140 Years of Hastings History
2 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
MAYOR’S WELCOME
I am pleased to acknowledge the 140th anniversary of the year when the name of our city was changed from Karamu Junction to Hastings.
Hastings has been through so many changes in the past 140 years but continues to grow and prosper as we face the many challenges of the 21st century.
Karamu Junction was the early name of the area which now encompasses the CBD and when the railway was extended south from Napier it ran right through the heart of this piece of land. Of course, the railway remains a landmark of the centre of Hastings to this day. It was on June 7th 1873 that a newspaper story announced that the name Karamu Junction would be replaced by Hastings.
The first train ran from Napier to Hastings in 1874 and that was instrumental in allowing our city to begin to grow as it opened up links with Port Ahuriri and the shipping routes which were available to take produce to consumers around New Zealand and eventually to markets around the world.
Of course, Hastings history has been marked by a number of significant events. The most calamitous occurred at 10.47 am on Tuesday 3rd February in 1931 when an earthquake virtually flattened the city centre. From the rubble and hardship that followed the quake, grew the city that we know now.
Our city grew rapidly throughout the 60’s and 70’s, as the meat industry expanded and provided employment for thousands of our people and this also allowed the development of associated industries. That bubble burst in the 80’s when reforms caused the meat industry to go through monumental changes and this caused severe hardship for our people. However, the people of Hastings and the wider Hawke’s bay [Bay] area showed their resilience to get through difficult times and by the end of the 90’s there were strong signs that the economy was recovering from those dark days. Horticulture and agriculture continues to be the backbone of our economy and the rapid growth of the wine industry is testament to how we have adapted our economy to meet changing conditions.
From what probably seemed like a small step in 1873, that of changing the city’s name to Hastings, the district has grown and prospered and has always been at the forefront of the development of our country. The 140th anniversary of the name change has given us a chance to look back, not only at the difficult times that our people have endured but also to admire the amazing resilience shown by our people which has allowed the district to grow and I am confident that this growth will continue in the years to come.
Lawrence Yule
Mayor Hastings
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Some things may have changed
IN 140 YEARS but not everything!
Our ‘place’ may have changed a little over the last 140 years but the tenacity, capability and passion of our people has continued to shine. Hastings District Council is proud to serve the people of Hastings.
Happy 140th, Hastings!
HASTINGS
HEART OF HAWKE’S BAY
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 3
WELCOME TO OUR PUBLICATION OF 140 YEARS OF HASTINGS HISTORY
When Hastings was named in June 1873 and the first sections were auctioned in July that year, one hundred and forty years ago, some laughed and ridiculed those who chose to attempt to farm and start a town in what was a swamp. Many, however, believed Hastings had a bright future, and would one day outgrow Napier to be the capital of Hawke’s Bay. The relationship between the towns, and later cities, over the years has had its ups and downs – a consequence of being separated by only twelve miles (19 km) and competing for business and infrastructure resources that at times could realistically support only one urban centre.
In the 1923 celebrations of the beginning of Hastings, Mayor George Maddison remarked that “Hastings has grown to be the 13th town in New Zealand, and the pioneers have laid the foundation of a great city. It is up to the young men of today to see that their trust is not betrayed.” This would be tested through times of adversity, such as the Great Depression, 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake, World War II, and later economic challenges, which continue today.
In this publication I have written twenty-one stories relating to the development of Hastings since 1873 from the timeline of events. While the events chosen are significant, and intended to be reflective of Hastings’ development and history, many other significant events and organisations are not mentioned. I hope, however, you enjoy reading about some of the events, organisations and people that have made Hastings what it is today.
Best wishes,
Michael Fowler
June 2013
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Rural Roots anchor Bayleys to heartland New Zealand
BAYLEYS
The family name Bayleys is synonymous with New Zealand’s real estate industry. It is also a family name which traces its roots deep into rural New Zealand over generations … stretching as far back as the 1850s.
The Bayley association with real estate in New Zealand was first seeded when family founder Reginald Bayley immigrated from England to Taranaki in 1851 – eventually becoming an assistant land registrar in what was the burgeoning rural town of New Plymouth.
However, it was almost 100 years later that those first inklings of involvement with property really began to flourish into the Bayleys company as it is known today.
Bayleys company founder Graham Spencer Bayley was a decorated World War Two fighter pilot who flew Corsairs and Harvards in the Pacific conflict.
On returning to New Zealand, along with thousands of New Zealand servicemen, at the conclusion of World War Two, Graham Bayley was allocated remote farm land near the central North Island township of Taumaranui [Taumarunui].
Like thousands of other pioneer farmers who were granted ‘rehabilitation’ stock units – with no power, no water, no sewerage, and no home – Graham Bayley toiled for years behind the wheel of his David Brown tractor to break-in the bush and scrub of his Taumaranui landholding, and create fertile pastoral farm land, while at the same time building the farm cottage.
Graham met wife-to-be Pam in Hawera where she admitted to “falling in love with the uniform rather than the man.” Graham and Pam’s first son, John Bayley, was born in the washhouse of that Taumaranui farm cottage.
After almost a decade in Taumaranui Graham Bayley – and the now growing Bayley family of three children – moved to another small rural North Island town, Taneatua in the Southern Bay of Plenty, where he bought a dairy farm and run off block.
The young Bayley children – who later went on to become key members of the real estate company bearing their surname – were brought up in the rural ways typical of that era. They milked cows before riding to school on horseback, then helped with feeding the calves and milking the herd at the end of the day. Summers were spent jumping on and off the back of the farm truck, manually loading up hay bales.
In addition to the cattle activities, Graham Bayley moved into horticulture – establishing commercial gardens which produced beans, cabbage, lettuce, and watermelons.
After some eight years on the site, Graham Bayley sold up at Taneatua and purchased another horticulture block in Whatawhata in the Waikato – situated between Hamilton and Raglan. While dad would regularly drive the supply truck laden with vegetables over to Hamilton or up to Auckland, the ever-increasing Bayley clan of children would take turns manning the roadside product stall.
Utilising his knowledge of both the agricultural and horticultural sectors, Graham Bayley swapped the plough and the milking shed for a desk and a tie – joining a Hamilton real estate agency to begin selling farms throughout the Central North Island.
While farm land was the mainstay of his sales, Graham Bayley saw what was happening to the fast-growing city of Auckland, and recognised the opportunities that lay in wait as the city’s population and commercial influence expanded at a rapid rate.
Graham Bayley and his eldest son John moved to Auckland in 1973 to establish the genesis of what has gone on to become New Zealand’s largest full service real estate agency.
Father and son were joined by brother David Bayley in 1974 – with the business operating out of the family home in Papakura. Younger siblings Tony and Chris also grew into the family business over the ensuing years as the business grew – and in fact are still involved with selling real estate today, as are John, David, and older sister Dinah.
Graham Bayley passed away in 1995, but the legacy of a real estate agency that he founded lives on with a modern network that stretches the length and breadth of New Zealand including Hawke’s Bay.
Serving the townships of Wairoa, Napier, Hastings, Havelock North and CHB, Bayleys Hawke’s Bay has long had a commitment to growth throughout the region, with substantial support to the local community. From the arts, to wine, to the primary sector, Bayleys is recognised as a brand rich in history having served Hawke’s Bay residents for decades, with many more to come.
HAWKE’S BAY
OPERA HOUSE
CELEBRATING 98 YEARS OF SERVING THE COMMUNITY
The Hawke’s Bay Opera House boasts one of New Zealand’s most magnificent examples of Spanish Mission Architecture, with opulent interior design influenced by the Art Nouveau movement.
Built in 1915 by the Bull Brothers of Napier
Designed to seat up to 1400 people – an impressive undertaking for a small community of 8500 people!
The theatre took just 6 months to build and cost £12,000.
The grand opening night was October 18th 1915 and the Hastings Operatic Society performed “San Toy”, a Chinese musical comedy. Planning is now underway for the Centenary celebrations in 2015!
During its 98 years of operation the Hawke’s Bay Opera House has hosted a myriad of events and performance genres – from ballet, contemporary dance and opera to musical theatre, stand-up comedy, rock concerts, rugby world cup live-sites and boxing bouts held on stage.
The Hawke’s Bay Opera House is an important part of our history and much loved by Hastings people. Today the Opera House plays host to school performances, community concerts, national and international touring shows as well as conferences, weddings and charity events.
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 5
SWAMPS, LEASE, PURCHASE
When James Nelson Williams, future land owner in Hastings, and prominent businessman, was working as a young man during the 1850s at Reverend Samuel Williams’ farm at Te Aute, he took a farm from the South Island up a hill to view the Heretaunga Plains. The man – who was interested in acquiring land – saw swamps, fern and thick vegetation as far as the eye could see and commented, “I do not think much of Hawke’s Bay” and left. Missionary William Colenso, who arrived in Hawke’s Bay in 1844, often remarked on its treacherous swamps, having once had the misfortune to get lost in one at nightfall.
Many Hawke’s Bay Maori lived near rivers and used canoes to move about; the swampy Heretaunga Plains were mostly uninhabited in pre-European times. Maori also used foot tracks, and many of them became roads during European settlement. The closest Pa to what is now Hastings was Karamu – situated near where Ruahapia Road is now.
One man, however, who was interested in the Heretaunga Plains land, was Thomas Tanner. He had settled in Central Hawke’s Bay around 1853, and was looking for large areas of land to farm in the late 1850s and early 1860s – even travelling the Maori Taupo foot track on horseback in 1859 searching for a suitable property on the Taupo plains. Having no luck on that venture, when he returned from England a few years later, Thomas turned his attention to the Heretaunga Plains. Thomas could speak Maori and was very persuasive. He managed to obtain in 1864 (initially with William Rich) a lease of 17,785 acres (7,197 hectares) from Maori within the Heretaunga Plains – albeit illegally. A gun and a racehorse were the sweetener for the deal. The boundaries of the Heretaunga Plains Thomas leased were rivers and streams. Unable to afford the lease payments on his own, he divided up the Heretaunga Plains land into twelve blocks, which were taken up by himself and six other men. These men became known as the twelve apostles, because of the number of blocks.
Thomas Tanner began to have financial difficulties around 1867, after borrowing heavily to develop his four Heretaunga blocks. In order to service his loans, Thomas offered five sections within his land of 100 acres for lease at the end of 1867, on generous terms, – especially if the lessees drained and ploughed the land. It is likely that Thomas intended to farm all of his land, which he later called Riverslea, but financial difficulties – which plagued him throughout his life – meant fate would have other plans.
The first building on the leased Heretaunga blocks was Thomas Tanner’s farm manager G H Norris’s residence, built in 1864/65.
