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The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Otago & Southland Provincial Districts]

Palmerston

page 439

Palmerston.

Palmerston has a population of about 800, and is the prosperous centre of number of prosperous districts—Shag Valley, Goodwood, Pleasant Valley, etc. It is in the county of Waihemo, and forty-one miles northward by rail from Dunedin. The land in the neighbourhood is good, and the local industries include flournuills, a dairy factory and the exportation of rabbits. There is communication by coach with the inland districts, and with the romantic locality known as the Horse Range noted for its himestone formation and its bit of exquisite scenery. Palmerston is much frequented on account of the extreme healthiness of its climate. Gold dredging is now carried on on the Shag river, which is well stocked with salmon trout, and at certain points is only a mile from the town. The offices of the Waihemo County Council and the Palmerston Borough Council are located in the town. Palmerston also has a District High School, several churches, a free library, a branch bank, and a number of good stores; a post office, telegraph and money order office, and also a telephone service with Dunedin. There are several good hotels, licensed and temperance, and private bearding is also obtainable. Palmerston possesses a good brass band, which gives creditable open-air concerts in the town on Saturday evenings. In the triangle at the back of the railway station a handsome drinking fountain has been erected to the memory of the local troopers who fell in the war in South Africa. Palmerston is connected by means of a branch railway line with Dunback, nine miles distant.

Pukiviti Hill, Palmerston: 1898. Appleby, photo.

Pukiviti Hill, Palmerston: 1898.
Appleby, photo.

Mr. J. C. Gow.

Mr. J. C. Gow.

Palmerston was declared a borough in 1871, and is divided into three wards—North, East, and West. The borough has an area of 800 acres; population, 734; dwellings, 192; ratepayers, 248; rafeable properties 390. Its capital rateable value is £31,673, and there is a rate of 13/4d in the £, struck on the 28th of August, 1903. On the 31st of March, 1903, the assets were £113 11s 5d, and the liabilities £4148 6s. The first Mayor of the borough was Mr. W. A. Young, who has been succeeded by Messrs J. H. Gilligan, James Arkle, Charles Haynes, M. Fagan, R. A. Cathcart, William Robertson. Charles Gillespie, R. N. Reid, Robert Ewing, John Everest, John McDonald, J. C. Scott, W. A. Chapman, John Cunningham, A. H. Gill, and J. C. Gow. At present (1904) Mr. J. C. Gow is Mayor, and the councillors are—Messrs W. R. Wheeler, S. Woolley, James Kitchen, R. Riddle, J. H. Appleby, E. LeFevre, J. Sloan, W. Robertson, and E. H. Clarke, Mr. W. B. Galloway is Town Clerk.

His Worship The Mayor, Mr. John Cowie Gow , was born at Strichen, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, in 1855. He was educated at public schools, brought up to agriculture, and learned flourmilling before coming to Port Chalmers, by the ship “Auckland,” in 1880. After a short experience of station life, Mr. Gow worked with Mr. Robert Anderson, at the Woodhaugh mills, Dunedin, and remained with him four years. He was afterwards at the Kakanui mill, Mheono, for two years, and was appointed manager of the Shag Valley mills in March, 1887. Five years later he purchased the property, which he still works. Mr. Gow was for several years a member of the Borough Council, and retired owing to pressure of business in 1897; but being urged by requisition in 1898 to offer himself for the office of mayor, he consented, and was returned unopposed; and has now (1904) been similarly roturned for the sixth time. He held office as president of the Palmerston Agricultural and Pastoral Association page 440 for two successive years, 1897–99, and he was for some years president of the Caledonian Society. He is a member of the Palmerston Masonic Lodge, and has served as chairman of various local societies, including the Palmerston District High School committee. His Worship was married in 1882 to a daughter of Mr. C. Davie, of Cavill Mills, Aberdeen, and has four sons and three daughters.

Councillor William Rufus Wheeler , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council in 1902, is a member of the Sanitary and Reserves Committee. Mr. Wheeler also serves on the Palmerston school committee and the Athenæum committee.

Councillor Samuel Woolley , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council, in 1903, is a member of the Works Committee. He has been a member of the Athenæum committee since 1884, and is a Past Master of the Palmerston Lodge of Freemasons, No. 1749. English Constitution. Mr. Woolley was born in Leicestershire, England, in 1838, and came to Port Chalmers with his parents by the ship “Ajax,” in 1849. After a short time spent in the bush, the family moved to a station at Otepopo, owned by Mr. Charles Suisted, where they remained for four years. Mr. Woolley, senior, then acquired some land, mostly bush, at Goodwood and for many years supplied the local runholders with timber, hurdles, etc. During the gold rush he built the Beach Hotel at Waikouaiti, and, fifteen years later, the Railway Hotel, Waikouaiti, and with the help of his family, conducted it for a number of years. Mr. Samuel Woolley was brought up to the building trade, and since 1874 has been in business in Palmerston. Among the many buildings he has erected are the Empire Hotel, Johnstone's buildings, Lawson's block, and a number of very fine residences on the outskirts of the town. Some bridges in the Blue Mountains built by Mr. Woolley for the Road Board in 1864, are still in use, and reflect great credit on the conscientious manner in which he carried out his contracts.

Councillor James Kitchen , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council in 1892, is a member of the Works Committee. Mr. Kitchen was at one time a member of the District High School committee, and of the Caledonian Society.

