In the earliest days of settlement in Poverty Bay and the East Coast, church services were few and far between. Unconsciously the whalers occasioned the visit of the first missionary. It seems that one of their number transported some Ngatiporou Natives to the Bay of Islands and they were in danger amongst their old enemies in the North. This outrage moved the Rev. W. Williams, afterwards the first Bishop of Waiapu, who was then stationed in the Bay of Islands to intervene on their behalf. If the Ngapuhi had had their way, they would have kept the Ngatiporou as slaves. But Mr. Williams secured their release and, chartering the schooner “Fortitude,” sailed with them to Hick's Bay. Landing there on January 8, 1834, he proceeded to Waiapu, and returned them to their hapu. On this errand of mercy, Mr. Williams was so well received that he, later, suggested the establishment of a mission station in that district. The Waiapu, he reported, surpassed any other place he had seen for such a purpose. Meantime one of the Natives he had taken back to the Waiapu—one Taumatakura—with much zeal taught his people all he had learned about the Christian religion. But he was a warrior as well as a missioner and the story is told of him leading an attack on a pa at Cape Runaway with a musket in one hand and a Testament in the other. In October 1836, Mr. Willims brought six Native teachers to the East Coast to help Taumatakura in his voluntary missionary work. The year following both the Rev. W. Williams and the Rev. Mr. Taylor came south and were again much impressed with the progress that had been made. In December 1839, Mr. Williams with his family removed to Poverty Bay and here established a permanent mission station.

Courage and Grit.

Not a great deal is to-day accessible with reference to the early trials of Mr. Williams and his family. Their perseverance, however, was well rewarded. Now and again they had the company of a visiting clergyman from some other district. Mr. Williams wielded a powerful influence amongst the Natives, who were not disposed to molest them, admiring, as they did, their courage and grit. The Natives, indeed, displayed an intuitive respect for justice and self-sacrifice. And thus it came about that Mr. Williams and those associated with them won the esteem and the confidence of the Natives. On account of its isolated position the European population did not grow rapidly and thus it came about that the whalers and the traders, and afterwards some settlers made up the bulk of the white residents hereabouts till the beginning of the sixties. In due course, Native churches sprang up in this portion of the Dominion, and close to Gisborne the most notable was the old Maori Church on Kaiti. The mission station was established at Waerenga-a-hika. Then came the Hau Hau rebellion and the forced abandonment of the mission quarters in 1868.

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Troubles of the Early Church.

We now come to a time, 1871 to 1874, when there was no resident clergyman in Gisborne. It was in the former year that the late Wm. Dean Lysnar, father of Mr. W. D. Lysnar, M.P., took up his residence here. His diary for the period up to June 2, 1872, is not available but entries relating to later incidents make interesting reading in the light of the changed conditions of to-day. In the interval, until the establishment of a regular branch of the Anglican Church in 1874, with the Rev. J. Murphy, M.A., as resident clergyman, Mr. Lysnar, it would seem, was mainly responsible for the conduct of services. It is on record under date June 2, 1874, that owing to alterations in the Court-house, the church service was read in the school_house. Mr. Lysnar was appointed one of the church committee, which held its first meeting at Capt. Richardson's house. The harmonium was then removed from the Court-house to the school-house. On June 16 and June 23 Mr. Lysnar read the service and sermon but on the 30th he was taken ill with a bilious attack and Dr. Nesbitt and Capt. Richardson took charge of the evening service. The collection, it is noted, amounted to £1 6s 6d. The early infant local church was not without its troubles, for we read that on the first Sunday in July Mrs. Taylor, the first organist, objected to the children attending choir practice. Mr. Lysnar read the service. On the succeeding Wednesday, the first practice of the scholars was held, Mrs. Reid playing the harmonium.

School Used By All Sects.