Francis Hicks was one of those who leased land from Thomas Tanner around 1868 of 101 acres (41 hectares), purchasing it in 1871, when Thomas and the other apostles were able to buy their blocks freehold from Maori, and therefore on-sell their land. By all accounts, Francis Hicks was “fine in appearance” and dressed immaculately. In 1859 he settled in Auckland for a short time, before painting landscape scenes in Rotorua. He tried to make his fortune on the goldfields in Australia and then Otago. He took part in the Maori Wars by supervising stone-crushing for building military roads, and then becoming a paymaster. When he came to Hawke’s Bay he worked fencing farms, before farming on Tanner’s land. Francis’s nephew, Tobias Hicks, built a two-roomed wooden store in 1871 on Francis’s land, on what is now the ANZ bank site on the corner of Karamu Road and Heretaunga Street – and this was the first commercial building in Hastings. Karamu Road was the first road formed in Hastings, principally to get access to Tobias’s store from the Karamu Pa, and the road was previously a horse track, fenced on both sides.
By the end of 1871, the Napier-based paper, the Hawke’s Bay Herald reported that the settlement at Karamu (Hastings) contained some two hundred people, and that storekeeper Tobias Hicks was appointed postmaster effective from 26 February 1872. An announcement that year that the railway would run through Karamu, made the owners of the land purchased from Thomas Tanner realise that if the railway station was sited on their land, this would guarantee them a small fortune if the property was subdivided.
Photo captions –
Thomas Tanner
(1830-1918)
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
This is a very early map of the Heretaunga Plains. The area is surrounded by the Ngaruroro River sweeping around the left, Waitio Stream on the right, and the Ohiwia Stream below. The Makirikiri Stream runs through the Heretaunga Plains.
Credit: Hill Family
The advertisement of the first subdivision of Thomas Tanner’s blocks in the Heretaunga Plains that eventually created Hastings.
Credit Hawke’s Bay Herald
Most Maori pa were situated near rivers for travel by canoe, although many foot tracks existed.
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz/
This photo is of swamps in Napier South in the late 1800s, but early Hastings would have been similar.
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz/
6 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
SUBDIVISION OF HICKS’ BLOCK AND THE NAMING OF HASTINGS
A newspaper report in the Hawke’s Bay Herald on 7 June 1873, stated that Francis Hicks’ free offer of 1.5 acres (.60 hectares) of his land to the government to site a railway station had been accepted, and that he was subdividing his property into town and suburban sections. The location was also given a name on that date – Hastings. Francis Hicks also gave land for the courthouse in Eastbourne Street, and school and school house in St Aubyn Street.
The name “Hicksville” is often mentioned in connection with being the first name of Hastings, and J G Wilson claimed to have seen this on documents relating to the transfer of the railway station land. However, the name for the area was Karamu, in connection with the name of the nearby Pa. Hicksville is not stated in any other newspaper reports or known documents, and the area which became the Hastings CBD was referred to as “Upper Karamu”.
Auctioneer Edward Lyndon of Napier was given the task of selling Francis Hicks’ sections on 8 July 1873. Edward’s newspaper advertisement proclaimed that Hastings would one day become “the capital of the province”. The Hawke’s Bay Herald in response said “we can’t say that we hope it will be realised as that for one thing would involve the removal of the Herald office to Karamu – a rather expensive operation – but we would not, at the same time, be much surprised if it were” (they did move to Hastings, but not until after the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake.) The opposition paper to the Herald, Napier’s Daily Telegraph, was less than complimentary, stating in June 1873: “Our contemporary is under the impression that it is not improbable the new proposed township will eventually become the capital of the province. Will someone be good enough to lay off into another township a few waste acres in order that we may have one more rival to Napier.” And in September that year: “The new township of Hastings has already obtained the unenviable name of the ‘City of the Plains’. We hope it will not share the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah.”
Thomas Tanner later claimed in 1884, at a meeting of the first Hastings Town Board, that he named Hastings, and called himself the “Father of Hastings”. He did not state whether Hastings was named after Warren Hastings of India fame, or the seaside town in England. However, a minister recalled in the early 1900s that the naming of Hastings was in connection with Warren Hastings, in keeping with the theme of Napier, Clive and Havelock – all British army men associated with the Indian conflicts of the 18th and 19th centuries. He based this on a conversation he knew of between a gentleman and a settler, most likely Thomas Tanner and Francis Hicks. Early street names of Warren and Hastings, parallel to each other, are also an indicator of the source of the town’s name.
The July 1873 auctions realised good prices for the sections, which ranged in size from a quarter acre (.10 hectare) to 5 acres (2 hectares). Two-thirds were sold to Napier people, and the rest within the Karamu district. Some of the sections sold on 8 July were sold again the next day for a profit. The success of the auctions made Francis Hicks a wealthy man – having purchased the land for £5 (2013:$628) an acre two years previous, he realised an average of £50 (2013:$6,288) per acre at the auctions. Having made a small fortune (and not unnoticed by Thomas Tanner, who saw the irony of it all), Hicks bought 700 acres (283 hectares) in the Waikato and left the area, returning only once to Hastings in 1911, shortly before his death.
Tobias Hicks, meanwhile, applied in August 1873 to sell liquor in his Karamu Road store, stating that he was renaming it the Railway Hotel. However, Frederick Sutton of Napier had other ideas – he had purchased a prime position adjoining the Railway Reserve, which faced Station Street (Russell Street now). Frederick produced plans for a twenty-two room hotel with some private suites, named it the Railway Hotel, and then secured the liquor licence. William Goodwin became the licensee of the Railway Hotel when it opened in 1874. Tobias Hicks sold his business at the end of 1873, resigned his position as postmaster and left Hastings.
Based on the success of Francis Hicks’ auction, other men who had bought Thomas Tanner’s land also sold sections. The next to subdivide was James Boyle in August 1873, and then Thomas Tanner’s previous farm manager G H Norris in 1874. These section sales were also conducted by Edward Lyndon – Lyndon Road on James Boyle’s land is likely named for him. Other roads in James’s subdivision were named after English seaside locations, Eastbourne and Southampton, leading some to think that Hastings was named after Hastings in England. In keeping with Francis Hicks’ generosity, James Boyle gave land for a public library in Market Street.
Photo captions –
Streets with the names of English seaside towns led to some confusion as to who the town was named after, Hastings, England, pictured here, is a seaside town.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
Warren Hastings (1732-1818), Governor-General of Bengal, India, from 1771 to 1785.
Credit: Hastings District Council
Railway Street (now Russell Street) in the 1890s, then part of the Railway Reserve.
The name Hastings is announced publicly for the first time in the Hawke’s Bay Herald, 7 June 1873.
Credit: Hawke’s Bay Herald 7 June 1873
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 7
RAILWAY
When in 1873 the government railways engineer decided on the site of the railway station at Karamu, he stated this was in the “very centre of the Heretaunga Block”, which may have been the deciding factor for its location. Or he could have been swayed by Francis Hicks’ offer of 1.5 acres (3.7 hectares) free to the railways for a station, goods yard and reserve. The other land owners nearby may have tried to sell their land to the government, but Francis possibly outplayed them by offering it for free.
The first section of government railway that opened in Hawke’s Bay was from Napier to Hastings, and the first train, with about a hundred people on board, came into Hastings on 12 October 1874. The railway station was only partly finished, and large gusts of wind that day blew corrugated iron down the streets. Interestingly, there was no public ceremony to mark the occasion.
Over the next few years the line spread to the south, reaching Paki Paki in 1875, and the Waipukurau line opened in September 1876. Thereafter it was Takapau in 1878 and slower progress to Woodville in 1887. The last section through the Manawatu Gorge to Palmerston North was completed in 1891.
Hastings has had three railway stations. The first was opposite the now Hastings Health Centre, and also operated as a postal and telegraph office. The station was shifted north in Railway Street (Russell Street) at about the same time as the new post office was opened in 1896. The third and final station, near St Aubyn Street, now unused, but still remains today, was opened in 1962.
A selling pitch was for Napier people to live by the Hastings Railway in the “City of the Plains” – destined to be the capital of Hawke’s Bay – and to commute by train to work in Napier – but it never caught on.
ROADS
After Karamu Road was formed, other streets were surveyed by W Ellison & Son for the 1873 sale of Francis Hicks’ land. The grid-pattern street layout was chosen, and this worked well for the mode of transport of the time.
The next street was named Queen Street – a common name throughout New Zealand in the Victorian era. Queen Street started out as sale yards for horses and cattle, and a horse carriage business was situated where the Dominion Buildings are now. Its transformation into a commercial district started in 1908.
The present Russell Street was first called Railway Street. The name changed to Station Street in 1900 to avoid confusion with Railway Road, which was on the other side of the railway at that time.
Heretaunga Street was originally called Havelock Road to the east of the railway line. When the railway station’s location was announced in 1873, Thomas Tanner was keen to give access to Havelock people, so fundraised to build the first Havelock Bridge across the old Ngaruroro River bed (now Karamu Stream). The road over the railway line was once known as Omahu Road, where it led to the Omahu Pa.
One exception to the grid system occurred in the subdivision of Hastings East in 1885 when Napier shopkeeper E W Knowles decided to put diagonal streets through his land, naming them Oak and Elm Streets. This apparently broke Council rules for the grid system, and the streets themselves were too narrow – but the roads stayed and the area became known as “Knowles’ Folly” in Hastings.
After the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake, Hastings Mayor George Roach wanted to widen the streets of the Hastings CBD, and banish cattle from being driven through the main streets. The reason for widening of the streets was to allow easier access to window shopping when the population of Hastings grew – no one anticipated the growth of the motor car. In any case, past Mayor George Ebbett, a substantial retail property owner, took exception to the plan and it did not go ahead – mainly due to his lobbying of other property owners.
At one point, Hastings had the highest ownership of motor cars in New Zealand per head. The grid system, while appropriate for the 1800s and most of the 1900s, began to cause traffic congestion in the 1960s. The answer to this was the ring-road introduced in 1972 – literally overnight.
Photo captions –
Hastings railway yards around 1900.
This early photo of Hastings shows the grid road system overlooking Lyndon Road.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection.
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The Hawke’s Bay Chamber of Commerce – since 1883
“CONGRATULATIONS HASTINGS”
The Hawke’s Bay Chamber of Commerce has provided support for businesses in the Hawke’s Bay region since 1883. The current Hawke’s Bay Chamber of Commerce is a result of an amalgamation of the Napier Chamber – established in 1883 and the Hastings Chamber which was formed in 1907. After decades of running separate chambers, the Hawke’s Bay Chamber of Commerce, in its present form, the new entity of combined strength, was established in May 1993.
We offer business support services to improve the success and vitality of your business and aim to positively influence the environment in which you operate.
Promoting business vitality:
Speaking with volume of a collective voice
Being part of a business success network
Tapping into world’s largest business network
Being ahead in the dollar game
Promote regional co-operation
Chamber services:
Local networking activity – host a BA5 at your business
Join special business events with speakers throughout the year
Business hub for local business news
Chamber is a lobbying body offering a collective voice for local business
Assistance for your business with local government issues.