Councillor Robert Riddle , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council in 1898, is a member of the Finance Committee. Mr. Riddle was formally a steward and treasurer of the local racing club.

Councillor John H. Appleby , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council in 1903, is a member of the Reserves Committee. Mr. Appleby is further referred to in connection with his business at Palmerston.

Councillor Edward Lefevre , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council in 1902, is a member of the Works Committee. Mr. Leferre serves on the school committee. Jockey Club, and Agricultural Society.

Councillor James Sloan , who was elected to the Palmerston Borough Council, in 1903, is a member of the Finance Committee. He is also a steward of the Palmerston Racing Club, and a member of the Rose of Palmerston Lodge United Ancient Order of Druids, in which he holds the office of Past Arch Druid. As a Freemason he belongs to the Palmerston Lodge, No. 26, New Zealand Constitution. Mr. Sloan was born near Toronto in Canada, in 1868, and was brought to New Zealand by his father in the same year. After leaving school he joined his father in an agricultural life, but in 1897 bought a general grocery business in Tiverton Street, Palmerston, which he still conducts. He is an enthusiast in bowling and fishing, and although only a young player, has already distinguished himself as a bowler. Mr. Sloan was married, in 1888, to a daughter of Mr. J. Cunningham, and has two sons and one daughter.

Councillor William Robertson was the first member elected to the Palmerston Borough Council, when the town was incorporated as a municipality, and he has represented the ratepayers ever since, except for one or two years. Mr. Robertson, who has also occupied the mayoral chair, is a member of the Reserves and Sanitary Committees, and has also taken a keen interest in the welfare of the borough. He was a member of the Palmerston Road Board before the formation of the Waihemo County Council, and he has also served on the school committee and Athenæum committee, and is one of the original members of the Loyal Palmerston Lodge. Manchester Unity Independent Order of Oddfellows. Mr. Robertson was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1841, and came to New Zealand in 1864, in the ship “Resolute.” After four months spent on Messrs Douglas and Alderson's station at Pomahaka, he came to Dunedin, and found employment with Mr. George Douse, saddler, Rattray Street. Four years later he left Mr. Douse to open a saddlery business for himself in Palmerston, and this he still conducts in Tiverton Street. Mr. Robertson was married in 1867, to a daughter of Mr. William Cochrane, of Palmerston, and has a family of four sons and five daughters.

Councillor Edward Henry Clark , who has represented West Ward on the Palmerston Borough Council since 1892, is the son of Mr. Edward Clark, who was long been well known in the district. Mr. Clark was born in Palmerston in 1870, and was brought up to the business of a builder by his father. As an Oddfellow, he is secretary of Loyal Palmerston Lodge, M.U. He is a member of the committee of the Palmerston Agricultural and Pastoral Association, and of the committees of the racing, cricket, and football clubs. Mr. Clark was married, in 1897, to a daughter of Mr. D. Ross, of Meadowbank.

Mr. William Becket Galloway was appointed Clerk and Treasurer of the Palmerston Borough Council, in October, 1902. He is also clerk to the Waihemo County Council, and secretary to the local Horticultural Society.

Mr. William Lindsay Craig , J.P., District Valuer for the counties of Waikouaiti, Waihemo, and Maniototo; the boroughs of Naseby, Palmerston, and Hawksbury, and Government Valuer under the Land and Income Tax, Advances to Settlers, and
Mr. and Mrs W. L. Craig and Family.

Mr. and Mrs W. L. Craig and Family.

page 441 Land Purchase Department, was born in Wigtonshire, Scotland, in 1849. He arrived in Port Chalmers with his parents by the ship “Maori,” on the 20th of April, 1857, and was educated at the Dunedin High School during the rectorship of Mr. A. Livingston. His father having purchased land in the Goodwood district, the family removed thither in 1862, and in October, 1869, William, with two of his brothers, purchased land in Shag Valley and in 1874 he bought out his brothers' interests. Since October 1882 he has been connected with the work of valuation, and has made many important valuations for the Government. He became a Justice of the Peace in 1896. Mr. Craig was for twenty-five years connected with the Inch Valley school committee, either as secretary and treasurer, or chairman, and he has been an elder of the Palmerston Presbyterian church since 1890. He was married in 1873 to the eldest daughter of Mr. G. Lindsay, a very old settler, of Berkenshaw, Tokomairiro, and has three sons and two daughters. In December, 1897, he purchased “Rosebank,” in Palmerston South, where he now resides. The farm “Annisfield,” in Shag Valley which he still retains, is worked by his two sons, assisted by one of his daughters.