It appears that, on July 15, Mr. Lysnar was appointed returning officer by the now Bishop Williams and the church lamps arrived that day by the Tawera. Wednesday saw the lamps hung and the second practice of the scholars. Mr. Lysnar was then appointed choirmaster and continued to conduct the services. On August 4, the Rev. Mr. Townsend conducted an afternoon service, the school-house addition being used for the first time. August 13 provides an item: “The Luna, from Napier, with Dr. Nesbitt, Capt. Richardson and others arrive. Amongst the number was Mr. Marshall, the late master of the Napier Grammar School, whom Bishop Williams purposes ordaining for Poverty Bay.” Sadness befel the community during that week owing to the death of Mrs. Goldsmith, who was buried by Mr. Marshall. On August 22 a meeting page 57 of the church and school committees was held to consider the question of religious services in the school-house and it was agreed to open the building to all denominations. The late Archdeacon Williams reached Gisborne on August 25 and conducted services both afternoon and evening. The collection came to 23s.

Church Building Mooted.

On August 30, 1872, a public meeting was held to consider the question of erecting a church for the Church of England. The meeting did not, however, organise for business, as there were only seven persons in attendance—Archdeacon Williams and Messrs. King, Webb, Steel, H. J. Reid and Lysnar. We next learn that Mr. Lysnar, on the following Saturday, crossed the river (to Kaiti) to borrow some sermon books from Archdeacon Williams. September 1st was a notable date for on that day the Archdeacon administered Holy Communion to ten communicants. The first choir practice was held on the Tuesday under the charge of Mr. Skipworth. During the remainder of the month Mr Lysnar held the church services. On October 3 Archdeacon Williams convened another public meeting to ascertain ways and means of building a church. A committee was appointed—the Archdeacon, Mr. Hardy and Mr. Lysnar. Mr. Taylor expressed his dissatisfaction. There were six communicants at the service on October 6, which was conducted by the Archdeacon. During that month, Mr. Lysnar continued to hold the services. Flora Wyllie and Mary King, it is recorded, then began to learn the harmonium.

During November, 1872, Archdeacon Williams held some of the earlier services. There was some disagreement in the choir and Mr. Skipworth resigned as player of the harmonium. On the 17th Mr. Lysnar held the service; there was no choir but Miss Nesbitt played. The following Sunday there was not even music and Mr. Lysnar led the singing himself. On the 27th Bishop Williams and Archdeacon Williams came in the Luna to make an effort to locate a clergyman in the district. The Bishop held the next service and the diary says: “Mr. and Mrs. Tolemache, Col. Singin, Capt. Read and other unusual attendants were present.' Just before Christmas Mr. Robt. Read died and Mir. Lysnar conducted the funeral service at a place across the Big River.

On January 19, 1873, Mr. Lysnar held the first service to be conducted at Matawhero. The following Sunday he baptised Louisa and Charlotte Goldsmith, children of Frederick and Heni Goldsmith, in the schoolhouse. Regretfully he adds that the sponsors, Oliver Goldsmith and Rowley Hill, were absent. Services at Gisborne and Matawhero were continued. February 20 was the day of Mr. Johnston's funeral and Mr. Lysnar read the service. On March 2 it is recorded that the Rev. Mr. Root, a Presbyterian minister, held his first service in the school-house. Bishop Williams and Archdeacon Williams also preached during that month. On May 25, Archdeacon Williams prepared to administer Holy Communion, but there were no communicants present, and the celebration was postponed. March 20 was the date of a meeting in the Court-house to arrange about building a church. The services were now again being held at the Court-house.