Latest news from Business Hawke’s Bay and close links to the Regional Business Partners (NZTE) and other business support services.
Employment Hotline – discounted service for Chamber members requiring legal advice
Export Certification Services and export advice
Host annual Westpac Hawkes Bay Chamber of Commerce Business Awards
W
HAWKES BAY
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Business Vitality
Westpac Hawke’s Bay
Chamber of Commerce
Business Awards 2013
HAWKES BAY
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Business Vitality
W
HAWKES BAY
CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Business Vitality
Westpac Hawke’s Bay
Chamber of Commerce
Business Awards 2013
8 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
EARLY INDUSTRY – DAIRY, AGRICULTURE, HORTICULTURE
Although most of the Heretaunga Plains was covered in dense fern and swamps, the early European settlers were well aware that the soils in Hawke’s Bay were among the best quality in the world. This is because of the alluvial soils created by the wandering rivers in Hawke’s Bay spreading silt and gravel on the Heretaunga Plains.
James Nelson Williams started experimenting with grasses in the 1850s when he worked on Reverend Samuel Williams’ farm at Te Aute. He eventually would own two blocks of land on the Heretaunga Plains, which he called Frimley, and based on his experiences with seeding and notes from England, he produced a small book called Permanent Pastures. Farming in Hawke’s Bay was difficult, he recalled: the men who tried were considered “fools” and some were ruined in the attempt. James noted that fern was burned every three years (likely when he was at Te Aute), and sheep grazed in the summer to keep it under control. When Hawke’s Bay was under the governance of the Wellington Province before 1858, the Thistle Act was passed to eliminate thistle which grew after the fern was destroyed. A group of Australians came to Hawke’s Bay, and when they arrived at Paki Paki and saw thistles, they turned around and went back to Australia. James commented that “they turned their back on some of the finest grazing land in Australasia”. The thistle, according to James, had the effect of opening up soils and supplying nitrogen. The Thistle Act was repealed by the Hawke’s Bay Provincial Council when it took over in 1858.
Realising the potential of the Hawke’s Bay climate for agriculture, Frederich C Sturm began a nursery in Hawke’s Bay in the 1860s, which was situated in Mangateretere by the 1870s. He developed around 86 species of apples, including the Sturmer, and supplied the very first orchards in Hawke’s Bay with apple and peach trees. He also exported his trees overseas. One of the largest nurseries in New Zealand was Horton’s in Pakowhai Road, which also had a flourishing overseas trade in fruit trees.
The most famous example of early horticulture was James Williams’ sixty miles of peach trees situated where Camberley is now. His canning plant in 1904 was a forerunner to J Wattie Canneries, but was relatively short lived, closing in 1914.
Dairying was a very prominent industry in Hawke’s Bay in the late 1890s and early 1900s, with most of what is now the suburb of Mahora converted into dairy farms. There were dairy factories in Plunket Street, Omahu Road and St George’s Road. Dairy farms started to be replaced by the more profitable sheep farming after 1910.
Agriculture was the first primary industry to be attempted in Hawke’s Bay, but the only early saleable product was wool, and due to fluctuating prices the market was unstable. Sheep were sometimes driven off cliffs into the sea in the earliest days of farming as there was an oversupply of mutton. However, William Nelson’s 1881 boiling down works at Tomoana used a high-pressure steaming process to extract tallow and gravy from mutton. The gravy was tinned and sent to England for use in soups, whereas the tallow was used in a variety of products, including soap. The advent of refrigeration was watched closely by William, who converted his boiling down works to a freezing works, and the first shipment of meat left the Port of Napier on 31 March 1884 for England. Other freezing works, such as Whakatu and Paki Paki, followed and this industry provided much of the momentum to the Hastings economy in general – Hastings’ fortunes were often closely linked to agriculture.
The gravelled areas of Hawke’s Bay caused by the rivers were also noted to be well-draining and especially suitable for grape growing. The soil was also well noted for its qualities for grape growing in certain parts of Hawke’s Bay, together with the climate. In 1851, the first to plant grapes in Hawke’s Bay were the Marist Priests at the Pakowhai Pa, and from this small beginning later grew a commercial enterprise now known as Mission Estate. Bernard Chambers of Te Mata started his winery plantings in 1892, and it continues today as the Te Mata Estate Winery. Antony Vidal, who grew grapes around Hawke’s Bay, established his winery in 1905 in St Aubyn Street, and in 1979 Vidal’s was the first winery restaurant to be established in New Zealand.
Hops and tobacco were two other crops grown in Hastings. Thomas Tanner’s hop farm (for brewing beer) was created in 1883 in the Parkvale area. In harvesting the crop, school children were part of the workforce, and the school year start was delayed until 29 March so there would be enough labour. Whole families turned out to help pick the crop, and it was said a good cheque could be made from the work – except, the Daily Telegraph noted, for those “lazy men” who spent their time “borrowing matches and still a longer portion lighting their pipes”.
The local hops were absorbed by the local brewers in Hawke’s Bay, and the quality was said to be judged as good as anywhere in Britain at an 1887 exhibition.
The Hawke’s Bay A & P Society celebrates 150 years of shows this year, the first being in Havelock North in 1863. At one point in the 1870s they owned the land where Hawke’s Bay Racing is now, and the A & P Society rented land to the Hawke’s Bay Jockey Club initially in 1879 before selling it to them in 1886. The A & P Society then leased land from the Jockey Club until they moved the show to their present site in Kenilworth Road in 1925.
Photo captions –
Wool was the primary export in the earliest days of farming, until refrigerated shipping occurred in Hawke’s Bay in 1884.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
The sixty miles of peach trees in the Frimley Estate was Hastings’ first large-scale horticulture venture.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
In the early days of Hastings, the town was very much an agricultural centre, dominated by stock firm buildings and livestock sale yards. Here, pictured near the railway line, animals are moving through the CBD.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
Tomoana Freezing Works in its earliest days
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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Tong & Peryer
FUNERAL DIRECTORS
Est. 1878
NZIFH
Independent Funeral Homes
Historical Beginnings
Tong & Peryer traces its origins back to 1878, when it began trading as S.T. Tong – Cabinetmaker & Undertaker. The business was situated in Karamu Road, Hastings an as was customary in those times, the funeral directing aspect was run as a ‘sideline’ to the main activities of the cabinet making firm.
We have kindly been given a copy of an old invoice (Thanks to Christine Stork – of Hastings), showing the costs for a funeral service held in 1922 of fifteen pounds, seven shillings and sixpence and the telephone number was 121 and private contact 483, how times change.
Over a number of years Mr S. T. Tong was joined by his sons, George, Bert and C.O. (Ossie) Tong, and in 1938, Ossie Tong together with Mr Austin McIvor formed a new company trading as Tong & McIvor.
In 1957, Mr Des Peryer (formerly from Gisborne bought the shares of Austin McIvor and the company underwent another name change to “Tong & Peryer Ltd”.
New Beginnings
The business was purchased in 2007 by Terry Longley and it retained the Tong and Peryer name which was paramount as the company had been in existence for over 130 years and held a special place in Hastings Funeral Directing history, serving many families over the years. Shortly after that time the business was also relocated to new premises at 509 Queen St West, Hastings.
The new premises at Queen Street are now able to offer, Private Family Lounges and Visitation Rooms to allow family and friends the opportunity to visit and pay the last respects in peaceful surroundings.
509 Queen St West, Hastings Ph: 878 5149
[www].tongandperyer.co.nz
10 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
JAMES WATTIE
James Nelson Williams was the first person to try to take advantage of the alluvial soils and climate for horticulture on his Frimley Estate, with the first crop from his sixty miles of peach trees in 1903, and his canning plant operational in 1904. However, the venture suffered from labour shortages and lack of a succession plan.
Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrowers secretary/manager James Wattie was troubled by the amount of fruit lying on the ground in Hawke’s Bay – rotting. When Harold Carr, a young Hastings accountant, rang to tell him that Whittome and Stevenson in Auckland were sourcing pulped fruit from Australia, James saw the opportunity. His employers were unable to help financially to purchase pulping equipment, so James and Harold walked the Hastings and Napier CBDs in 1934 – during the Great Depression – with a prospectus in hand for J Wattie Canneries Limited, attempting to raise the required finance. A packing case shed was rented from James’s past employer. And the rest, as they say, is history. James’s brother Ron was a printer, and the first printing for J Wattie Canneries Limited was done in the building that still exists at 106 Queen Street East. Several years later James Wattie had succeeded enough to buy the assets of the Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrowers, his previous employer.
Wattie’s under James became a household name in New Zealand, and Hastings the place where he made, among other products, New Zealand’s much-loved Watties tomato sauce.
Wattie’s not only provided employment in Hastings but was part of the local community, offering financial support for many causes.
In many ways, one of the New Zealand’s greatest industrialists was just one of us – he refused a chauffeur, although they were common at the time among wealthy businessmen, and he queued up at the King Street TAB to place bets on horse racing, a great love of his life. One of his proudest moments was when his horse Even Stevens won the Caulfield and Melbourne Cups in 1962. Harold Carr was with James in Melbourne, and recalled the occasion and the joy it brought him.
James passed away in 1974, and his friend Harold retired in 1984 after 50 years’ continuous service as a director.
Many people I have interviewed over the years have spoken of James in terms of his kindness towards his employees. It was true that he did not suffer fools, but if he knew any employee was in need he would help out where he could.
Photo captions –
Sir James Wattie (1902-1974)
Credit: Heinz Wattie’s
Women joined the workforce at Wattie’s in greater numbers during World War II.
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz/
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Lindisfarne College
Celebrating 60 years
of Education in Hastings
1953-2013
Lindisfarne College is one of New Zealand’s top boys’ boarding and day schools, leading the way in educating the young men of Hastings and beyond since 1953.
Our College Old Boys have gone on to become Professors, Rhodes Scholars, All Blacks, Politicians, Businessmen, Farmers, Scientists and many other professions. They continue to contribute significantly to our local community and nation.
Lindisfarne College is proud to be ‘Founded on Tradition and Focused on the Future’ and joins in celebrating in this special moment in the history of Hastings.
Proudly
Karamu
Proudly
Hastings
Proudly
Learning
Students in front of Karamu High School’s Jubilee Sculpture
Karamu High School congratulates Hastings on reaching the milestone of 140 years.
We are proud to be Hastings’ Co-Ed High School.
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 11
THE BEGINNINGS OF SCHOOLING AND PRIVATE SCHOOLS
A high priority of early settlers was the establishment of schools, and Hastings’ first school was opened in 1875 on a section Francis Hicks had reserved in his 1873 subdivision in St Aubyn Street. The schoolmaster, W O McLeod, lived in Havelock until his school house was built on the land, and he walked in a diagonal line to the school after crossing over the Havelock Bridge. The story goes that McLeod had to cross a paddock with a bull in it, and the children made sure they were there to watch him run across the paddock, with the bull in pursuit, and then leap over the fence.