Mr. Alfred Hogarth Gill , who held office as Mayor of Palmerston from the end of 1895 to the end of 1898, was the well-known proprietor of the “Palmerston and Waikouaiti Times.” Mr. Gill was born in 1830 at Cleveland, Yorkshire, England, and educated at Kirby, Grammar school, of which he was dux. After serving for three years as a law officer, Mr. Gill was seized with the gold fever and left Home in 1852 for Victoria, in company with Mr. L. S. Pratt and a Dr. Dush. He spent ten years on the goldfields, and in 1863 he came to Otago. After a tour of the diggings he settled in Waikouaiti, where he joined Mr. L. S. Pratt in the proprietorship of the “Waikouaiti and Shag Valley Herald” two years after his arrival. In 1876 Messrs Pratt and Gill sold the journal to a Palmerston company, which removed the plant to Palmerston and altered the name to the “Palmerston and Waikouaiti Times.” Mr. Gill, who was offered the editorship and managership of the old paper, but declined, afterwards became editor of the “Waikouaiti Herald,” a journal started to replace the old one but which lasted only a year. With the late Mr. F. J. Davies, he subsequently re-acquired the old journal, which he conducted as sole proprietor after his partner's death in 1879, when he purchased the interest of Mrs. Davies. Mr. Gill was during many years a prominent man in Waikouaiti. He was the first town clerk when Hawksbury became a municipality in 1866, and held the office for a quarter of a century. He was also appointed clerk to the bench in the same year and performed the duties for several years. Mr. Gill was one of the founders of Prince Alfred Lodge, and its first elective secretary. He was also honorary secretary to the local race club for many years, and was closely identified there with many public movements, notably the erection of the Mechanics' Hall, and played no unimportant part in conjunction with his partner in securing the splendid endowment reserves, from which the borough of Hawksbury now receives a substantial revenue. In 1869 Mr. Gill was married to a daughter of the late Mr. Joseph Beal, of Waikcuaiti, and had five sons and three daughters. He died in April, 1902.

Mr. James Arkle , long a member of the Palmerston Borough Council, and Mayor on two or three occasions, is a native of Lanarkshire, Scotland. He was educated at a parish school, and brought up to the drapery trade, and in 1862 he landed at Port Chalmers, from the ship “Pladda,” on her third voyage to the Colony. He remained for two years in Dunedin and then settled at Palmerston, where he established the mercantile business with which he has been so long and still is identified. As a public man, Mr. Arkle has been well known. He has been a Justice of the Peace since 1878, and has taken a leading part in local affairs, municipal and social. He is a Freemason and is a Past Master of Lodge Palmerston; a Past Grand of the Oddfellows, Manchester Unity; vice-president of the Palmerston Jockey Club, and a member of the Palmerston Bowling Club. Mr. Arkle was married, in 1862, to a daughter of the late Mr. Calcutt, of Queen's County, Ireland, and has two daughters (both married) and two sons.

A Bush Scene.

A Bush Scene.

The Waihemo County was originally part of the Waikouaiti county, from which it was separated in 1882. It has an area of 400,000 acres, and is divided into seven ridings; namely, Blue Mountain, Meadowbank, Macrae's, Bushey, Goodwood, Dunback, and Green Valley. The capital value of the district is £379,748, and the customary rate is five-eighths of a penny in the £. The large bridges over the Shag river, on the main north road, and the Dunback bridge, besides numerous footbridges, are within the county. The County Council chambers in Palmerston were built in 1874, and are used as the office of the local Borough Council, as well as for the purposes of the county. At the census of March, 1901, the county had—excluding boroughs within its boundaries—a population of 2014. The members of the Council for 1904 were: Messrs M. Isbister (chairman), T. Muir, R. Matheson, James Ross, David Ross, R. Cameron, D. M. Philip, W. E. Griffen, and G. Clark.

Mr. Magnus Isbister , who was elected Chairman of the Waihemo County Council in November, 1902, has represented the Blue Mountain riding in the Council since 1892. He was born in the Orkney Islands in 1857, received his elementary education at his native place, and was brought up by his father as a farmer, but he subsequently had six years' experience of mercantile life, two of which were spent in Liverpool. Mr. Isbister came to Port Chalmers in 1876, per ship “Marlborough,” and settled in the district. After a general country experience, extending over some years, he leased his farm of 960 acres on the Dunback Road, and has since carried on mixed farming. He was a member of the Inch Valley school committee, until it was added to the Dunback district, and was for some time its chairman; and at present (1904) he is chairman of the Dunback committee. Mr. Isbister is a Past Master of the Palmersten Masonic Lodge, and being of a genial, unassuming, and obliging disposition, he is held in high estimation among his friends and neighbours. He page 442 was married in 1891 to a daughter of Mr. J. Kirkness, of Orkney, and has four sons and two daughters.

Councillor Thomas Muir , who was chairman of the Waihemo County Council from 1894 to 1902, was previously a councillor for seven years. He represented the Blue Mountain riding during the whole of the period, and still (1904) represents it. Mr. Muir was born in 1851 at Green Island and educated in the Colony. He is the second son of the late Mr. John Muir, one of the first settlers in Palmerston, and now occupies one of the oldest wooden buildings in the Shag Valley. Mr. Muir possesses a freehold property of 2100 acres, and runs sheep and cattle. As a breeder of Border Leicester sheep he has won several prizes at local shows. He has served for about ten years on the local school committee, and has been many years connected with the Agricultural and Pastoral Society, of which he was secretary for eleven years. Mr. Muir is a member of the Presbylerian Church and holds office as one of the managers. He was married in 1885 to a daughter of Mr. James Forsyth, of Edendale, Southland, and has four sons and three daughters.

Councillor T. Muir.

Councillor T. Muir.

