserves
The New Zealand Company, a private company formed in Britain and supported by the British Government, established a colonisation scheme for New Zealand in the 1840's.The Company wanted to avoid some of...
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Auckland Point Market
Auckland Point, or Matangi Awhio was a pa, kainga or seasonal camping site from at least the fifteenth century. Henry Thompson, representative of the Government-appointed Trustees of Native Reserves,...
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The first Taranaki War and Te Tau Ihu
The First Taranaki War (1860-1861) was an event of great significance in New Zealand history. The event took place in Taranaki, hence its name, yet its effects were felt throughout New Zealand and...
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New Zealand Company
The New Zealand Company, a commercial enterprise formed in Britain, dispatched an expedition to establish its second New Zealand settlement, to be named Nelson, in 1841.New Zealand Company founder and...
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Fairweather and Sons of Scott Street.
William Fairweather was born in Scotland to John and Isabella in about 1842. He came out to New Zealand in 1876 on the Rangitiki with his wife Christina McKay and daughter Violet (from a previous...
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Mary Lafrentz
1992-1995Tasman District Councillor Mary Lafrentz 22 March 1994. Nelson Provincial Museum, Nelson Mail Collection: C28826.I was approached by the late Elaine Taylor, a Waimea County Councillor and Kate...
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Marlborough Aviation
Imagine the excitement in August, 1920 when Captain Euan Dickson touched down in his Avro 504K, D6243 on a Dillon's Point (Blenheim) farm. He was en route from Christchurch to Wellington – the first...
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Ngaire Lane
Ngaire Galloway, nee Lane, who has lived in Nelson since the 1950's, is currently New Zealand's oldest living Olympian - as a swimmer competing in the 1948 London Olympics.Ngaire Lane with M. Ingram...
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Marine Baths of Nelson
Swimming through timeThe Marine Baths, sited near the present yacht club building, were a popular public facility at the Port of Nelson, particularly on a Sunday. They were opened to the public on 7...
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Nelson's Riverside Pool
Nelson's Municipal PoolThe opening of Nelson's Municipal Pool in November 19271 by Mayor W.J Moffatt was well attended. It was a major undertaking for the Council, given the severe economic situation...
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Nelson Refinery and Tobacco
The Nelson Refinery, currently the ArtSpace, was once the home of the Nelson Tobacco Company.New Zealand Tobacco CompanyIn 1910 Gerhard Husheer emigrated to New Zealand to attempt to establish a...
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Baton Valley Gold
Good as Gold: The BatonThe remote Baton Valley, at the base of Mount Arthur, once had two hotels, a shop, Post Office and a racecourse.It is thought the river and valley were named after a runaway...
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Port Museum at Founders Park
Download MP3 [9 MB]The Port Museum at Founders Heritage Park gives an excellent overview of Nelson's maritime history, displaying models of a selection of the range of boats which frequented the...
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Ben Crisp and the Band of Hope
Ben Crisp was a reformed drunkard who took an abstinence pledge in 1843, inspired by the sermons of teetotaller and Temperance Society leader Alfred Saunders.He was born in London, England, probably on...
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Farm Settlements for Returned Soldiers
During World War I (1914-1918) the New Zealand Government decreed that soldiers returning from overseas service would be given the opportunity to settle on farms of their own, specially purchased and...
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Dutch Settlement in Nelson
The 1950s Dutch migrants have been called a ‘lost generation', scarred by the disruptions and trauma of economic depression and military occupation in the Netherlands. On reaching their adopted...
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Starting school in Hauwai
In October 1941 when I was due to start my schooling, we lived at Hauwai, a tiny settlement beside the railway station of that name, on the south side of Lake Grassmere. This was before the development...
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Tahunanui
Tahunanui, an area of dynamic landscape, has had a history independent of the Town of Nelson.The name Tahunanui Beach was commonly known as ‘The Sands' until a competition was run in 1902 to suggest a...
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