The school opened to seven students, four of them from the same family. By 1876 the school roll had increased to thirty-eight pupils.
With an increased roll, the school, later called Hastings Central, moved to its present location in Southampton Street around 1880, where Thomas Tanner had donated 5.5 acres (2 hectares) for a school.
As other parts of Hastings grew, more schools were required, with Mahora (9013) and Hastings West (now Raureka, 1914) and Parkvale (1920) formed, as it was too far for children in those areas to walk to Hastings Central School.
A lack of a high school in Hastings meant pupils went to Napier secondary schools by train. A technical high school had opened in 1922, but many parents refused to send their children there, believing it was inferior to Napier’s High School and private schools in the area. Determined to provide secondary schooling, the Hastings Borough Council purchased land near Karamu Road South, and Hastings High School opened for boys and girls in 1926. When Hastings Girls’ High School opened in 1955, Hastings High School became a boys only school – Hastings Boys’ High School – in 1956.
Even with a district high school in Hastings, many who could afford it sent their children to private schools. Private school Heretaunga was started in 1882 by William Rainbow, who in 1889 died on a school trip while attempting to rescue two of his school boys from drowning in the Ngaruroro River, despite hardly being able to swim. The school carried on, shifting to Havelock North in 1913 and merging with Hurworth from Wanganui in 1927 to become Hereworth School.
Miss Mabel Hodge opened the Anglican Church’s Woodford House girls’ school in Hastings in 1894, which shifted to Havelock North in 1911. The last well-known Hastings private school, Lindisfarne College, opened in 1953 and, like Iona College in Havelock North (1914), was under the direction of the Presbyterian Church.
Photo captions –
Heretaunga School when it shifted to Havelock North
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
The first school in Hastings and school house around 1879 in St Aubyn Street.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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HASTINGS BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL
Established 1904 Quality Education for Young Men
Please come and join our OPEN EVENING Thursday, 1 August at 6pm
SCHOOL SONG
AKINA
The Huia black and the scarlet band
The urgent word with its stern command
Symbols all of the fine old school
Proud in strength and mild in rule
CHORUS
Lift up your voices and sing once more AKINA
Let it go with a hearty roar AKINA
Sing its praises, sing its fame
Honoured be its glorious name
Lift up your voices and sing once more AKINA
In later years when far away
Remember the song you sing today
Remember the fierce old Maori call
And strike together all for all
Ernest Housell
Pupils chose motto (1922)
In 1922 the whole school adopted the motto “AKINA” and the huia as a main theme of the school badge. Akina was suggested as a suitable motto by Mr Paraire Tomoana whose help had been requested by Headmaster Mr Penlington.
AKINA means ‘strike hard” or ‘go hard.”
The motto was adopted unanimously.
1908 – HASTINGS DISTRICT HIGH SCHOOL 1908
Hastings High School Prefects – 1943
1913 – STAFF OF HASTINGS DISTRICT HIGH SCHOOL 1913
HASTINGS BOYS’ HIGH SCHOOL
800 Karamu Road South, Hastings 4120 / P.O. Box 943, Hastings 4156. For further information about opportunities for your son at this school, please contact the school office 873 0365 or email us at [email protected]
Hastings Girls’ High School congratulates Hastings City on its achievements over the past 140 years.
Hastings Girls’ High School is proud to be part of the history of the greater Hastings area.
In preparing our young women to be confident citizens of the 21st century, we encourage them to value the traditions and achievements of the citizens of the past.
Above:
HGHS Principals from 1955 to present
Right:
Winter uniforms from 1955 to present
Hastings Girls’ High School
Inspired by the past and prepared for the future. AKINA
12 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
EARTHQUAKE CBD TEMPORARY BUILDINGS
The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck Hawke’s Bay on 3 February 1931 was New Zealand’s darkest day in terms of lives lost – including ninety-three who died in the Hastings CBD.
Trading in the Great Depression was already difficult, and literally within minutes many shopkeepers lost their buildings, goods and – even worse – their staff. Hastings was fortunate and, given its past reputation for fires, escaped relatively lightly compared to Napier.
The Hastings Borough Council gave permission almost immediately for shopkeepers to erect temporary buildings, which could only be corrugated iron and wood. Literally hundreds of these buildings popped up everywhere, and gave the appearance of an American “wild west” town. Some businesses at first opened in the owners’ homes, before building their temporary premises.
One of the first businesses to put up a temporary building was F L Bone, established in 1885 and still trading today. Their temporary building faced Eastbourne Street and started to go up on the afternoon of the earthquake.
Complicating the rebuild was the insurance companies who refused to pay out under the fire insurance clause for buildings destroyed, as the fires were caused by the earthquake. Only a few buildings had cover for earthquake insurance, and they were able to rebuild immediately. State Insurance (then owned by the government) made a concession and paid out an ex gratia lump sum payment to customers whose premises were destroyed by fire caused by the earthquake – with the caveat that they had no obligation to do so.
Ironically, all the wooden hotels survived the earthquake but the brick Grant Hotel – which was promoted as being totally fireproof when it opened – was destroyed by fire. By the end of 1932 most of the Hastings CBD was rebuilt and retains largely the same appearance today.
Photo captions –
The Grand Hotel’s temporary premises – indeed a shadow of its former self.
Caption Credit: Valma Colwill
Temporary buildings, like this one in Heretaunga Street East made of wood and corrugated iron, sprang up all over Hastings.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
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Hortop’s Joinery
The complete Joinery Manufacturers
Celebrating 90 Years
Happy birthday Hortop & Son
While Hastings city observes an important milestone Hortop & Son will also be celebrating on the 28th June 2013 the 90th birthday of the company
Reaching 90 is an incredible achievement for the Havelock North based joinery company founded by Frank Charles Hortop, great grandfather of managing director John Hortop. Hortop’s is reputed to be the oldest joinery business in Hawke’s Bay. What makes it more extraordinary is that the company has remained in the family throughout its long history.
To celebrate John along with his parents Ian and Mary have invited family, staff and former staff to join then at Havelock North Bowling Club on Friday 28th June at 6.30pm.
John’s great grandfather Charles Hortop became a builder in Hastings in 1883 after arriving in New Zealand by sailing ship from England. His son Frank was apprenticed to Phillips and Wright in 1913 and on June 28 1923 he opened his own joinery business at 609 Tomoana Road, Hastings – just down from Cornwall Park. In 1936 Frank opened a new factory on Caroline Road.
As business prospered, the firm hired more workers and tradesmen and a bigger site was required. In 1961 Frank bought land in Havelock Road, Havelock North where a larger factory was built. A few years later, in 1967, Ian bought the business from his father.
At one time they employed 17 men in the factory and were involved with aluminium as well as wooden joinery. There was a great family atmosphere and tremendous loyalty from staff. That loyalty still exists with John’s right hand man, Stacy Funnell, has being [been] employed by Hortop’s for 15 years.
Loyalty saw Hortop & Son through a devastating fire which completely destroyed the factory and stock in 1981. They rebuilt the factory within 8 months, but much of the stockpiled timber was irreplaceable.
In the 1980s John became more involved in the administration and eventually bought the business from his father. He decided to specialise in kitchen joinery as that was in high demand. Hortop’s moved from Havelock Road around the corner to Donnelly Street on 1 July 1991.
Ian and Mary are no longer actively involved with the business although John admits he likes to confer with Ian on technical matters from time to time. John’s son Jaden was also employed for several years, completing his own apprenticeship before moving to a Hamilton based joinery business.
Many of John’s clients are personal referrals and some of them knew Frank and Ian. “There’s tremendous loyalty in the bay, and we are committed to giving the same top service and quality as Hortop’s Joinery always has,” John says.
Former employees interested in attending the celebration are requested to contact John Hortop.
Photo captions –
THE OLD
Frank Hortop’s Worktruck
THE NEW
John & Ian Hortop
Old Renovated Kitchen
Newly Renovated Kitchen
The original building in Tomoana
New premises on Donnelly Street, Havelock North
1923-2013 Hortop & Sons Ltd. – Joinery Manufactures [Manufacturers] in the Havelock North – 4 Generations
Hortop & Sons Ltd Joiner Manufacturers Donnelly Street Havelock North Ph. 877 8019
14 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
GOVERNANCE OF HASTINGS
Hawke’s Bay was initially part of Wellington Province until 1 November 1858, when Hawke’s Bay became a province in its own right after dissatisfaction with Wellington taking most of Hawke’s Bay’s revenue and spending it down there. The earliest form of local governance in Hastings was the road boards, and as the name suggests they were formed to create roads. In 1876 there were thirty of them in Hawke’s Bay and the Heretaunga Road Board first met in the Frimley woolshed of James Nelson Williams in February 1871.
In 1876 the provincial form of government was abolished in favour of the county system. Hastings was then under the control of Hawke’s Bay County Council until 1884, when the population of 617 and 50 households qualified them to petition the government to form a torn board. This was done so they could borrow money to complete some public works in the form of sanitation drainage. Robert Wellwood was elected Chairman and became the first Mayor when Hastings became a Borough Council in 1886. Hastings’ population had reached 1504, more than the 1,000 required to form a borough.
One of the interesting characters elected to the Borough Council was H H Murdoch, who was the Hastings reporter on the Hawke’s Bay Herald (now Hawke’s Bay Today). To the despair of his fellow councillors he often reported on them in the most uncomplimentary manner in his newspaper column. At Council meetings he would sometimes second motions and then vote against them. On one occasion his fellow councillors refused to let him sit with them until he apologised for his “unfair and improper comments” – but he ignored them and sat down anyway. He eventually resigned after serving a number of terms until 1900. Despite his eccentric behaviour, H H Murdoch’s newspaper columns were enjoyed by many, as he spoke his mind and held nothing back. Salvation Army members were among his favourite targets, as he expressed his dislike of those promoting abstinence from alcohol. Murdoch Road in Hastings is named for him.
Hastings reached city status in 1956 after achieving 20,000 population. However, just as the celebrations were about to begin, a call from Wellington stated the population of Hastings was less than the required size. Mayor W E Bate asked the Department of Internal Affairs if they had counted Hastings prisoners in the Napier Gaol and soldiers at Linton Army Camp to find some more citizens. The official population according to the boundaries drawn up in 1909 meant Hastings was still short of a few hundred to be called a city, but the change in status went ahead anyway, and the boundaries were officially changed in 1957.