Councillor James Roos , J.P., who has represented Bushey riding on the Waihemo County Council since 1893, is a large farmer, stock-breeder and dealer, and resides at Kartigi, where he owns 3650 acres of freehold, and leases 2000 acres from Mrs Culling and 1700 acres from Mr. James Allen, M.H.R. He was born on the 9th of November, 1839, in Strath Kyle, Ross-shire, Scotland, brought up to country pursuits, and arrived at Port Chalmers, by the ship “Lady Egida,” on the 2nd of February, 1861. At first he went shepherding with Mr. McGregor, at Silverstream for twelve months. He was then engaged by Messrs Cameron, and Mr. Edward McGlashan as head shepherd, and remained in their service until the Mount Stoker station was sold to Messrs Gellibrand and Smith. The new firm, retaining his services, sent him to Warrington, in 1874, to buy and sell and carry on butchering, while the railway line was under construction. Then Mr. Ross leased the Warrington paddocks, and commenced business on his own account. He also leased Meadowbank from Mr. A. W. Bell, and took possession on the 1st of January, 1878. He also took his brother David in as a partner, and the firm carried on business on a very large scale as Ross Brothers. They bought and sold stock all over Otago and South Canterbury, and leased paddocks all over the district, including paddocks on Tumai, Goodwood, and 1000 acres from Mr. Rich, of Bushey Park, at 17s 6d per acre, and paid rent altogether to the amount of £3000 per annum. In the meantime Mr. James Ross removed from Warrington to Trotter's Creek, leasing Mr. Trotter's farm and buying Pebbly Brook, which he still holds. In March, 1877, Mr. Ross leased the whole of Bushey Park estate from Mr. Rich at 15s per acre, and went to live on the property. A year later the Bank of New Zealand took over the property from Mr. Rich, and released it to Ross Brothers at 14s per acre for a term of five years. At the end of the lease, the brothers dissolved partnership, the officials in charge of the Bank refusing their offer of 12s per acre for a term of years for the property. Mr. James Ross then, on his own account, made an offer of 13s per acre for five years, and a £10 per acre purchasing clause, which was also refused. After the dissolution of partnership Mr. J. Ross bought his large farm at Kartigi, where he has since resided.

Councillor J. Ross.

Councillor J. Ross.

Councillor David Ross , who has represented Meadowbank riding in the Waihemo County Council since 1893, was born in 1842 in Ross-shire, Scotland. He was educated in his native land and brought up to pastoral life, and arrived at Port Chalmers in 1863, on the first trip of the ship “Peter Denny.” He settled in the Maniototo district, where he remained for fourteen years, during which he was employed as a shepherd, and was afterwards in business on his own account as a butcher. Mr. Ross has since 1877 been lessee of Meadowbank estate, which consists of 4300 acres. He is a member of the Loyal Palmerston Lodge, M.U.I.O.O.F., and also member of the committee of the Palmerston Agricultural and Pastoral Society, and of the North Otago Association. For some years Mr. Ross has been a member of the Inch Valley school committee, of which he has been chairman since 1894. He was married, in 1876, to a daughter of Mr. G. Anderson, of Waikouaiti, and has two sons and one daughter.

Wriggtesworth and Binns, photo. Councillor D. Ross.

Wriggtesworth and Binns, photo.
Councillor D. Ross.

Mr. David Kennedy , who represented Dunback riding in the Waihemo County Council for a number of years after 1890, was born in Wigtonshire, Scotland, in 1842. He was brought up to agricultural work on his father's farm, and arrived in Port Chalmers in 1864, by the ship “Aboukir.” Mr. Kennedy purchased 560 acres in the Dunback district in 1870, and has since been well known as a settler. He has taken a general interest in the advancement of the district, and has served on the local school committee and road board. He is also a member of the Palmerston Agricultural and Pastoral Association. Mr. Kennedy was married in 1875 to a daughter of Mr. page 443 J. Pickett, of Palmerston, and has six sons and four daughters.

Mr. D. Kennedy.

Mr. D. Kennedy.

The Palmerston Post And Telegraph Office occupies a prominent corner section in Tiverton Street, and consists of a wooden building, of a somewhat novel style of architecture, erected in 1888. Mr. B. C. Dean is the officer in charge.

The Palmerston Railway Station is a wooden building over 100 feet in length. There is a large goods shed, measuring 100 feet by 40 feet, and ten men, including porters, guards and signalmen, are employed. Palmerston is a divisional station, at the boundary of two sections of the railway system, and the stationmaster is responsible for seeing that proper instructions are given to drivers and guards passing north and south. Mr. George Barelay, the stationmaster, is referred to as Major Barclay at page 134 in the Military Section of this volume.

The Palmerston District High School was established in 1877 under the “Education Act,” and the present building was erected in 1886. There are six classrooms with accommodation for 285 scholars, and the average attendance is about 252. The headmaster is assisted by four certificated teachers, and three pupil teachers.

Mr. Daniel Ferguson , Headmaster of the Palmerston District High School, has held the position since April, 1898. Prior to that time he was on the staff of the Temuka High School.

The Palmerston Presbyterian Church , A handsome stone building with spire, occupies a quarter acre section on one of the highest positions in the township, fronting one of the main streets. This charge was separated from Waikouaiti, of which it is an off-shoot, in 1871. There is seating accommodation in the church for 440 persons, and the average attendance is over 300. A Sunday school, held in the church, has about 160 scholars and fourteen teachers. The manse is built on a section of ten acres close to the borough.