In 1874 Archdeacon Williams held numerous church services in the early months. On March 21 Mrs. Langford's infant died and Mr. Lysnar held the funeral service. Most of the April services were held by Mr. Root. On April 26, however, the Wesleyans held their first service in Gisborne. Mr. Root conducted special services on June 21 for the benefit of a Sunday school. July 10 was a notable day in that the Rev. J. Murphy arrived to assume the duties of minister, and he preached his first sermon here on July 12. In August an Anglican service was held in the Court-house in the mornings and a Presbyterian service in the evenings. On August 19 a musical and reading entertainment was held in the Music Hall for the benefit of the English church. Owing to no Bishop's church-warden being present to page 58 sign the notices for a parish meeting in October they were declared invalid. The opening service of the Presbyterian Church (St. Andrew's) took place on October 25 when the Rev. Mr. Bruce, of Auckland, preached and the Rer. Mr. Root and the Rev. Mr. Sidey (of Napier) assisted. Mr Root on October 29 at the school gave notice of the start of a Presbyterian Sunday school. Next day the Rev. Mr Murphy informed the scholars that the Church of England Sunday School would start on the following Sunday at the Court-house.

The Church of England Sunday school duly commenced on Nov. 1. There were 31 scholars and three teachers. On Nov. 9 a meeting of parishioners was held. Mr. Lysnar was appointed a church-warden and Messrs. Turner, Dufaur, Crawford, Parsons and Kempthorne vestrymen, with Messrs. Strong and G. Harris auditors. Robt. Skeet's funeral took place on November 15. The first vestry meeting followed on Nov. 16 when the business discussed was the election of Parish nominators, appointment of minister, stipend, books and seats. On account of the Rev. Mr. Murphy being unwell on December 6 Mr. W. W. Wilson read the prayers and lessons and Mr. Lysnar read a sermon: “The Rich Fool.” Messrs. Wilson, Crawford and Lysnar were appointed Parish nominators. The minister's stipend was fixed at £250 per annum and the vestry deputed Mr. Lysnar to confer with Mr. Root concerning the offertory, lights on Thursday evenings and the harmonium.

In the first week of 1875 a meeting of the Vestry had to be held to discuss the question of the arrears of stipend due to Mr. Murphy and the ladies were requested to form a committee to aid. On February 2 Mr. Murphy was allowed house rent of £50 per annum. He resigned, however, on February 6, deciding to return to Ireland. His resignation was accepted with regret on February 10, but Mr. Lysnar's resignation as church-warden was declined. Mr. Murphy went away on February 19. The following Sunday, Mr. Wilson read the service and Mr. Woon the sermon. Mrs. Wilson was buried on February 28 by the Rev. Mr. Root, who read the Church of England burial service. In March Messrs. Woon and Wilson continued the services. On March 24 a Vestry meeting was held to make preparations for the opening of the new church, which was built by Mr. Morgan for £880. The sittings were let on April 3. On April 11 the consecration of the church of the Holy Trinity was performed by Bishop Williams, assisted by Archdeacon Williams and the offertory amounted to £14 3s 4d. On May 2 Father Regnier held a service in the school. The Rev. E. Williams (of Naseby, Otago) arrived on May 20 and preached for the first time in Holy Trinity on the 23rd.

[As Mr. Lysnar left Poverty Bay on June 28 the diary ends so far aschurch affairs in this district are concerned.]

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Presbyterian Church
First to Hold Organised Services

So far as we have been able to trace (said the Jubilee report of the church) the earliest mention of Poverty Bay as a field for the extension of the Presbyterian Church, occurs in the minutes of the Presbytery of Auckland under date 10th January, 1872. It appears from these minutes that some residents in this district had felt the want of the ministry of our Church, and had communicated with the Presbytery about establishing services. Evidently the Presbytery was unable to do anything towards meeting the request immediately. No doubt they felt the difficulty; Poverty Bay was a long way from Auckland, ministers were scarce and there were many other demands. The Poverty Bay communication was allowed to lie on the table for three months, during which there was probably some correspondence on the subject. Anyhow, on the 3rd of April, the Presbytery of Auckland got rid of the problem by passing it on to somebody else. It agreed “that the matter of supply for Poverty Bay be handed over to the consideration of the Hawke's Bay Presbytery in consequence of the greater proximity of the district to that Presbytery.”