Photo captions –
Robert Wellwood (1836-1927)
Credit: Hastings District Council
Hastings Municipal Buildings opened in 1916.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
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Hastings District Libraries
Hastings War Memorial Library
Warren Street
Hastings P871 5180
Havelock North Library
Te Mata Road
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Flaxmere Library
Swansea Road
Flaxmere P8796792
Informing our community for over 100 years
[www].hastingslibrary.co.nz
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Congratulations Hastings City on
140 Years
FROM THE
FRIMLEY SCHOOL
COMMUNITY.
Principal – Malcolm Dixon
FRIMLEY PRIMARY SCHOOL
Frimley Road, Hastings
P. (06) 8788757
[www].frimley.school.nz
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 15
1989 LOCAL GOVERNMENT REORGANISATION
The idea of Hastings amalgamating with Havelock North had been discussed on and off since the 1960s, but had not gone any further. That would all change in 1989 when local government reorganisation abolished the Hastings City Council, Havelock North Borough Council and the Hawke’s Bay County Council, along with some other smaller bodies. Hastings’ boundaries expanded to cover not only Havelock North, but also areas previously under the Hawke’s Bay County Council. The total area of land now under the control of the Hastings District Council is 522,893 hectares, including the rural wards of Mohaka – which stretches halfway to Taupo – and Kahuranaki.
To say the transition to the new authority went smoothly would be misrepresenting matters somewhat. In Havelock North, apart from an outburst by a councillor who was unhappy about the merger of the two councils, the main protest took the form of some citizens carrying the coffin of “independent Havelock North” down Te Mata Road, with the pass bearers and followers subsequently disappearing into a local bar. More serious, however, was the so-called “Rural Revolt” sparked by the discontent of some rural residents over the newly created Hastings District Council.
Newly elected Hastings District Council Mayor, the late Jeremy Dwyer, first wore the mayoral chains when elected in 1986. He took office after Whakatu Freezing Works had closed down during the first of the meat industry closures. His second term as Mayor would prove just as difficult as the Rural Revolt began to stir in 1990/91. A group of rural ratepayers formed the Hawke’s Bay District Action Committee and began campaigning for a new local authority they suggested should be called the Hawke’s Bay District Council. Their concerns over rating policies, representation, community and debt servicing were cited as the reasons for the proposed new authority. Under their proposal, Napier would stay the same, and Hastings would only include Flaxmere and Havelock North.
When the committee approached the Napier City Council, and two Napier City Councillors came out in support of the group publicly, Hastings District Council Mayor Jeremy Dwyer released several strongly worded press released expressing his displeasure at these events. Both Napier Mayor Alan Dick and Jeremy Dwyer publicly agreed that relations between Hastings and Napier had deteriorated over this issue, although by early May both Mayors resumed joint meetings to discuss issues affecting the region and signalled cooperation between them.
An independent consultant’s report stating that cost savings would be unlikely to occur with the formation of a new local authority appeared to take the urgency out of the protest. This, along with the Hastings District Council’s rural councillors making progress with the Hawke’s Bay District Action Committee meant the Rural Revolt fizzled out. Jeremy Dwyer, however, as Mayor, played a pivotal role in keeping the Hastings District Council together during an unsettling time.
Photo captions –
The coffin of “Independent Havelock North” being carried down Te Mata Road in 1989.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
Jeremy Dwyer (1947-2005)
Credit: Marilyn Longley
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Contributing positively to the Hastings Community for over 50 years
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16 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
FIRES, FLOODS AND ARCHITECTURE
Native timber was plentiful in the settlers’ new homeland, and many (including my great-great-grandfather Henry Smith) started sawmills, with the most successful being Robert Holt of Napier. Therefore the earliest homes and businesses were mostly wooden structures, as timber was cheap and plentiful. A combination of open fires, candles, gas lamps and wood meant extreme fire risk, and many buildings were totally destroyed as a result.
Hastings, rather embarrassingly, started to get the nickname as the “Town of Blazes” after major fires destroyed most of the CBD in 1893, 1897, 1906 and 1907. The 1893 fire destroyed twenty-two businesses from Market Street to the railway line along Heretaunga Street, and the damage was listed at 50,000 (2013:$9.3 million). A business that had started in 1884, Roach’s, was apparently the cause of the fire.
Two disastrous events occurred during 1897 – a fire in January which burned several buildings in Heretaunga Street, and a major Hawke’s Bay flood over Easter, when the Ngaruroro and Tutaekuri Rivers broke their banks.
With all these fires occurring, the Hastings Borough Council was concerned that Hastings’ reputation for fires was become widespread, and they wanted their town to be known for more noble qualities. Therefore a brick bylaw was passed in 1899 requiring new buildings to have external and dividing walls of brick, stone or concrete. This caused uproar among lessees when it was announced, and caused shopkeeper T A Hayes to state it was the “most arbitrary and revolutionary measure ever proposed in a small country township”. Despite the new law, fires still regularly occurred and a Gisborne newspaper reported that Hastings continued to have a “fire epidemic”.
While most of the fires occurred west of the railway line on Heretaunga Street, the east side was not immune to outbreaks, and in 1906 a large part of Queen Street was destroyed, including the first Hastings office of what is now Hawke’s Bay Today. And in 1908 most of Station Street (now Russell Street), except for Webber’s Pharmacy on the corner, burned to the ground. However, on this occasion, the fire, which had started in the Silver Grid Restaurant, was found to be arson – resulting in the occupier serving give years’ hard labour in the Napier Gaol.
One more large fire would devastate the CBD area west of the railway line in May 1907, when a large block mostly occupied by Williams and Kettle caught fire. This fire was characterised by an unusual event. When the water tank was empty, the fire brigade resorted to pumping sewage from a manhole cover over the railway line. Just when the fire was under control, railway officials came to tell the fire brigade that the mail train was about to leave and would run over the hoses on the tracks if they were not removed. The process of lifting the horses and letting the steam train go past took 15 minutes. In this time the fire flared up again, spreading to totally destroy the BNZ, a café and a drapery.
The Hastings Volunteer Fire Brigade certainly worked hard during these fires with no high-pressure water supply, and at times formed bucket chains, with men in lines passing buckets of water in the direction of the fire. The Brigade was formed in 1886, and had its first station in a horse stable owned by W A Beecroft, about where the carpark of the Hastings Health Centre is now. The earliest fundraiser for the station was a fancy dress ball and the cost to attend was £1 1st (2013:$200) which allowed a man to bring two ladies with him.
One of the first substantial buildings built in Hastings was the 1907 Dominion Buildings, which were constructed of steel-reinforced concrete after the first of 1906 devastated that area. While the brick bylaw ensured brick-styled buildings had to be constructed, those completed during a building boom in Hastings during the 1910s, were, with only a few exceptions, unreinforced and insecurely built. These buildings would become death traps in the 1931 earthquake.
Beginning with the 1924 Fitzpatrick’s Building in Russell Street, Hastings architects Davies, Phillips and Garnett began to design steel-reinforced concrete buildings, as did other architects such as Wellington-based Edmund Anscombe. All of these buildings survived the 1931 earthquake and are still with us today. It is believed architect Albert Garnett travelled to San Francisco to study earthquake building design and, if so, he likely influenced other architects in the town.
Many fine examples of Art Deco-styled buildings in Hastings have been pulled down over the years, but now the aesthetic value of them is appreciated by many, especially when enhanced by appropriate colour schemes.
Photo captions –
The Hastings Carnegie Library, a brick building with no reinforcing.
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz
Station Street (now Russell Street) in the 1910s.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
The Hastings Fire Brigade in Heretaunga Street. The early station was around the back of where the Hastings Health Centre is now.
Credit: Hastings Fire Brigade
The fire fighting in 1907 was interrupted when two railway men at the bottom left of the picture demanded that the hoses over the railway line be removed so the mail train could go through. The fire then burned out of control.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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18 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
HOSPITAL
When Hastings was promoted in 1873 by auctioneer Edward Lyndon as the future capital of Hawke’s Bay, most people in Napier likely dismissed it as mere “puffery” by a real estate agent trying to sell land in what was once a swamp. Although many in Napier speculated on the early Hastings property sales, and wanted a capital gain on their sections, they were not keen to support industry on the Heretaunga Plains as they did not want Hastings to grow at the expense of Napier. The proposed Hastings woollen mill in the 1880s was an example. Hastings needed investment from Napier as it did not have the resources in its smaller population. When no investment was forthcoming, a furious Thomas Tanner – the mill’s sponsor – blamed a lack of Napier investment “on jealousy on the part of Napier against Hastings”. The Hastings mill never eventuated, but Napier started one in 1901.
A lack of industry wasn’t the only thing frustrating Hastings – they badly wanted a hospital in their town, and their earliest attempts to get one started in 1898. As Napier was the bigger town, it had more voting rights on the Hawke’s Bay Hospital Board, so they out-voted Hastings members, and Wellington was largely unsympathetic to Hastings’ cause.
Photo caption – Hastings Memorial Hospital in the 1930s.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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Dawn Meat Directors 1964
Graeme Lowe, the founder of Lowe Corporation, purchased Dawn Meat butcher shop in Hastings in 1964. The Company has a proud and well documented history in the New Zealand meat and by-products industry, driven by a pioneering spirit. This spirit lives on in the company which is still owned and run by the Lowe family.
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 19
The influenza epidemic in 1918 stretched all medical resources in Hawke’s Bay, and with no hospital, the Hastings racecourse was used to nurse the sick. And in 1925, when a train crash occurred at Te Aute – where some passengers died and dozens were injured – Hastings people once again began to push for a public hospital.
Even George Ebbett, a very capable and determined Hastings lawyer and past Mayor, was frustrated in his attempts to secure a hospital for Hastings. But finally a breakthrough occurred in 1928 when a small maternity hospital opened, although it stopped short of the full-service hospital that Hastings badly wanted.
The 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake brought about a strange series of events which led to Hastings finally getting more hospital services, and ironically George Ebbett would have an indirect link to this. George Ebbett had purchased shares in and had become the managing director of Napier’s Masonic Hotel. One of its residents was Henrietta Kelly, who was seen in the building minutes before the 1931 earthquake, but was presumed killed after her body was not found in the hotel’s ruins. Henrietta had left a large bequest in her will to be used for a hospital in Hastings. The Napier members of the Hawke’s Bay Hospital Board were not happy about this, and much argument followed between them, and principally Cecil Duff, a Hastings solicitor and member of the Hospital Board. Finally, the money was cleared to be used in Hastings, and a full-service hospital grew from Henrietta’s bequest.
Both Hastings and Napier built tower block hospitals in the 1960s, but in 1998 Napier Hospital was closed and Hastings was established as the regional hospital for Hawke’s Bay.
Photo captions –
Cecil Duff, the champion of a full-service hospital for Hastings, depicted in 1932.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
Cecil Duff – Our Guardian – and Morse-O!