The Rev. James Izatt Clarke , Minister in charge of Palmerston Presbyterian church, was born in Dunfermline, Scotland, in 1857. He was educated at Glasgow University and at the Free Church Divinity Hall in the same city, and finished his college course in 1890. Having been licensed by the Glasgow Presbytery, he landed in New Zealand in November, 1890, and was ordained and inducted into the charge of the Presbyterian church in the Mackenzie Country. In April, 1894, Mr. Clarke was inducted to the charge of the Palmerston church. He was married, in 1892, to a daughter of Mr. J. Walker, of Bathgate, Scotland, and has four sons and one daughter.

St. Michael's Church, Palmerston , is a wooden building seated for about 130 persons, and the average attendance is about eighty. In addition to this church, there is another built of wood at Hampden, with accommodation for fifty worshippers, and at Macrae's there is a stone church, which will hold 100 persons. At Hyde there is a church of the Sacred Heart. It is built of stone, will seat 130, and has an average attendance of about 100 worshippers.

The Rev. Father James Lynch , who has charge of St. Michael's church and the surrounding district, was born in Waterford, Ireland, in 1864, and was educated at St. Patrick's College, Carlow. Father Lynch was ordained in 1889, and came out to New Zealand, via Australia. His first appointment was at Queenstown, where he remained six years, and he has been in charge at Palmerston since 1896.

Wesleyan Church , Palmerston. This church was originally a portion of the Waikouaiti circuit, but is now the head of the Palmerston circuit, and was built in 1892. It is a wooden building, with accommodation for 120 persons. The Wesleyan church at Waikouaiti is the oldest in Otago, as that district was the scene of the labours of the early missionaries to that part of New Zealand. There is a Sunday school in connection with the church in Palmerston, which is attended by sixty-six scholars, and there are six teachers in charge

Palmerston Athenæum. The Athenæum building, which occupies a convenient site opposite the railway station, was erected about 1880. It is of wood, and contains a library of about fifteen hundred volumes, and the reading-room is well supplied with papers and magazines. Through the efforts of the late Sir John McKenzie, as Minister of Lands, the institution was liberally endowed with a land grant, from which a revenue of £32 per annum is derived.

Lodge Palmerston , No. 1749, was founded in 1878 under the Grand Lodge of England. In 1890 it transferred its allegiance to the Grand Lodge of New Zealand, and then became No. 26 in the New Zealand Constitution. The Masonic Hall is a substantial brick building situated in Auskerry Street. It cost about £600, and will accommodate over 150 persons. The annual installation of the Worshipful Master and officers is held in August in each year.

Loyal Palmerston Lodge , Independent Order of Oddfellow. This lodge was established in 1875. It possesses the Oddfellows' Hall, which occupies a freehold section in the borough, and has a membership of seventy-three. Fortnightly meetings are held, and the accumulated funds of the lodge amount to over £1200.

Palmerston Bowling Club . This club was established in 1898. The ground is the freehold property of the club, and has been purchased, fenced and put into good order at a total cost of about £150.

The Palmerston Racing Club . The original club, of which the present one is the outcome, was established in 1871, under the name of the Palmerston Racing Club. It was re-organised in 1884 as the Palmerston and Shag Valley Jockey Club, and the name was again changed in February, 1893. The racecourse, which is a mile in length, is situated in Shag Valley, and the buildings include a committee room and a judge's box. The Club holds a meeting once a year on Boxing Day.

Mr. John Thomas Gwynne , who has been Secretary of the Palmerston Racing Club since 1880, and is secretary of the Palmerston South Cemetery Trust, was born in Montgomeryshire, in North Wales, in 1832. He was educated in Wales and England, and emigrated to Adelaide, South Australia, in 1848. Four years later he went to the Victorian goldfields, where he stayed until 1864, when he came to Otago. In 1874 he settled in Palmerston, where he established himself in business as a bookseller and stationer, and has ever since been well known in connection with the district. Mr. Gwynne has hold office as registrar of electors, and returning officer for Waihemo county, since 1892. He was married, in 1876, to a daughter of Mr. J. Keown, of Ireland, and has four sons and four daughters.

Palmerston And Waihemo Agricultural And Pastoral Association . This society dates back to 1880. It possesses within the borough a freehold of ten acres, surrounded by a double belt of pine trees, and the ground has been so excavated and levelled, that two thousand people can look on at any public function. The annual show is held on the first Friday in the month of December. There are over one hundred members on the roll of the society and under the rules all members, together with their families, are admitted free to the annual show.

page 444

The Palmerston South Cemetery Trust . The cemetery is a pretty little spot beautifully planted with ornamental trees and shrubs, and occupies an elevated position, fourteen acres in extent, on the main North Road on the boundary of the borough. The portion of the cemetery which is set apart for the use of the Roman Catholic community is under the control of a separate committee.

The Palmerston And Waikouaiti Times (Donald Macleod, proprietor), Palmerston. This journal was originally established as the “Waikouaiti and Shag Valley Herald” in 1864, and was published at Waikouaiti till 1876, when the plant was removed to Palmerston, a local company having acquired the property, and at the same time the present name was substituted for the original name of the paper. About two years afterwards, Mr. A. H. Gill, who had previously been interested in the paper, became a partner again, and until his death in May, 1902, he conducted the journal as editor and sole owner. The present editor and proprietor, Mr. Donald McLeod, took over the business in June, 1902. The “Times” is a weekly paper of forty-two columns and six pages. It is fairly supported by advertisements and circulates throughout Palmerston, Shag Valley, Waikouaiti, Hampden, Dunback, Goodwood, and other outlying districts. In politics it claims to be independent with strong conservative leanings.