It so happened that the Hawke's Bay Presbytery was able to do something almost immediately. The Rev. George Morice, who had been minister of St. Paul's Church. Napier, since 1866, resigned his charge in the month of February, 1872, intending bye and bye to re-visit Scotland. He had some time at his disposal before leaving for Home, and spent some weeks of it in Poverty Bay. He was the first Presbyterian minister to conduct services here. Apparently he found the people anxious to see our Church represented in the Bay, and he proceeded to make preliminary arrangements. A list of promised subscriptions was made out and entrusted to Mr. Matthew Hall, saddler, to look after. A section of land, ten acres in extent, was secured at Matawhero; and the Matawhero Church, then the property of Captain Read, and used at one time by the Anglicans, was bought, It was already an historic building. It had been spared by the Hauhaus during the disturbed times of 1868–70 and had afforded sanctuary to a number of settlers and their families on the occasion of the massacre in 1868. Mr. Morice himself advanced the purchase money for the church. He also wrote an account of what he had done to the Rev. David Bruce in Auckland, who was the Convenor of the Church Extension Committee in those days, and to the Rev. Peter Barclay, in Scotland, who had been in New Zealand, was indeed the first Presbyterian minister in Napier, and was deeply interested in the work of the Church here. Through these brethren he hoped to secure a minister for Poverty Bay.

All these matters were reported to the Hawke's Bay Presbytery at its meeting on the 27th of June, 1872. Mr. Morice had proved a zealous and efficient commissioner, and the Presbytery was inclined to leave the whole business in his capable hands. It resolved that he should be authorised “to proceed as circumstances permitted.” Details of his procedure are not recorded; but the result was that the Rev. W. Heningham Root, formerly a minister of the Anglican Church, but then a minister of the Presbyterian Church of England, was appointed in the Home Country the first minister of the Poverty Bay Charge.

Mr. Root arrived here in February 1873. He made his home in Matawhero to begin with, holding services in Matawhero and Gisborne on alternate Sundays, and visiting Patutahi. Ormond and other places on the flats as he had opportunity. After six months, however, it was apparent that the strategic centre of page break page 61 the work was in Gisborne itself. The original township of Gisborne had been laid off, named, and a sale of town and suburban sections held by the Provincial Government of Auckland in 1872. (The settlement before that was known as Turanganui).

Mr. Root later moved into town and resided in Customs Street. From that date services were held in Gisborne every Sunday. The place of meeting was the Court-house, a twostorey building, which stood then on what is now Adair Bros.' corner, and which is still in use on the opposite side of the street as Prime's ironmongery shop (since demolished).

The Presbyterians were the first to hold regularly organised services in Gisborne, and both prior to and for some time after the erection of the church these services were attended by members of the Church of England and other Protestant denominations. A very friendly and harmonious spirit marked the intercourse of all denominations in those early days.

It was not till the following year that Mr. Root visited Napier, and was formally welcomed by the Hawke's Bay Presbytery. At a meeting of the Presbytery on the 4th of February, 1874, he was able to report that he had been twelve months in Poverty Bay, and that good progress had been made in laying the foundations of the Church there. Besides the property at Matawhero secured by the Rev. George Morice, the Church possessed now a couple of acres in Cobden Street, Gisborne, half an acre of which had been given by the Provincial Government out of reserves for Church purposes, and the remainder purchased by five members and presented to it. The five members to whose foresight and generosity the congregation is so much indebted were Messrs. Matthew Hall, W. B. Mill, John Ferguson, Alexander Blair, and Andrew Graham. The acre and a-half cost £25. The section originally given by the Government was the one nearest to Gladstone Road. It was one of four sections set aside for Church purposes. The others were given to the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Methodist Churches, the assignment being by ballot.