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CONSTRUCTION LTD
Timeline of Buildings
Mitre 10 Mega, Hastings 2011
Staple Rodway Building – Historic Fire Station 2006
LDS Church, Heretaunga Street 2004
Hastings Hospital 1996
Sacred Heart Church 1996
Hawkes Bay Prison 1987-89
Eastern & Central Trust Building (Westpac) 1980
Hastings District Council 1977
NIMU Building Railway Road 1966
Nelson Park Grandstand 1963
Hastings Power Board 1961
Hastings Memorial Library 1958
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20 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
STORTFORD LODGE
William Stock named the Stortford Lodge Hotel he opened on the corner of Heretaunga and Maraekakaho Roads after his birthplace in England. In 1884 he had initially sited the hotel near Gordon Road, in Maraekakaho Road, Hastings, and was not uncommon in those days, he shifted the building in 1886. Previous to this William operated a hotel in Central Hawke’s Bay in 1878, and moved to Napier in 1880 to the Albion Hotel, then had the Victoria Hotel in 1882 before moving to Hastings. William had a long association with the horse racing industry, and in Hastings in 1884 he advertised the services of his racehorse sire called Foul Play.
When a New Zealand Herald journalist was touring Hawke’s Bay in 1887, he stayed at the Stortford Lodge Hotel, and gave some indication that the locality was called Stortford Lodge at that point. He was impressed with William Stock’s hotel and his cook, describing her as “a good-looking, plump, six-foot specimen of terrestrial manufacture, and when she becomes an angel, will take the largest size of wing”. As to William Stock, the journalist described him being of “totalisator fame”, in connection with his horse racing activities. (The journalist generally liked Hastings, but in the winter time he remarked that “being on the plains it is too exposed to cold winds coming from the Ruahine range with nothing to break it but wire fences”.)
An unusual racing event occurred in December 1887, when horse training (and future bookmaker) William Proffitt put his horse Jack up against William Stock’s mare Nelly in a harness race. The wager was £25 (2013:$4,800), and the course was Maraekakaho Road, three miles (5 km) in length, finishing at the Stortford Lodge Hotel. The winner was William Proffitt by 15 seconds, who drove his own horse, over Adam Mundell who rode for William Stock.
In 1888, William Stock built cattle and horse sales yards behind the hotel (these are not the present Stortford Lodge Sale Yards), and fenced a number of paddocks where stock could be grazed. There was even a trotting track (which he later leased to a trotting club) which prospective buyers of horses could use. He kept his racehorse Foul Play in the stables, along with some of the stallion’s offspring. The Hastings Borough Council, as it was then, shifted their animal pound there in 1888 from Queen Street. The only difficulty was most of the stray animals were on the Havelock side of Hastings, and had to be taken through the CBD to get to the pound – causing some disruptions at times.
By 1890, William had sold by auction all of his thoroughbred horse stock, and in 1897 transferred the licence of the Stortford Lodge
Photo captions –
Stortford Lodge Hotel
Credit: Claire Vogtherr
Stortford Lodge General Store
Credit: Claire Vogtherr
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Hastings House Removals Ltd Building Relocation & Removal Specialists
Hastings House Removals has been in the building removal and relocation business for over 30 years. Owned and operated by Noel Baker and family, we pride ourselves on the level of service and workmanship we deliver when relocating or removing your home
PO Box 2265, Stortford Lodge, Hastings
Phone 06 876 8741
Noel Baker – 0274 426 538
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Carl Baker – 0274 437 974
Email: [email protected]
Members of New Zealand Heavy haulage Association
BIG BARREL
WHOLESALE LIQUOR
Congratulations Hastings on
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193 Main Road, Clive, 06 870 1305 70 Carlyle Street, Napier, 06 835 1457
108 Maraekakaho Rd, Stortford Lodge, Hastings, 06 878 6163 410 Karamu Rd, Hastings, 06 870 9267
7 Te Aute Rd, Havelock North, 06 877 9284
Open 7 days till late ID Required if under 25 – Please drink responsibly
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 21
Hotel to Alfred Ellingham. However, William was not finished with his contribution to the growth of Stortford Lodge and in 1899 converted a grandstand he likely used for his trotting course into a general store and house, which he sold in 1905 to the Lynch family.
Dairying was a growth industry in Hastings in the late 1800s, and William’s next venture was to build a dairy factory, which he called the Mahora Dairy factory in Plunket Street, Stortford Lodge. It was opened with much ceremony by politicians on 1 October 1900. In 1901, the factory was acquired by the Heretaunga Dairy Co-op.
Not only did William Stock give Stortford Lodge its name, but he created a small business centre around the activities of his hotel, stables, auction sale yards, trotting racetrack, general store and later the Mahora Dairy Factory.
Stortford Lodge was also an early sporting area in Hastings, where activities in addition to harness racing were carried out, such as the Hawke’s Bay Gun Club, polo, rugby, clay pigeon shooting – most taking place on the property of William Stock.
Stortford Lodge was to receive another sale yard when in April 1904 the Associated Stock Auctioneers opened new yards on 11 acres (4.5 hectares) of land, which included thirty-two
Cattle pens and pens big enough to hold 1,000 sheep. Offices for auctioneers were also constructed. In 1903 they had purchased what appears to be William Stock’s old sale yard between the Stortford Lodge Hotel and Plunket Street and the 11 acres of land. After finding the old yards too small, they built the new premises on the 11 acres of land, which is the present site of the Stortford Lodge sale yards.
William Stock’s strong association with Stortford Lodge, which had started in 1886, came to a close when he sold his store in 1905. While the replacement Stortford Lodge Hotel was demolished some years ago, the sale yards are still a reminder of his legacy as a rural commercial centre, and Stock Road off Maraekakaho Road is named for him.
Photo captions –
William Stock’s influence – men pictured at the Stortford Lodge Sale Yards.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
Heretaunga Dairy Co-op.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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22 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
BOOSTERISM AND CARNIVALS
Hastings, like other towns (including Napier) throughout New Zealand in the 1800s and early 1900s, engaged in Boosterism – which referred to boosting the reputation of their particular location by making somewhat exaggerated claims. A group of businessmen formed the Hastings Progress League to promote Hastings. They organised the 1923 Grand Carnival to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the naming of Hastings. Giant arches stood in Heretaunga Street, sporting coloured lights, and the arches near the Hastings Borough Council Municipal Buildings had three revolving gas flames, which the newspaper described as looking like a “fairyland”. Various signs proclaimed: “1873-1923” “Progress” “Advance Hastings” – all the language of Boosterism. Napier being only twelve miles away was an obvious competitor in the eyes of many to Hastings’ prosperity.
Those taking part in the night procession (there was a morning one as well) were in decorated vehicles and bicycles, and the procession was led by the Hastings Band, with the Napier Pipe Band also taking part. Many also dressed up as comic Scotsmen, Knuts (Scandinavians), savages and vagrants, and there were also girls dress as boys. It appears that some Europeans dressed up as Maori chieftains in cloaks and war paint, which the paper described as “striking” and that their “get-up was very effective”. (It was not unusual at that time for Europeans to dress as Maori in parades and imitate them, although the depictions were not necessarily accurate.)
Businesses that won prizes as part of the procession and still exist were Hector Jones, special mention for trade display; Hawke’s Bay Tribune, best decorated Ford; and Hastings West School (Raureka), best decorated motor lorry.
Great fun was had by all according to the Hawke’s Bay Tribune, and “The people – the great people, who are good down in their hearts – all let themselves go in true carnival style”.
At the end of the night procession there was a cabaret at the Olympic Hall in Karamu Road. A particular highlight of the evening was a sword dance by Miss Spink who was “obliged to repeat in response to an imperious demand”.
Speeches were given earlier in the day at a luncheon to make the beginning of carnival week and the celebrations of the fiftieth anniversary of Hastings. William Nelson, one of the earliest pioneers in Hastings, and meat baron, was unable to be at the luncheon but
Photo captions –
A big turn-out for a carnival in Hastings in the 1920s.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
Crowds wander around Heretaunga Street during the 1923 carnival celebrating Hastings’ 50th birthday.
Credit: Hastings District Council.
P Jourdain Collection
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 23
sent a letter which was read by J C Baird of the Hastings Progress League. Williams told of riding horseback in 1864 from Kereru Station with James Nelson Williams, and when riding across what is now Flaxmere, Frimley and Fernhill, recalled coming across endless shingle deposits and swamps. He indicated the lease price for the Heretaunga land paid later in 1864 was too high considering the state it was in – and that the land Thomas Tanner leased was of no use except as a duck shooting ground.
Hastings’ first Mayor, Robert Wellwood, then aged 87, spoke at the luncheon stating that in the early days of Hastings, when he was manager of James Nelson Williams’ estate, he remarked to a Napier friend “I may not live to see it, but you’ll find the time will come when Hastings will wash Napier out!” Robert Wellwood then predicted in ten years’ time that “Napier will not know Hastings, which will be one of the most prosperous locations outside of the four main centres”.
After Robert Wellwood had spoken it was the turn of Napier Mayor J B Andrew to speak. He diplomatically replied to Robert Wellwood in that he hoped Hastings would not wash out Napier. He commented on the friendly relations between both cities and that if Hastings did expand, that it should stop at Farndon, and Napier’s boundary should be “three inches on the other side”.
Mayor Andrew said that in Napier they wanted everyone to know that there was “… such a place as Hawke’s Bay”, and that they knew they could have the assistance of The Hastings Progress League in that respect. He concluded by saying that he wished the current spirit of cooperation between the two towns would continue, and that if the two towns would unite, it would be somewhere around Farndon.
R D D McLean, son of government land buyer Sir Donald McLean, was next to speak, and he paid tribute to Maori chiefs Renata, Tareha and others who had assisted Pakeha so much in the early days, pointing out that much progress had been due to the loyalty of the Maori people, “who should never be forgotten”.
Mohi Te Atahikoia from the Paki Paki Marae spoke, and thought Pakeha got the land (Heretaunga Plains) too cheaply, but they were no longer “depressed over that” as Maori were now reaping the benefits of higher land values. He was pleased with Te Aute School, and that he hoped Pakeha reciprocated the love Maori had for them.
Photo captions –
The daytime procession during the 1923 Carnival, led by the Hastings Pipe Band.
Credit: Hastings District Council, P Jourdain Collection
This float was used in the 1932 carnival.
Note the use of boosterism with the signage.
Credit: Collection of Hawke’s Bay Museums Trust, Ruawharo Ta-u-rangi. 6422c
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3 Generations of Holders
and still going from strength
In 1933 Albert W Holder opened a plumbing merchants in New Plymouth, in 1947 they moved to Hastings and A.W. Holder have been here ever since. Alastair (pictured above) is still working and
actively participating in the business at the age of 82, which is currently run by the third generation: Mark and his brother Brent.
A.W. Holder also has a branch in Napier ensuring that all Hawke’s Bay are able to benefit from the quality and service that this family have given for 80 years.