Palmerston Magistrate's Court . The courthouse is a wooden building, which was originally erected as a Presbyterian church. Sittings of the Court are held fortnightly by the stipendiary magistrate, and special cases are, when necessary, disposed of by the local justices. There is a room for the magistrate and witnesses' rooms, in addition to the court room. The office of the clerk of the court, which also does duty as a police station, is situated in Ronaldsay Street. In addition to the office there is a lock-up, which is seldom used, and a stable. The constable's residence of five rooms occupies a portion of the section.

Mr. William Hilliard , Constable in charge of the borough of Palmerston and of Waihemo county, Clerk of the Magistrate's Court and of the Licensing Committee, was born in Killarney, Ireland, in 1848. After being educated at Cork, he was brought up as a farmer, and came to Lyttelton in 1876, by the ship “Euterpe.” Mr. Hilliard joined the police force in the days of the Provincial Government, and served in Canterbury until 1893, when he was appointed to his present position. He was married in Christchurch in 1876, and has five sons and four daughters.

The Bank Of New Zealand in Palmerston stands on a prominent corner at the junction of Tiverton and Sandy Streets. It is a wooden building and was erected by the Colonial Bank of New Zealand. There has been a branch of the Bank of New Zealand in Palmerston since 1861, and the building occupied up to the time of the purchase of the Colonial Bank's business is in another part of the township. Sub-agencies at Hampden and Waikouaiti are managed from the Palmerston office. The staff at Palmerston consists of a manager, accountant, teller, ledger-keeper, and two juniors. Mr. W. H. Fielder is manager.

Crump, Charles , Insurance Agent, Palmerston. Mr. Crump was born in Derby, England, where he was educated. He landed in Port Chalmers in 1862, by the ship “Chariot of Fame,” and after remaining four years in Dunedin removed to Hampden; but settled in Palmerston in January, 1871, and was engaged in general clerical work for four years. In 1875 he was appointed secretary of the Palmerston Road Board, which was merged into the county in 1882, and he afterwards held office as county clerk. In 1878 he was appointed town clerk to the borough of Palmerston. He was also clerk to the Palmerston Caledonian Society. Mr. Crump resigned office as County Clerk and Town Clerk in September, 1902. He is now Deputy Registrar of Births, Marriages and Deaths for Palmerston.

Gwynne, John Thomas , News Agent and Fancy Goods Dealer, Booksellor, Tobacconist and Fruiterer, Palmerston. Bankers, Bank of New Zealand. Private residence, Goodwood Road. The premises occupied by Mr. Gwynne are freehold; his business was established in 1873, and is one of the oldest of its kind in the district. The proprietor is agent for the New Zealand Express Company, the Standard Alliance Insurance Company, the “Otago Daily Times,” and “Witness,” and the “Oamaru Mail.” Mr. Gwynne is referred to elsewhere as secretary of the Palmerston Racing Club.

Appleby, John Henry , Photographer and Cycle Agent, Palmerston. Mr. Appleby established his business in 1898. The shop is used in connection with the cycle business, and as a fancy goods depot; the photographic studio being situated near the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Appleby was born in 1869, in London, where he was educated, and came to Port Chalmers, by the ship “Margaret Galbraith,” in 1883. Since settling in Palmerston, he has been well known in musical circles as a cornet and violin player, and has been bandmaster of the Palmerston Brass Band since 1890. He has also organised an orchestra, which plays at public entertainments in the borough and district. Mr. Appleby learned his business as a photographer in Dunedin. He was married, in 1890, to a daughter of Mr. L. Clements, of Launceston, and has one son and one daughter.

Mr. and Mrs J. H. Appleby and Family. Appleby, photo.

Mr. and Mrs J. H. Appleby and Family. Appleby, photo.

Pearson, William , Baker and Confectioner, Ronaldsay Street, Palmerston. Bankers, Bank of New Zealand. Mr. Pearson began his business in leasehold premises in 1896. The building extends to Sandy Street at the back, and consists of a shop with a large refreshment room and a bakehouse, with a concrete floor. The connection extends for ten miles up the Shag Valley, and a large local trade is done in white and wholemeal bread, and in all kinds of pastry. Mr. Pearson was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, in 1854, and learned his business in his native land, where he worked at his trade till he left for New Zealand in 1887. After his arrival he was at Maniototo, and for eighteen months at Hampden, and was subsequently cook and baker at the Shag Valley station for six years before entering into business on his own account. Mr. Pearson is a Freemason and a member of the Loyal Palmerston Lodge.

page 445
Mr. W. Pearson.

Mr. W. Pearson.

Clark, Edward Henry , Builder and Contractor, Palmerston. Bankers, Bank of New Zealand. This business was established in 1874 by the present proprietor's father, who retired to become a sheepfarmer at Middlemarch in 1891. The large wooden workshops, which are two stories in height, together with the timber yard, occupy a freehold of half an acre, adjoining the railway. A great many of the important buildings of Palmerston were erected by the founder of the business, and many large building and bridge contracts in the district surrunding Palmerston, including the suspension bridge over the Shag river at Dunback, was undertaken and completed by him. Mr. E. H. Clark is further referred to as a member of the Palmerston Borough Council.