Steps were now taken to build a church on this property. The site was covered with scrub, and the pegs had to be sought for among the manuka. An interesting minute of the period tells how the committee approached the Road Board with the request that the formation of the road from Gladstone Road to the Church section should be undertaken. In spite of some difficulties the building was carried through expeditiously. Friends in Auckland assisted the project with subscriptions amounting to £101. Many of the first settlers in Gisborne came from Napier and Hawke's Bay, and a considerable sum of money also was collected in Napier. The Church was opened by the Rev. D. Bruce, of Auckland, and the Rev. D. Sidey, of Napier, on the 25th of October, 1874. Mrs. Brooke-Taylor, a prominent Church of England worker, presided at the harmonium on the occasion. With the exception of the native church on the Kaiti side of the river, this was the first ecclesiastical building in Gisborne.

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Burning questions about this time were the proposed removal of the Matawhero Church to another site, and where to erect the Manse—in Gisborne or at Matawhero? The Presbytery strongly recommended that the Matawhero Church should stay where it was, and the Manse should be in Gisborne. In Gisborne, accordingly, the Manse was built, and occupied by Mr. Root in 1876. It is now the caretaker's cottage at the back of the present Church.

During the years 1874–77, while the congregation was bearing the burden of its building schemes, it received substantial help in the matter of stipend from the Colonial Committee of the Church of Scotland. An annual grant of £50 was paid to it, on condition that it raised £150 itself, making the stipend in all £200.

On the 5th of February, 1878, the Presbytery received the report that Mr. Root was about to ordain elders in Gisborne, and agreed to leave the matter in his hands. This seems to have been the first Session.

Six months later, in August, Mr. Root received a call from Greymouth, which he accepted. There was a fairly long vacancy. In the following March a call was sustained to the Rev. John McAra, of Balclutha. Mr. McAra accepted it, and was duly inducted on the 14th of May, 1879. In its early years the congregation found the problem of finance a somewhat serious one, and it is evidence of the progress made that the stipend offered to Mr. McAra was £300.

St. Andrew's Church was now firmly established, and henceforward its course was like the course of other Churches. It has had its ups and downs, its changes and losses, its difficulties and anxieties; but it has continued throughout all to bear its testimony to Jesus Christ, the Son of God and Saviour of the World. From its pulpit the Gospel has been faithfully preached; in its Sabbath Schools and Bible Classes the young people have been faithfully taught. The hearts of men and women have been refreshed and comforted, and many have been won for the kingdom of God.

Mr. McAra's ministry was cut short in 1890 by a fatal buggy accident on the old Peel Street bridge. He was succeeded by the Rev. R. M. Ryburn, M.A., now the Director of the Youth Work of our Church. On Mr. Ryburn's translation to Wanganui in 1897, the Rev. James G. Paterson, of St. Paul's Church, Napier, was appointed to succeed him. In his time the old Church, which had already been added to, was enlarged to its present size. Mr. Paterson died suddenly on the 10th of August 1906. The Rev. William Grant, formerly of Leeston, was inducted on the 17th of October in the same year. During his ministry, in 1910, a new Manse was built on a site in Childers Road, donated to the Church by the Misses Morice, sisters, of the Rev. George Morice, who had long been resident in the district. A few years later, in 1913, the present Church was erected. Mr. Grant was one of the first ministers to serve as chaplain when page 63 the Great War broke out. His tragic death in the trenches of Gallipoli is commemorated on the stone let into the east wall of the Church, while another stone commemorates men connected with the congregation who died in that titanic struggle. On the 9th of March, 1916, the Rev. James Aitken, M.A., formerly of Mosgiel, was inducted into the pastoral charge of the congregation.

It was during Mr. Ryburn's ministry that the country districts, with the exception of Matawhero, were disjoined from the town. Matawhero was separated in 1899. This present year (1923) saw the suburban district of Mangapapa and Kaiti, where Knox Church and St. David's have for many years been under the fostering care of St. Andrew's, attain independence as a Home Mission charge.

Roman Catholic Church
Fifty Years of Progress
Strong Scholastic Development

In Gisborne's earliest times, the spiritual needs of the Roman Catholic residents were administered by more or less regular visits from the priests stationed at Napier. It was not until the early 70's that a priest was regularly stationed here.