HASTINGS: 302 Ellison Road – Phone 878 6059
NAPIER: 118 Taradale Road – Phone 835 0864
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24 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
PARKS
Hastings evolved from the sale of some of the five large sections that Thomas Tanner leased in 1868 and then sold in 1871. Thomas, who owned land east of the railway line towards Havelock North and over the railway line west to about Nelson Street, also held two large subdivision sales in 1879 and 1885. His financial difficulties were the motivating force behind his land sales but ultimately they did not save him. As his subdivisions were private – because the land was purchased from Maori – Thomas assumed the role of Hastings town planner, and ensured that spaces were left for parks. He also arranged mass tree plantings, including oaks on Havelock Road.
Queen’s Square was created by Thomas Tanner in his 1885 subdivision and was to be vested in the owners of the surrounding sections, but the Hastings Borough Council acquired it as their reserve land in 1897, when the Riverslea Syndicate who had purchased it by way of mortgagee auction in 1889 gifted the land. The Council renamed it Victoria Square, but the name never stuck. At one stage the land was planted in potatoes and sheep were grazed on it, before around 1906 when it became used as a grassed park for women’s hockey games. Many in Hastings, including some councillors, wanted the park to be improved, so steps were taken in 1908 to install a band rotunda, and the North Island Band Association were invited to hold their championships there in 1909. However, the contest was held at the racecourse, as the rotunda did not open until June 1909 – after the championships had finished.
Photo caption – Queen’s Square circa 1909
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
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St Matthew’s – Part of Hastings for 140 + 4 years!
Beginning in 1869 with a gathering of Church of England families at the home of James N Williams of Frimley, after five years services were moved to the former school in St Aubyn Street.
A church was built in 1877 on the corner of Main Street (Heretaunga Street) and King Street, and was sometimes known as Westminster Abbey.
The present site in King Street South was purchased and the wooden church was dedicated in 1886, as part of the parish of Havelock North.
St Matthew’s became the Parish of Hastings in 1895.
As the congregation grew, a ferro-cement addition was dedicated in 1915.
144 years of Anglican worship and sharing the lives of the people of Hastings, St Matthew’s continues to welcome all to our services & outreaches, including Preschool Music, Art and Craft Drop Ins, Open Door and Op Shop. We now share our site with St Matthew’s Primary School and Early Childhood Centre. [www].stmatthewshastings.org.nz
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Hastings District
Masonic Trust Inc
Hastings District Masonic Trust Offers affordable, secure accommodation for retired persons. Contribution units and rental flats conveniently located in Hastings, Havelock North and Waipawa.
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 25
Thomas Tanner also set aside 44 acres (18 hectares) of park land in Parkvale from his Riverslea Estate, of which 20 acres was flat land where cricket and other sports could be played. When the Riverslea Estate was sold to a syndicate in 1889 after foreclosure by the Northern Investment Company Limited, “The Park” as Thomas called it, went into the ownership of one of the syndicate’s owners, J D Beatson, who named the park after himself. In 1912 the Hastings Borough Council purchased 40.5 acres (16 hectares) from Beatson, and renamed it Windsor Park in 1935 on the occasion of King George V’s silver jubilee.
Fellow apostle of Thomas Tanner, James Nelson Williams, donated 21 acres from his Frimley Estate to the Hastings Borough Council in 1898, provided the Council planted trees of his approval. The park was named Cornwall Park after the Duke of York and Cornwall (later George V) visited New Zealand in 1901.
The other major Park in Hastings, Frimley Park, also has a James Nelson Williams connection. When the Frimley homestead burned down in 1951, James’s children donated the land in memory of their parents.
Photo captions –
The visit of the Duke and Duchess of York to Cornwall Park Hastings in March 1927.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
Cornwall Park
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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NIMON
HAWKES BAY EST. 1905
Nimon and Sons (108 years of age) congratulates Hastings District on successfully reaching 140 years of age.
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26 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
HASTINGS’ EARLIEST HOTEL
When Frederick Sutton paid the highest price for a section of $97 (2013:$12,200) for a hotel in the July 1873 auctions of Francis Hicks’ land, he knew he was purchasing a prime spot near the new railway station. The Railway Hotel, as it was called, was completed in 1874 and faced the railway reserve, near the corner of what is now Heretaunga and Russell Streets.
By the turn of the century, the Railway Hotel was the oldest building in Hastings, and in 1901 the Hawke’s Bay Licensing Committee requested that the hotel be rebuilt, based on its age and – as it was wooden – its fire risk. The licensee, Mr Hindmarsh, commented that the only news he was hearing about his hotel’s fate was in the newspapers. By 1904, the licensing committee appears to have said that unless a new hotel was built the Railway Hotel’s liquor licence would not be renewed. Hindmarsh complained that the cost to replace the hotel would be £3-4,000, but by 1906 a hotel – far bigger than the original Railway Hotel – was under construction. It was Hawke’s Bay tallest structure at the time at five-stories high, and was given a name common to many hotels around the world – the Grand Hotel.
The hundred-bedroom hotel had about 700,000 bricks, and building Patrick Gleeson was apparently not easy to work for and he had trouble getting bricklayers. While the Hastings Standard proclaimed in 1906 that “anyone sleeping there could remain forever, and never be frightened of being burned out”, the building itself was not structurally reinforced, and apparently built against engineering advice. The giant front façade of the building was not attached securely to the building – its limestone mortar had disintegrated by 1931, and fell off immediately the 7.8 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake struck in February that year.
At the Earthquake Survivors’ Afternoon Tea in 2012, I was introduced to a lady who was around 90 years old; her name was Winifred, the youngest daughter of Albert Goodall, a sign writer from Napier. Albert was working on the Grand Hotel’s façade at the time of the 1931 earthquake. He fell with the façade, and, as you would expect, did not stand a chance of survival. Winifred was eight at the time of the earthquake and her sister was twelve years old. Their mother was in Westport visiting her family. The girls were taken to the Nelson Park Tent Camp to
Photo captions –
The front façade of the Grand Hotel fell away immediately after the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake.
Credit: Diane Nelson
Jack Ross
Credit: Trish Coleman
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– Est 1996 –
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PKF Carr & Stanton Limited
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Chas Bone Plumbers Ltd
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 27
await their father’s return, but were told of his death later that day. Winifred remembers that she began to cry but her sister told her not to, so she never cried for her father. It took some time to get a message through to their mother in Westport, and it was a number of days before she returned.
While some, such as Reg Honnor, slid down safely from several floors up in the Grand Hotel to the ground below, approximately twenty-nine people died from the debris falling from the building. The hotel’s proprietor, Jack Ross, was stocktaking in the cellar and was trapped. There is some evidence he was alive, but he could not be rescued as the Grand Hotel progressively collapsed during the day from aftershocks, making it dangerous to attempt his release. At night a large aftershock triggered a fire in a nearby building when sparks ignited a gas pocket. The fire completely destroyed what was left of the Grand Hotel – and any chance of finding Jack alive.
With the Grand Hotel in ruins, the company went into liquidation on 14 March 1931. All hotels that were destroyed in the earthquake had to re-establish in temporary premises within a certain time frame, otherwise they lost their liquor licence. Ironically, the building that was supposed to be the safest hotel fell down and burned out, while the four other hotels – all wooden – survived both earthquake and fire. The Grand Hotel put up temporary premises in front of the ruins, and a new licensee, Tom Bennett, took over the Grand Hotel’s licence.
Plans were advertised of the replacement Grand Hotel – a highly decorative Art Deco building. The replacement building, completed around 1934, ended up being a modest two-storied, steel-reinforced building, which still exists today, but its days as a public bar and hotel finished in the 1970s.
Photo captions –
One of Hastings’ earliest photos taken in the 1870s showing the first hotel, the Railway, on the left.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
The five-storied Grand Hotel
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz/
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Heritage Trails
Discover your local heritage…..
Using the information brochures and trail signage you can find the ‘real’ Hawkes Bay. There are 17 trails in our beautiful district so visit your local i site for more information.
Hastings District Heritage Trails Society Inc
06 878 5607
i SITE HASTINGS DISTRICT COUNCIL
Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrower’s Association
NEW ZEALAND
114 years Working For You….
Photo captions – Then Now
The Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrowers’ Association was formed over 100 years ago on June 7, 1899.
Since then it has provided a forum for discussion and action in matters relating to fruitgrowing in Hawke’s Bay.
The HBFA is a voluntary organisation set up to promote, foster and protect the fruit industry and to establish a closer bond of unit and co-operation amongst growers particularly those within the Hawke’s Bay district.
Industry Events
HB Young Fruitgrower of the Year Competition
Industry Awards Night
Shed meetings
Fishing Competition
Tug of War
Industry promotion
Fruit Gate Sales
Employment
Education
Advocacy
District Councils
Regional Councils
Government Policy
Information
Charitable Trust
Student Scholarships
Funding Grants
Funding industry good activity
For more information contact
Hawke’s Bay Fruitgrowers’ Association
Phone 870 8541
[email protected]
H.B.F.A.
First established in 1899
28 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
RUSSELL STREET
Part of the railway reserve area owned by the government, as gifted by Francis Hicks in 1873, was between Heretaunga and Queen Streets on the east side of the tracks, and the thoroughfare within it became known as Railway Street. In addition to the street, there was a section of land on the reserve, where shops and the post office were built in the 1880s and 1890s. The street itself is on an angle to the grid formation, as it follows the path of the railway line.
The Railway Hotel, which had opened in 1874, faced the railway reserve. The area of land now known as Russell Street South was owned by Knight Brothers, who operated a timber and coal yard on part of this land facing Heretaunga Street East. They had begun their business in 1876, and in 1878 built a wooden store to sell building supplies.
During the 1880s and 1890s more wooden buildings began to appear on Railway Street, with the land being leased from the railways. Being so close to the railway station meant this land was in high demand.
In 1896, the government built a wooden post office on the corner of Railway and Queen Streets; the post office had previously been operated from the Hastings Railway Station. At this time the railway station was shifted a block away on Railway Street.
Knight Brothers sold their business to Holt’s in 1897, after a fire devastated their premises, but they still retained ownership of the land.
In 1900, Railway Street’s name was changed to Station Street, so as to avoid confusion with Railway Road, which was on the west side of the railway line.
Because Station Street was part of the railway reserve, the New Zealand Government Railways owned the street. This changed in February 1907, when the street’s ownership was handed over to the Hastings Borough Council.
A disastrous fire in January 1908 destroyed most of the buildings between the wooden post office and Webber’s on the corner of Station and Heretaunga Streets. In all, thirteen buildings were destroyed. The wooden post office building survived, despite being right next door to the restaurant, because of two intervening brick walls.
