The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Auckland Provincial District]
Sundry Manufacturers
Sundry Manufacturers.
Including—Brush and Broom, Gas and Electric Light Manufacturers; Waterproof Clothing; Straw Hat Manufacturers, and Jam and Preserve Manufacturers.
Mr. Edward Brendon Parsons, the Secretary of the Auckland Gas Company, has for fully thirty years been a devoted servant of the company, and has during the whole of that time carried out his onerous duties in a manner which has gained for him, on the one hand, the entire confidence of the directers, and of the public on the other. Mr. Parsons has not only refrained from seeking civic power for himself, but has constantly declined to exercise the voting power of the company registered in his name. Inasmuch as the Auckland Gas Company holds property in every ward of the city and in most of the suburbs, this self-denial is creditable in the highest degree. Mr. Parsons was born at Launceston, Cornwall, England, and was educated at Plymouth. He served under indentures, and on the completion of his apprenticeship left his native town for London, where he was engaged in a wholesale house until 1862. In that year he left for New Zealand by the ship “Devonshire,” and landed at Auckland on the 7th of February, 1863. Mr. Parsons went to Dunedin, where he was employed as corresponding clerk and ledger keeper in the firm of Messrs Dalgety, Rattray and Co. He entered the service of the Auckland Gas Company as accountant in February, 1868, and in the following year was appointed to the secretaryship, in consequence of the removal to Sydney of his predecessor, Mr. J. N. Wark. When Mr. Parsons joined the company, the staff consisted of the manager and secretary, Mr. Wark, the accountant (Mr. Parsons himself, who did the whole of the clerical work of the office), the foreman and four men, of whom one was but a casual labourer. Of that old staff Mr. Parsons only remains, though a fair number of the 200 men now employed have been for many years in the company's service.
Mr. E. B. Parsons.
Mr. Isaac Watts, who entered the office in 1877, now holds the responsible position of general office manager and cashier.
Mr. Mortimer Fairs, the next senior officer, is chief counter clerk, and is well qualified to fill the position, as he has had a long experience with the company's customers.
Mr. Ernest Ashton controls the accountants' department, in which the records of the company's transactions are concentrated by double entry.
Mr. Chenery Suggate, A.M.I.C.E., Engineer for the Auckland Gas Company, is the son of Mr. Alfred Suggate, of London, and was born at Beccles, in Suffolk, educated at the grammar school in his native town, and studied engineering under several well-known gas engineers. After an exceptional experience in gasworks, he accepted an appointment as assistant engineer at Plymouth, passed second in honours in the “Gas Manufacture” examination and other kindred subjects, and was elected an Associate Member of the Institute of Civil Engineers. He was afterwards appointed superintendent of new works at the Sheffield Gas Works, where the output averaged ten million cubic feet per day. In April, 1897, Mr. Suggate arrived in Auckland, by way of Sydney, and immediately entered upon his present duties. One of his first acts was to recommend his directors to substitute the incandescent light throughout the city free of all cost to the town. The Council agreed to erect fifteen new lamp posts, and the improved light gives great satisfaction to everyone. Special lights were erected in Queen Street, making it—once one of the dimmest—one of the best lighted streets in the Colonies. Mr. Suggate is a Freemason, and was initiated at Plymouth in Harmony Lodge No. 156 E.C. In 1887, Mr. Suggate was married to Miss Greening, daughter of the late Mr. Benjamin Greening, of Liverpool, England, and they have two sons and one daughter. Mrs. Suggate was among the prize-winners at the Auckland “Floral Fete” of 1897, when her horse and gig were adjudged the best in their class.
Mr. C. Suggate.
Colonial Sugar Refining Company, Ltd. This company's works are situated at Chelsea, with deep water frontage to the harbour, about two miles above the Queen Street wharf, and are owned by a company of Auckland capitalists, working in co-operation with the Colonial Sugar Refining Company, of Sydney. The extensive original refinery page 415 was erected in 1883, and has been added to from time to time. The company has two fine wharves where large steamers may load and discharge, and numerous cottages for the accommodation of its workers. A large proportion of the sugar used in the Colony is manufactured at the works. When the industry was established, the output was 360 tons per week; now it is nearly 700 tons. Two hundred hands are constantly employed; Mr. W. J. W. Philson is manager in New Zealand, and Mr. E. V. Millar, manager of the works.
