Our Suburbs.

Southern Cross, Volume 2, Issue 16, 21 July 1894, Page 6

Our Suburbs.

No. 1Y

GLADSTON E

The late Mr T. J. White was, we Tjelieve, the first settler at what was known in the old days as the Waihopai, afterwards the site of one of -fche most picturesque of our suburbs. He was also one of our earliest business men, carrying on operations in Tay street, and bis handsome villa residence, with its attractively designed and well-kept grounds, was one of the “ show ” places of the district in the early sixties. The next person who settled there (in 1862) was Mr Henry McLean. He has acted as clerk to the borough since its incorporation, and to him we naturally turned for some particulars regarding its history. These were readily furnished* In August, 1876, a meeting of the residents of the combined townships of Gladstone, Harrisville (now Avenal), Charißton and Mitchelton, was held in Mr Weir’s house, Harrisville, at which it was decided that owing to the unsatisfactory manner in which the old Invercargill Road Board •spent ' the rates, these townships should secede and form a borough, to be called North Invercargill. Messrs Weir, Boyd, Dunlop, Walker, Garmson, Shaw, Mclnerney, Moreton, and McLean, were appointed a com•mittee to give effect to the resolution. The committee, after taking round the necessary petition, found an insurmountable difficulty in the way, as a small piece of intervening ground between Harrisville and Gladstone, belonging to the late Messrs Osborne and McKellar, and another small area between Gladstone and Charleston, belonging to the late Mr J. T. Thomson, effectually barred the proposed combination, these gentlemen declining to allow their land to be included. At the next meeting Mr Walker announced that the Charleston and Mitchelton contingent had petitioned the Superintendent to declare their poition a borough under the name of North Invercargill, thereby robbing the proper district of the name. A meeting of the ratepayers of Gladstone was held in Mr Mclnerney’s house on the Ist September, 1876, at which it was decided that Gladstone should form a borough by itself, leaving Avehal to follow suit, thereby creating three boroughs instead of the one originally intended. A» animated discussion ensued as to name. The late Mr Pettigrew insisted that; “ Inveropai ” ought to he chosen, after the river, and the Scottish ' prefix “ Inver.” Mr McLean as strongly insisted that the present name, Gladstone, be retained. He was partly father to that name, and would not allow it to be changed. The meeting being also of this opinion, Gladstone it remained. Mr S. H. Moreton was elected the first mayor, with Messrs Robert Birrell, Thomas Richards, James Shaw, and Henry James Thomas as Councillors, and at their first meeting held on the Ist November, 1876, Mr Henry McLean was elected Town Clerk and Valuer. The following mayors have held office in rotation since then ; —Mr Moreton, from Sept., 76 till July, ’77 ; Mr James Jamieson, from 26th July, ’77, till. 24th June, ’79; Mr Moreton again from 24th June, ’79, till IBth November, ’BO ; Mr Jamieson a train from 18th November, ’BO, till 6th July, ’Bl ; the late Mr J. T. Thomson from 6th July, ’Bl, until sth December, ’B3; Mr K. Mclvor from sth December, ’B3, till December, ’B4; Mr W. S. Waterston, from 17th December, ’B4, till 19th December, ’88; Mr T. Grimwood, from 19th December, ’BB till December, ’9O; Mr F. McOhesney from “December ’9O till December ’93. Mr James McKillop is the present mayor. Gladstone contains some 240 acres, and is about four times as large as originally gazetted, including as it does, Gladstone, Burton, Coldstream,

the Collegiate Reserve and the Lunatic Reserve. Its municipal endowments consist of 300 acres in Seaward Bush, ten acres on the south side of the borough, originally the Lunatic Reserve, and a quarter acre granted by the late Mr J. T. Thomr son as a Town Hall site, and upon which there was erected last year a substantial and commodious and well finished town hall.

