First Farm Purchase – Dillons Point

When Dr Horne was established at the townhouse he became interested in purchasing rural land in the area east of Blenheim known as Dillons Point. This 3000 acre area, enclosed by the lower reaches of the Wairau and Opawa Rivers, narrows to a point near the Wairau Bar in Cloudy Bay.

The 1848 section holder and 1851 Crown Grantee of the 150 acre section on the point had been Hon. Constantine Augustus Dillon who had died in 1853.

Dr Horne purchased No 7 section of 150 acres from Charles Stratford for two hundred and ten pounds. The section's north-east corner bordered the lower Wairau River and would have been in native vegetation and poorly drained. Indeed the soils there are quite saline and would have been a challenge to develop at any time. There were no fences or other improvements. Remarkably, by early 1868 Dr Horne had stocked the property with 850 sheep, probably being grazed on neighbouring sections. In February of that year a disastrous flood occurred which covered all the land east of Blenheim to the sea and all of Dr Horne's sheep disappeared out to sea!

When an employee of Dr Horne was busy digging a drain on the property he discovered moa bones a few inches below the ground. The bones were on display afterwards at Purkiss Hotel in Blenheim.

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Dillons Point had a few other early settlors established at the time of Dr Horne's first purchase. They were on the southern boundary, against the Opawa River. Starting from Blenheim, occupiers of the sections following the Opawa River were Charles Eyles, James Holdaway, James & William Greig, Charles Lucas and Mr Phillips. All these farmers had cleared land and were exporting small shipments of wheat to the growing market of Nelson.

Lewis and Ellen had further children; Lewis [unior in 1868 and Ernest in 1869. In 1868 George, not yet 8 years of age, died of diptheria – a common cause of death amongst young people at the time. Another daughter, Edith, was born in the 1870s.