WAIKATO PIONEER

Waikato Times, Volume 125, Issue 20995, 23 December 1939, Page 9

WAIKATO PIONEER

MR W. G. HARP’S DEATH EARLY DAYS AT MORRINSVILLE A familiar figure in the Waikato for more than half a century, Mr William Gibbons Harp died at Pahiatua recently, at the age of 87 years. He resided at 6 Knighton Road, Hamilton. Mr Harp had lived a varied life, his occupations including those of fireman, farmer, surveyor, horsebreeder, farrier and saddler, jockey and steeplechaser, coachman, postmaster, carpenter, engineer, bridgebuilder, auctioneer and storekeeper. In 1869, in company with three other pioneers, Mr Harp travelled up the Piako River to what is now Morrinsville, and was building bridges in the district a year before the town of Morrinsville was founded, in 1874. He became the first postmaster of the district and later operated a coach service between Hamilton and the new town. Always interested in horses, he could remember riding in the first horse races held in Morrinsville in 1878. Enthusiastic Yachtsmen In 1879 he sold his business and went to Whangarei, where he lived for 13 years. Returning to Auckland, he was one of the founders of the Devonport Fire Brigade in 1895. Mr Harp later went to Rotorua, where he immediately became well known because of his enthusiasm as a yachtsman. In his old-world cottage in Knighton Road, Mr Harp led a very active life, tending to his garden and orchard. He was a familiar figure in Hamilton and was often seen driving his mare and phaeton through the streets.