There are 132 ratepayers in the borough, and the estimated population is 286, The number of dwellings is set down at 58, but these will shortly be added to, several people having their eye on desirable building sites. Among the most noticeable additions to the architecture of the place of late years are two large and well-finished villas erected in the Barton subdivision of Gladstone to the order of Messrs C. J. Broad and R. G. Speirs respectively. The total value of the rateable property is £23,400, and its estimated annual or letting value in March last was £2340. The burgesses are not heavily rated—ls in a general and 6d in a special rate, or Is 6d in the £ being the amount levied, and this, too, upon a low valuation. Four miles of streets have been made at a cost of L 2400. A sum of £IOOO was lately borrowed, out of which £6OO has been devoted to redeeming debentures and the balance to drainage and other works now being carried out. So much for the official history of the borough. It is well off in the matter of public institutions. It possesses a well-attended State school, of which Mr McNeil is master and Miss Fairweather mistress. On the South bank of the Waihopai, on a site fronting the North Road, stands All Saints’ Church, a substantial and well-finished edifice in brick. It was erected to meet the convenience of members of the Anglican Church living in the northern suburb*, and the parish has in the Rev. Mr Martin an active and energetic incumbent. The leading spirit in the movement of the establishment of the church, in fact its initiator, was Mr J. H. Baker, formerly Chief Surveyor here, and now of Canterbury. The church was built by Messrs Smith and Fraser from the designs of Mr F. W. Burwell, the site, building, and fittings costing £1325. The foundation stone was laid with Masonic honours on the 24th of May, 1877, the ceremony being performed by Mr W. J. Moffett, the Master of the Southern Cross Masonic Lodge, and the church was opened for public worship by His Lordship the Bishop of Dunedin, on the 20th of January, 1878. The first church officers were Mr T. Brodrick and the late Sir John Richardson, and the committee consisted of Messrs T. Royds, 0. Broad, W. H. Pearson, E. Preston, J. Dalgliesh, C. Basstian, H. Thomas, G. Martin, and A. F. Dawson. Mr Brodrick was appointed treasurer, and Mr Royds secretary. Sir John Richardson acted as lay reader until the appointment of the late Rev. Mr Knowles. Not far from the church is a much older institution in the shape of the Gladstone Hotel, now occupied by Mr T. Crowley, and numbering among its former landlords the genial and humoursome Fred Clifton, who, with his wife, Fanny Sara, delighted many an oldtime audience with song and sally. On the other side of the road, to the southward, are the large and wellappointed stables of the Tramway Company, and the general store of Messrs McGill & Co., the latter replete with all kinds of merchandise. The energetic proprietors have lately embarked in the soap-making industry, regarding which some particulars are given in another column. At one time the borough boasted of a second hotel, and no fewer than six stores. This was in the goldfields and anterailway era, when heavily - laden waggons, Lakeward bound, were com mon objects. Talking of waggons, reminds us that a very old resident, Mr C. Broad, built the first bridge across the Waihopai, the one over which the tramway passes. It took the place of a structure which could scarcely be called a bridge so far as

vehicular traffic was concerned, as drays' had to hie partially dismantled before, they could be got to the other side: Mr Broad afterwards built Tip* a name for himself in another line — that of a successful grower of flowers, fruits, and vegetables, and is the owner of a fine garden. Here it may be remarked that the example set by the late Mr White in the way of nicely laid out grounds appears to have weighed with later arrivals, as evidenced by the number of fine houses and gardens to be found in the borough. Mr White was succeeded by Mr W. H. Calder, whose gardener, Mr T. . Waugh, did much to enhance the beauty of Hollywood, the name given by the late Mr T. Quinn, whose family reside there. Gladstone was also the home for a time of the Colonial Treasurer, who occupied the handsome brick residence in Coldstream, built by Mr J. 0. McArdell, and now tenanted by Mr P, A. Vyner, late manager at Five Rivers for Messrs Ellis Bros. The Collegiate Reserve, already referred to, is held by Mr J. Jamieson, who has gone in largely for dairying, and whose better half is well-known as a prize cheese and butter maker. Gladstone is strong in nurseries.. The Messrs O’Brien Bros, migrated from there to Winton. Mr J. E. Perry occupies Mr Ibbotson’s property at the corner of Lewis and Grey streets, and makes a feature of fruit and forest trees. His chief trouble is the small bird nuisance. Ask a farmer to invest in trees, and in many cases he will tell you that forest trees afford a refuge for birds, and that it is no use growing fruit to provide dessert for the little rascals. Messrs Curworth and Smith, the well-known florists and fruit-growers, lately secured the property formerly owned by that veteran nurseryman, Mr R. Birrell. They have but lately taken possession, and are effecting a number of improvements, among them the erection of a large greenhouse, proving that they intend to spare no effort to maintain the reputation which the members of the firm enjoy in connection with the finer branches of fruit and floriculture. The greenhouse is one of the largest in Southland, apd as some very costly vines have been secured, exceedingly good fruit may be looked for. The nursery is pleasantly situated, sloping to th.e south bank of the Waihopai, and its capabilities are evidently to be developed to the utmost. We wish the new owners all success. To the eastward of the nursery, without the borough boundary, is Lennel, the estate of the late Mr J. T; Thomson, whose gardener, Mr A. Newman, sees to it that the spacious grounds are in first-class order.