Clik here to view.
George Cannon McMurtry
George (Randall) Cannon McMurtry and Templemore HomesteadGeorge was born in 1918 in Templemore Homestead, which still stands today on 126 Salisbury Road, Richmond. His grandfather, of Irish descent,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Yelven Oliver Sutton
Yelven's great grandparents' parents, George and Hannah Sutton arrived in Nelson aboard the Bolton (1842). In 1853 George bought sections 68 and 90 and part of 66 in Richmond (see map of Reservoir...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Phyllis Field
Phyllis Field (nee Griffin) 1914-2007 - the early yearsPhyllis was born in 1914, the youngest child of George and Caroline Griffin.Her father was manager of the Griffin Biscuit factory, a business...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Reservoir Creek Richmond
A history of early European settlementThe European colonisation of Nelson (including Waimea East) was conceived and planned by the New Zealand Company in London at the beginning of the 1840.’1 A copy...
View ArticleClik here to view.
School Daze!
School Daze!My first foray into education was brief - an hour in fact. Noleen Burton, April 2009Born in 1937 in Blenheim, but living in Nelson since I was nine months old, it was now 1942 and my Dad...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Broadsheet Row in Nelson
Broadsheet was a feminist periodical published in Auckland from 1972 until 1992. It contained news and articles not only about feminist issues such as domestic abuse, birth control and motherhood, but...
View ArticleClik here to view.
James Durden
A solitary grave stone perched on a lonely grass and flax covered coastal terrace 1km north of the Anatori River, North West Nelson, marks the final resting place of miner James Durden. The Epitaph...
View ArticleClik here to view.
George Lawrence
George Lawrence and the elephants of WakefieldThe Waimea South Historical Society was recently gifted two intriguing photographs, of elephants bathing in the Wai-iti River and penned beside the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
John and Anne Batt
Married and Gone to New Zealand - John and Anne Batt seek a new life in Nelson in 1842My great grandparents lived in two small adjacent villages in Hampshire: Barton Stacey and Chilbolton– just three...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Wakefield's Libraries
From the Nelson Examiner, 23 July 1856Local IntelligenceOPENING OF THE WAIMEA SOUTH LITERARY INSTITUTION. On Thursday last, the first building erected in Waimea South for a Literary Institution was...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Edward Baigent - Man of many mills
The mill which Edward Baigent built at Ryversdale, at the entrance to Pigeon Valley in 1855, was not the first he had built in the Wakefield area, nor was it to be the last. He had begun his life in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Early Wakefield
It is believed that Wakefield (originally known as Pitfure)1 was named after the Yorkshire birthplace of an early settler, William Hough; however it is also widely accepted that the village was named...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Early Marlborough Settlers
An overview..There was plenty of opportunity for an able man (supported by an equally able wife) in the early days of a colony. All of the people listed below had their fingers in many pies: business,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Town that Wilkes Built and a Lucky Escape from Friendly Fire
Richmond - the town that Wilkes BuiltThe firm of W.E Wilkes is synonymous with house building in Richmond. The company built many of the major buildings in Richmond and at one time built an average of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Griffins Factory
For just under 120 years, the Griffins Factory was a landmark in Nelson and a big part of the city's economy.Griffin Sons City Flour Mill Biscuit Factory Nelson Provincial Museum Collection 317557 [the...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Phyllis Field
Phyllis Field (nee Griffin) 1914-2007 - the early yearsPhyllis was born in 1914, the youngest child of George and Caroline Griffin.Her father was manager of the Griffin Biscuit factory, a business...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Nile Street Walk
Nine Near NileThis walk takes you through a slice of Nelson's history. Take an actual or virtual walk around the streets using the GPS and audio links below. The audio guide gives you additional...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Martine Bouillir
2010-2016Tasman District Councillor Martine BouillirRunning for the Golden Bay ward of the Tasman District Council came to me serendipitously. I'd always been active in my community, so requests from...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Richmond's Sparrow Plague
Peril and Pennies from the SkiesIn the late 1800s and early 1900s, a growing threat to Richmond’s prosperity darkened the skies. A small number of house sparrows – as few as 100 – had been introduced...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Alton Street
Maori heritageThe earliest human footprints across the Mahitahi floodplain, upon which Nelson City now sits, belong to the tangata whenua and manawhenua tribes of Whakatu. What is now Alton Street was...
View Article