Father Walter McDonald, during the years between 1860 and 1870, made a number of visits from Hawke's Bay and, during one of these, on behalf of the Church, he purchased the two sections on which the present Church and presbytery stand from the Government at £15 apiece.

During the 70's, Father Regnier, then at Napier, made a number of visits and held Mass in the old Courthouse (then situated on Messrs. Adair Bros.' site) and in the old school which stood on the corner opposite the present Roman Catholic Church. Father John O'Connell was the first resident priest (1872) and he was succeeded by Father J. B. Simpson (1874).

In 1878, Poverty Bay was established as a charge separate from Napier and Father Chastagnon took up his permanent residence here. Archbishop Redwood (then Bishop) visited the district and officiated at the ceremony of laying the foundation stone of the present Church. The following year saw the Church dedicated by Archbishop Steins.

Fathers Vagioli, Reardon, Murphy and Ahearne followed in that order and then came Father Keogh, during whose time the present presbytery was built.

Father Mulvihill next held office for a number of years up till his death in 1906. During his charge, the preset Convent was erected and the Church made great strides in enlarging its sphere of influence. Father Mulvihill enjoyed wonderful popularity throughout the community and, on his death, a public subscription fund was opened to erect a fitting tombstone over his mortal remains. The result is to be seen in the handsome monument over his grave in the Roman Catholic portion of the Makaraka cemetery. He is the only priest who has been buried in Poverty Bay.

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Father (now Dean) Lane followed Father Mulvihill on the latter's death in 1906 and held office for the long period of nineteen years. During this time, further great strides were made by the Church, of which undoubtedly the most important work was the re-building of St. Mary's school and the acquiring of a new church and school site in Childers Road. It is intended that, ultimately, all the Church buildings shall be situated on the Childers Road site. Like his immediate predecessor, Father Mulvihill, Dean Lane enjoyed wonderful popularity and when he left Gisborne in 1925, he was farewelled not only by the Roman Catholic community, but also by many residents of other denominations.

In 1925 Father Murphy, the present head, took charge, with Father Kelly as assistant. His term of office has seen the building of the splendidly-equipped school in Upper Childers Road and also the establishment of the Marist Brothers' school for boys.

An interesting reflection of the growth of Roman Catholicism is given by a comparison of the numbers attending the school in the past and at the present time.

In 1906, when Dean Lane took over the charge, the old St. Mary's school had a staff of two teachers and 48 scholars.

At the present time, there are the old and new schools with a total roll of 360. The new school has a staff of eight Sisters of St. Josephine and 300 children, while the old school is under the control of two Marist Brothers, who have sixty boys under their charge. This latter institution has made splendid progress, especially when it is remembered that it was established only two years ago.

The full list of clergy who have officiated in this district since its establishment here, in the order in which they occupied office, is as follows:—

• Father John O'Connell (1872)

• Father J. B. Simpson (1874)

• Father Chastagnon

• Father Vagioli

• Father Reardon

• Father Murphy

• Father Ahearne

• Father Keogh

• Father Mulvihill

• Father (now Dean) Lane

• Father Murphy (now in charge).

Methodist Church
Fifty Years' Progress in Gisborne

The growth of Methodism in Poverty Bay, and indeed throughout the Dominion, since it was linked up strongly with the trials and tribulations of the early settlers in the colonising days, presents an interesting and fascinating study for theological students. From small beginnings, Methodism in this district made its influence for good felt, and in the interval of fifty years, progressing with the development of the town, has become one of the most potent forces in the spiritual well-being of the community. The happy event recently celebrated by Methodists of the district—the jubilee of the establishment of the Wesleyaa Church in Bright Street — recalls many interesting events in the progress of Methodism in this district.