Downs, W. H. (late W. Downs and Son), Oil and Skin Manufacturer, 44 Napier Street, Auckland. Telephone 1012. Bankers, Bank of Australasia. This is one of the largest and soundest businesses in its line in New Zealand. It was started in 1874, and was conducted for many years by the late senior partner, Mr. William Downs, who was joined afterwards by his eldest son, Mr. William Herry Downs, who now manages the whole business. The volume of trade increases year by year, and owing to the excellence of the firm's manufactures, the energy and sound business qualities of the proprietors, the firm's goods are widely used, not only in New Zealand, but all over Australia and the South Sea Islands, and on vessels trading to various parts of the world. The very best material is used in making the goods, and the firm employs none but the most skilled workers of both sexes, and pays them liberally and treats them well. Hence the firm's name stands high, and its goods are held in high esteem wherever they are used. Its specialties are patent riding coats and coats with capes. The “Waikato Times” says that “the firm's oilskin factory is one of the best and most flourishing industries of its kind in the Colony. Started in a small way twenty years ago by Mr. Downs, senior, the business has been developed to a great extent by that gentleman and his son, who is now sole proprietor. Steady industry, great skill, first-class oilskin goods of every kind, business capacity and civility, combined with strict integrity, have procured success for the firm. It owns very fine premises, and the factory has every facility for manufacturing all kinds of oilskin goods, including cart, waggon, and carry-all covers, tarpaulins and rick-covers, which are sold through the firm's agents all over the Colony and abroad.”
Mr. William Downs, the late Senior Partner, was a native of Yorkshire, England, and arrived in New Zealand by the ship “Claremont” in 1863; his son, Mr. W. H. Downs, was born in New Zealand.
Plummer, Charles Bernard, Straw Hat Manufacturer, Coburg Street, Auckland. This business was established by Mr. Plummer, senior, about 1876, and taken over by the present owner on the death of his father. The premises consist of a row of wooden buildings, where about fifty hands are employed; Mr Plummer having none but efficient workmen, who thoroughly understand their business. Mr. Plummer, who is the only straw hat manufacturer in Auckland, is doing a steadily increasing trade, and is proving that the colonial article compares very favourably in price and quality with the imported one. His business is chiefly with the wholesale houses, from which he receives some very heavy orders. The straw plaits are all imported, and consist of English, Chinese, and Japanese; the last named predominate considerably, but German ribbons are more used than any others. In 1889 Mr. Plummer took a trip Home, where he gained further experience in the straw hat industry. He is regularly supplied with all the trade journals, and is in a position to turn out the latest shapes in show hats. Mr. Plummer was born at Kaipara in 1869, and is a son of the late Mr. Charles Plummer, a member of the Port Albert nonconformists, and one of Auckland's oldest settlers. Mr. Plummer was at first in the Telegraph Department, which he left to join his father in business. He is an active member of the Orchestral Union, and plays on the drums, tymphani, etc. He was for some time a pupil of Mr. Paque, from whom he learnt the violoncello, which he plays for the Orchestral Union.
Mr. C. B. Plummer.
Tyer, A. and Son, Jam and Preserved Fruit Manufacturers, College Hill, Auckland. Telephone 718. Bankers, Union Bank. This enterprising firm was established in 1892, and the present commodious premises were erected in 1898. They are built in brick, and consist of two stories and a cellar, with every appliance for carrying on the business of fruit preserving. A ten-horse power boiler supplies the steam to four jacketed boiling pans, and also to the large tank used for preserved fruits. In the season about twenty-five persons are employed in the factory. The fruit is obtained from various parts of New Zealand; the oranges used in the manufacture of marmalade are grown in the north of Auckland; and only the best and soundest fruit is used in the various manufactures. The firm is deservedly celebrated for its marmalades, and was the first to start the manufacture of this breakfast page 417 luxury in New Zealand from locally grown oranges. At the Auckland Exhibition of 1899 Messrs Tyer and Son were awarded a gold medal for their exhibit of marmalade, against all comers, Preserved fruits are put up in tins varying in capacity from pounds to gallons, and comprise apples, plums, and peaches; which are so well known and appreciated throughout the Colony that the firm is greatly taxed to keep pace with the increasing demand. The firm's tomato sauce and jams are equally in favour.
Mr. A. Tyer, the Senior Partner of the firm, was born in 1832, in Kent, England, and for years he owned one of the leading businesses in his native place. Attracted by the glowing accounts of New Zealand. Mr. Tyer disposed of his business, and came to Auckland, accompanied by a family of ten. His early anticipations were not realised; shortly after his arrival he started a large grocery business, but the premises were burned down five weeks afterwards, and Mr. Tyer lost everything. He, however, started again, but this time as a manufacturer of jam. His eldest son then went Home and brought out a large quantity of glass and earthenware to take the place of the tin boxes previously used in holding preserves. Mr. Tyer's business then began to increase, and a demand sprang up for his manufactures, on account of their purity. This demand went on increasing so much that Mr. Tyer found it necessary to erect the large premises now occupied by the firm. His son and partner, Mr. Arthur Tyer, joined the firm in 1892.