Shag Valley Creamery (Taieri and Peninsula Milk Supply, Ltd., proprietors), Main South Road, Palmerston South. The creamery was originally established as a dairy factory by the late Mr. Duncan, and the property was acquired by the company in 1898. There are two acres of land, and the creamery is a wooden building of one storey. There is a manager's residence on the property, and the machinery is driven by a six horse power steam engine.

Mr. Henry Watts , formerly Manager of the Shag Valley Creamery, was born at Manngatua, in 1865. He was educated in West Taieri, and was brought up to the dairy business at the Taieri and Peninsula Milk Supply Company's principal place of business in Dunedin. Mr. Watts was for five years at the Portobello Creamery, and was placed in charge at Palmerston when Mr. Duncan's property was acquired by the Company. He is an Oddfellow and has long been connected with the Hand and Heart Lodge, Dunedin. Mr. Watts was married, in 1890, to a daughter of Mr. W. H. Sarney, of Dunedin.

Mr. H. Watts.

Mr. H. Watts.

Palmerston Hotel (Malcolm Allan, proprietor), Tiverton Street, Palmerston. This hostelry is one of the oldest in Palmerston, and was established about 1863. It is a twostorey wooden building, containing fourteen rooms, of which nine are bedrooms; the dining-room will seat eighteen guests, and there are several parlours. The billiard-room contains an Alcock table. There is good stabling behind the hotel.

Mr. Malcolm Allan , Proprietor, is referred to elsewhere as a member of the Palmerston Borough Council.

Mr. M. Allan.

Mr. M. Allan.

Arkle, James , J.P., Merchant and Commission Agent, Shag Valley Store, Tiverton Street, Palmerston. Bankers, Bank of New Zealand. This important business, which was established by the proprietor in 1864, is conducted in premises centrally situated in the leading business thoroughfare of Palmerston. The building, which is erected on freehold land, is built of brick and stone, and affords ample accommodation. A wide verandah spans the full width of the footpath. Mr. Arkle is an importer of the lines in which he deals, and has a wide circle of customers in the district. He is agent for the National Insurance Company. Further particulars of Mr. Arkle's career are given in the section devoted to municipal matters.

Gow, John Cowie , Flour and Oatmeal Miller and Grain Merchant, Shag Valley Mills, Palmerston. Bankers, Bank of New Zealand. This mill, which was originally the property of Mr. W. J. Young, has been worked by the present proprietor since 1892. It is erected on freehold land, 110 acres in extent. The building is a four-storey wooden structure, and contains a complete up-to-date roller plant, driven by a fifteen horse-power water wheel, or, failing sufficient water, a twenty-five horse-power horizontal steam engine. The plant is known as a two-sack plant, and the trade is principally local, the surplus produce being sent to Dunedin. The brand is a “Valley Lily.”

Mr. John Douglas was for many years one of the most prominent pastoralists of New Zealand. Latterly he lived at Mount Royal, Palmerston, Otago. This property, which adjoins the borough of Palmerston, consists of 23,400 acres of freehold land, and about 500 acres of leasehold. It carries in fairly good seasons about 30,000 sheep, chiefly Border Leicester crosses, in addition to a small herd of a few hundred head of cattle, the greater portion of the lands being pastoral. Mr. Douglas also owned the Waihao Downs estate, South Canterbury, consisting of 10,200 acres of freehold, less about 1500 acres sold by him in agricultural farms. Waihao Downs is of limestone formation, with rich clay subsoil, and is therefore admirably adapted for the growing of wheat and other cereals and root crops, as well as for sheep rearing and fattening. Since the inception of meat freezing for exportation about 10,000 freezers have been annually reared and fattened there for that purpose. Mr. Douglas was born in Perthshire, Scotland, in 1829, and as a farmer's son in Strathmore, where high class farming has long flourished, he acquired a taste for, and an acquaintance with matters relating to agriculture and stock. He was educated and trained in a lawyer's and factor's office, where he acquired a knowledge of business and a practical acquaintance with estate management, land reclamation and improvement, and agricultural and stock pursuits generally. This experience proved of much service to him in after life. His more experienced relations, however, directed his attention to commercial life as affording better opportunities of advancoment, page 446 and he accepted a position in his cousin's mercantile house, then Paton and Fleming, now Fleming, Douglas and Co., of Dundee, the Scottish branch of Robinson, Fleming and Co., London. He subsequently became interested in land in New Zealand, and came out to the colony in 1862, as managing partner in certain investments and agent in others. Before leaving London he was joined by the late Mr. F. G. Alderson, son of Baron Alderson, of London, as partner in the agency department of the business, under the style of Douglas, Alderson and Co. Mr. Alderson subsequently arrived in the colony, and died in February, 1865. Mr. Douglas continued as the representative of the firm and acquired lands named by him and now known as Clydevale and Edendale estates, Kurow, Kawarau, Deep Dell and Hakataramea stations and others. These several estates and stations—with the exception of Hakataramea and Deep Dell, and others under the late Mr. Robert Hamilton's management, as well as those which the Hon. Mr. Holmes and his partners at that time owned—were taken over in 1867 at valuation by and amalgamated into a Limited Liability Company; namely, the New Zealand and Australian Land Company, Limited. Mr. Douglas, however, continued to act as New Zealand agent and general manager until 1870, when Messrs Russell, Ritchie and Co. became New Zealand agents and attorneys for the company. Mr. Thomas Brydone, who at that time was acting as inspector of estates, then assumed their management. Mr. Douglas, then and afterwards, purchased on his own account several properties, most of which he afterwards resold, save Mount Royal and Waihao Downs. In 1870, before going to live at Mount Royal, Mr. Douglas unsuccessfully contested with the Hon. John McKenzie, the Waihemo seat in the Otago Provincial Council. Mr. Douglas was married in 1863 to a daughter of the late Mr. Thomas Rattray, of Brewlands, Perthshire, Scotland, but that lady died in 1864, leaving one son, John Fleming Douglas, now of Waihao Downs estate. He contracted a second marriage, in 1893, with a daughter of Mr. David Stark, of Dunedin, and the family by this union consists of one son, born in 1895, and one daughter, born in 1898. Mr. Douglas died at Mount Royal on the 12th of August, 1903.