The foundation of Methodism here owes much to the splendid spiritual endeavors of the late Mr Jas. East, who in 1874 conducted the first Wesleyan services in a little school-house which then occupied a site on an allotment situated on the corner of Childers Road and Lowe Street, opposite the Gisborne Hotel, and it was in this building he started the first Sunday school and formed the first choir, of which he was conductor. His spiritual endeavours were followed by the Hon. G. W. Russell, then a youthful student, who page break page 67 has since distinguished himself in journalism and politics, of whom it is recorded that by his youthful ardour and fluent oratory he made an excellent impression. Of course, in the early days the work of the Church was limited by the size of the population, but, nevertheless, those two gentlemen laid a splendid foundation upon which Methodism has been firmly established in this district. Shortly afterwards the place of worship was changed to the old court-house, which then stood on the site of Adair Bros, present building, and where the Methodists, in common with other denominations, conducted regular services for nearly a year. The appointment of the Rev. T. G. Carr as minister of this charge the following year signalised the first movement by the Methodists to erect a church of their own, and under his leadership the congregation set about raising funds for this purpose. Just previously the Methodists had been granted along with those of other denominations, an acre of land in Carnarvon street for church buildings, but in those days the locality was considered unsuitable as the site for a sacred building, being far removed from the centre of the town's business and social activities. Accordingly the Church authorities secured a quarter-acre situated in Bright street on which the church now stands at a cost of £50, for which the Wesleyan conference voted £30. Plans for the church, a building 24ft by 34ft, were drawn by Mr John Warren and a contract for £234 was let to Mr. Ross. The balance of the money required for the purchase of the section and the cost of erecting the church was raised by local contributions in which the efforts of Messrs. Tutchen, Hall, Carey, Anderson, Hill, Trimmer and Robins were very prominent. A trust fund was then created and administered by Messrs. Tutchen and Robins.

In the following year, Jan. 1876, the Bright street church was opened, the occasion being marked by an exchange of courtesies between the Wesleyan and Presbyterian congregations, both of whom attended the opening service at which the Rev. W. H. Root, the Presbyterian minister, was the preacher. The Rev. Carr occupied the Wesleyan pulpit in Gisborne only a year and was then succeeded by the Rev. W. S. Harper, and in succession new ministers were appointed to this charge ranging from one to five years as follows: Revs. W. L. Salter, John Bellow, Lewis Hudson, J. T. Penfold, W. J. Spence, T. J. Wills, J. A. Luxford.

In the course of a few years with the increase of population and consequent development in the congregation the limited accommodation offered by the church became fully taxed and in the course of twenty years became inadequate. When the Rev. Josiah Ward took charge here it was decided to re_build and a contract was let to Mr. R. Robb for the erection of the building which now occupies the forefront of the section in Bright Street, the old church being removed to the rear of the property and it has since been used as a Sunday school.

The period during which the Rev. Mr. Ward was in charge was a busy one and it was to this gentleman's energy and influence that funds were found for the new church and the parsonage, which was included in the same contract. The congregation secured a remarkably good bargain in the matter of building, for the cost of the church and the parsonage, which were erected in 1890, was only £1200, a proportion of which was advanced by the conference.

The extension of the church influence into the country was rapidly effected. During the ministry of the Rev. J. A. Lochore, which continued over a period of five years, commencing in 1909 new buildings were erected at Te Hapara and Mangapapa, and the establishment of the church in Victoria Township followed shortly after. To-day these churches have regular services, while visits are paid by the presiding minister to Motu, Motuhora, Matawai, Kaiteratahi, and to the coastal centres when opportunity offers. The work of the minister has been made more arduous of late years by lack of assistance, which through lack of funds page 68 it was impossible to secure. However, it is hoped that the fifty-first anniversary of the inauguration of work here will show further considerable progress.

Following the Rev. Ward the following ministers have presided over the Wesleyan pulpit in Gisborne:—S. J. Gibson, T. N. Griffin, L. Salter (second term), Joseph Blight, F. B. Oldham, G. Hounsell, Cornelius Griffen, W. H. E. Abbey, E. T. Cox, M.A., and George Frost. The Rev. Mr. Frost is now in charge, he having succeeded Mr. Cox in 1924.