The late Mr. J. Douglas.

The late Mr. J. Douglas.

Appleby, photo. Palmerston, under Snow.

Appleby, photo.
Palmerston, under Snow.

Sir John Mckenzie was born in Ross-shire, Scotland, in 1838, and during his earlier years he worked on his father's farm. In 1860 he arrived in New Zealand, and, as he had been accustomed to sheep in the Old Country, he went shepherding on a station in the Palmerston district, with which he continued to be closely connected, as a settler and a public man, till the time of his death on the 6th of August, 1901. It was at his own homestead in the Palmerston district that he died, it was in that district in June, 1901, that he was invested by the Duke of Cornwall and York with the insignia of knighthood, as his Royal Highness was travelling from Christchurch to Dunedin, and it is in the Palmerston district, on the summit of Pukeviti Hill, that a large and lofty cairn has been erected to his memory. He will, however, long be remembered throughout all New Zealand as a statesman who in his time did far-reaching work in settling the lands of the colony on liberal and enlightened principles. A sketch of his life is given at page 48 of the Wellington volume of this Cyclopedia. His character as a public man; and his work as an administrator, are indicated with some sympathy and insight in an article written by a New Zealand journalist, and published at Gore in the “Southern Standard” in April, 1899: “Whatever John McKenzie feels he feels strongly. He has not by nature much of the philosopher about him. He is, what Dr. Johnson loved, a good hater, but he is also a warmhearted friend; in fact, a lover of his friends. Of course, he sometimes exhibits the defects of his qualities, and this he does by occasionally jumping to conclusions where the actual premises do not warrant any jumping at all. On those occasions there is often also another kind of jumping—jumping on an enemy, or some one believed to be an enemy, with the impetuosity of a tiger. Woe to the person thus treated—not always with justice, and yet, out of no primary deliberate desire to do injustice. Still, when he is really aroused, whether with or without sufficient justification, there is always something that is dramatically stirring, dramatically infectious in the Celtic ardour of the Minister of Lands. At such times his eye, like the eye of an angry bull, burns with dark red fire, and his wrath sweeps to its object with the rush and roar of a mountain torrent in time of flood. The spectator with a sense of the dramatic, feels that he is being treated to an exhibition of the elemental forces of nature, and that he is obtaining a glimpse of Ajax or Achilles in the high places of their anger. What the object of the Minister's attention may think, or how he may feel, is another story. However, to rest here in estimating the character of the Minister for Lands would be to leave the reader with a very incomplete conception of that character. The reader will err, too, if he assumes from what has already been said that Mr. McKenzie is a quarrelsome man. Quarrel he certainly will, on provocation, and sometimes on a misapprehension as to provocation, but quarrelsome he is not in the ordinary sense of that word. In fact, I should say that he is, on the whole, wary of entering into disputes, but, once in them, page 447 he, with his native mental and physical force and Celtic fervour, invariably acts in a way which makes his opponents beware of him. It is this which marks off his character as a political fighter, and makes it distinct from that of most other public men, even of men who possess much of his fighting quality. Indeed, New Zealand has reason to take pride in, and to be grateful for, this strength—this passionate earnestness in Mr. McKenzie's character; for it has made him a conspicuous success as a practical and patriotic statesman in the sphere within which he has done such admirable and memorable work. As Minister for Lands and Agriculture, Mr. McKenzie, in virtue of actual achievement, stands firmly in the front rank of New Zealand statesmen. In connection with the settlement of the land, he has, with but few incidental errors and mistakes, exhibited clear insight, wise intelligence, and a generous unselfish desire to promote the permanent well-being of the country and his fellow colonists. Within this sphere his success has been so great that he might, without egotism, say of himself, in the words ascribed to Sir Philip Sidney: ‘This is the work that I was born to do.’ Nor has it been child's play; on the contrary, it has been a veritable labour of Hercules; carried through in spite of, perhaps, even occasional personal misgivings, certainly in spite of opposition, conscientious and captious, misunderstandings and misrepresentations. Probably, too—such is human nature—many of those for whose benefit his great land policy was conceived and matured and has been carried out, have exhibited unreasonableness, ingratitude, discontent, and been, in other ways, thorns in the Minister's side. But this is a common experience, and the doer of notable things must, as a rule, find his reward in the doing and in the things done. One thing is certain: John McKenzie's work as a land-law maker and administrator is good for many generations. Thousands of families owe their well-being, and the country owes much of its prosperity, to his wisdom and his strength in that connection, and when he enters into his last rest he will need no mounument, for every other homestead in the land will be his memorial.”