Photo caption – Station Street (now Russell Street)
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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W: [www].best-forsyth.co.nz
404E Avenue Rd, Hastings
P. (06) 876 9482
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 29
Negotiations were initiated by the Hastings Borough Council in September 1918 to extend Station Street through to Lyndon Road, and completed in October 1919. Knight Brothers gifted part of their land to the Council to create the Station Street South extension from Heretaunga Street East to Eastbourne Street.
In 1920, businesses Westerman’s and L J Harvey purchased sections on Station Street South but did not build on them immediately.
Station Street South was formed in 1921, and opened around July of that year. L J Harvey, which had operated from a building that was required for the street extension, shifted several shops along in Heretaunga Street East, and Holt’s timber yard moved to new premises in St Aubyn Street.
The wooden buildings on Station Street, which had been rebuilt after the fire of 1908 and were still part of the railway reserve, became quite controversial. They were described in 1921 as being “shabby” in appearance. The land was leasehold and the Railways were not prepared to offer significant lease periods beyond twenty-one years – and indeed, could terminate the leases at the discretion of the Minister of Railways without compensation. Given these terms, businesses were not prepared to invest in more substantial buildings. A breakthrough occurred when the Hastings Borough Council and Hastings Chamber of Commerce lobbied the government in 1921 for lessees to have certainty during the lease period, and to have a right of renewal of twenty-one years (At a later stage, all the land was freeholded.)
In August 1922, Station Street was renamed Russell Street – likely as a tribute to Sir William Russell (1938-1913), who was Hastings’ most successful politician from 1870 until 1905. While in Parliament he was recognised as leader of the opposition from 1894 to 1901. There is also a possibility it was named for his nephew, war hero Major-General Sir Andrew Russell (1868-1960), or the Russell family in general.
Photo caption – All the buildings in Russell Street survived the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake, except for the corner wooden building. Webber’s Building, although fire damaged, was able to be restored.
Credit: Michael Fowler Collection
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PROVIDING TRUSTED LEGAL ADVICE TO FAMILIES AND BUSINESSES THROUGHOUT HAWKE’S BAY SINCE 1896.
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Visit our website at [www].giffdev.co.nz for more information or call us on (06) 8730420 to arrange an appointment in our Hastings or Havelock North office.
Hastings office
206 Queen Street East
PO Box 148
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Heritage
@ Heretaunga
The Heretaunga Club now has the perfect venue for your function or special occasion.
Totally private with its own bar & dance floor, Heritage @ Heretaunga has been completely revamped and looks fantastic
Seating 150+ comfortably, our team can help you plan a delicious set menu or buffet/smorgasbord to suit your taste and budget.
Great wine specials available for large groups.
Call and discuss your requirements with Chelsea or Chef Mary on (06) 878 8653 or call in to 308 Victoria Street, Hastings
Email: [email protected] [www].heretaungaclub.co.nz
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30 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
POST OFFICES
The first post office was situated in Tobias Hicks’ general store, and he became the postmaster of Karamu in 1872. When the railway station was built, the post office moved there in 1875.
Hastings got its first post office building in 1896, which was a wooden building on the corner of Queen Street East and Station Street (now Russell Street North). With the growth of Hastings it was not long until a brick post office, with a large clock tower, was opened in 1910 to much celebration. The original 1896 building was moved around the corner to Queen Street East.
In 1911, when a large earthquake struck, the Hastings Post Office clock tower bell rang for several hours, and some cracks appeared on the tower. On the apparent urging of the post office staff after the earthquake, the clock tower was repairs in such a way that it would fall out on the road in the event of a large earthquake, not on the building.
As Hastings grew, so did the requirements of the post office, and in 1928 the building was extended to double its size.
When the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake struck, the post office tower collapsed outwards as designed, but unfortunately killed a number of people in the process. Hawke’s Bay Tribune reported Darby Ryan was crushed as he waited for someone on the footpath, and Lily Jenkins, a fifteen-year-old schoolgirl ran out of the post office building, despite a post officer teller trying to stop her.
The original 1910 building was so badly damaged it was demolished, but the 1928 extension was able to be saved. The new post office opened in 1932; although the corner façade shows 1931, this was not the year it was built.
Around 1999, the post office closed. Many changes had been occurring in the services provided by post offices, including the sale in the 1980s of the Post Office Savings Bank to the ANZ Bank.
Photo captions –
The wooden post office in the mid-1900s
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz/
The 1910 post office with its impressive clock tower, which proved to be a death-trap during the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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FLOWERS BY TANYA
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E: [email protected]
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Holly Bacon Co
Established in 1914
The Elite Bacon Factory, Stortford Lodge 1914.
Still using the same curing traditions that combine to make our bacon cook crisply and taste the way you remember bacon used to.
Phone (06) 878 5072
[www].hollybacon.co.nz
Just minutes from the fabulous Hawke’s Bay Wine country, Brittany House is set in beautiful, park-like grounds. The expansive gardens are a delight to our residents, who often take a
quiet stroll through them, or sit down in one of the many sunny spots to enjoy the peaceful surroundings.
The building, interior design and furnishings have been purpose-built and designed for our residents’ comfort and enjoyment. The four communal lounges are very homely and provide
the opportunity for residents to enjoy the company of others.
We invite you to come and explore our Home, and to see for yourself the unique features and lifestyle that Brittany House can offer you.
Brittany House
Residential Care
221 Wolseley Street
Mayfair,
Hawkes Bay 4122
(06) 878 5606
[www].terranova.net.nz
Your Pathway to
Professional Accountancy
Advice & Service
Bryant
Associates
Limited
Chartered Accountants
Sophia House – Cnr Eastbourne & Nelson Streets, Hastings
Phone: 06-876-4789
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 31
MAORI PA AND SALE OF THE HERETAUNGA PLAINS
So-called apostles Thomas Tanner and James Nelson Williams referred to the area they would later call Riverslea and Frimley respectively, as the Karamu Plains – and “Karamu” or “Heretaunga” may have made a more suitable name for the township instead of Hastings. The area’s name related to Karamu Pa, which was situated near where Ruahapia Road is now. According to an 1867 advert in the Hawke’s Bay Herald, Thomas Tanner’s farm manager, G H Norris, whose house was in the present CBD area, lived about two miles (3 km) from Karamu Pa, which was the closest Maori settlement to what now is the Hastings CBD. The pa was on a large area known as the Karamu Reserve, and there were extensive cultivations bordering around where St George’s Road is now. The Karamu cultivations connected with the pa were apparently destroyed by a flood in 1876.
The next closest pa to Karamu was at Pakowhai. Until 1857 Pakowhai was settled by Chief Puhara, an ally and brother-in-law of Chief Te Hapuku. When Chief Te Hapuku decided to establish a pa at Whakatu and disobeyed Chief Te Moananui’s command by gathering wood to do so, conflict began in 1857, in which Chief Puhara joined forces with his brother-in-law. Henare Tomoana fought for Te Moananui and his half-brother Karaitiana Takamoana to remove Chief Te Hapuku – which was achieved, and Te Hapuku retreated to Te Hauke. However, and with much regret on both sides of the fighting, as he was well-liked, Chief Puhara was killed. After the battle Pakowhai Pa was taken over by Karaitiana Takamoana, the principal chief of the Heretaunga Plains.
Photo caption – Henare Tomoana (1820/30-1904)
Credit: Angela Vaux
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Congratulations Hastings on 140 years
“Backing the Bay”
Hon Chris Tremain
MP FOR NAPIER
A 96 Station St, Napier
P 06 834 0207
Hon Craig Foss
MP FOR TUKITUKI
A Cnr King & Queen Streets
P 06 870 3480
[www].BackingTheBay.co.nz
Funded by the Parliamentary Service and authorised by Chris Tremain MP, 96 Station Street Napier.
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32 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
The story of the European settlement of Hastings really began in 1864 when Thomas Tanner was out riding near the Pakowhai Pa and came across Henare Tomoana cutting grass (Thomas had quite a few “accidental” meetings with Maori). Thomas asked who had the authority over the land on the Heretaunga Plains. Henare replied he did, and later wanted two guns and the son of Bishop – a racehorse Thomas had brought over from England to breed from – as a sweetener for a lease arrangement of the land. Henare travelled to Thomas’s residence The Brow in Central Hawke’s Bay to collect apparently one gun only and the horse. A lease payment was later agreed at £600 (2013:$62,000) per year for twenty-one years, and this was increased to £700 (2013:$72,000) when Karaitiana agreed to extra tenants on the 17,785 acres (7,197 hectares) of Heretaunga Plains land. The lease was illegal at the time as the courts had not examined the ownership of the land, nor had it been surveyed. In 1867 the law relating to ownership of Maori land meant ten grantees had to appear on the title of the land as owners (which made it easier for Europeans to deal with Maori for land sales). As more tenants were added the rent per annum increased to £900 per year (2013:$92,000).
Other Europeans had their sights on the Heretaunga Plains land, so in 1871 Thomas Tanner set about purchasing it piece-by-piece, using indebtedness of some of the grantees to Napier shopkeepers as coercion. Henare and Karaitiana were opposed to the sale of the Heretaunga land but both had debts to European shopkeepers. Karaitiana was able to cover his debts, but Henare did not have the
Photo caption – Pakowhai Pa in the 1850s
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz
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EMMERSON TRANSPORT LTD
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Fax (06) 876 4340 [www].emmersontransport.co.nz
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BAYLIS BROS LTD
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FOR ALL YOUR CAR TYRE NEEDS
We stock a good selection of Second Hand Tyres
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 33
resources. When Karaitiana sought a loan of £4,000 (2013:$540,000) from Donald McLean in Auckland to cover Henare’s debts (which were mostly for equipping his men to help the Europeans fight against Te Kooti in 1868) and prevent the sale of Heretaunga, Donald offered him no assistance. And nor was Hawke’s Bay Provincial Superintendent John Ormond able to provide any cash. One-by-one the nine grantees (one had died) began to sign away their share of the land, including Henare and Manaena Tini Kirunga (who at one point stated he hid up a willow tree for two hours to escape from Thomas Tanner), Karaitiana was the last to sign, after being visited at Pakowhai Pa by Thomas’s lawyer, Josiah Cuff, who produced a writ and cash to force him to sign. Karaitiana, believing his pa would be confiscated and his people made homeless, finally agreed to sign the document of sale for the Heretaunga Plains.
The methods used by Thomas and others to secure their properties on the Heretaunga Plains were commented upon by some throughout the colony, in most unflattering terms for many years to come.
A commission was held in April 1873 to look at the Heretaunga land sale, and if not for this, most of what happened would have gone unrecorded. The findings, however, gave no compensation to Maori.
Karaitiana, upon learning of Frances Hicks’ land sale for the township of Hastings in July 1873, tried to put a notice in the Hawke’s Bay Herald protesting, but the paper refused to print it, fearing legal action from Frances.
From that point on Hastings grew, and Maori would eventually settle within the borders of Hastings, but not until the urban drift after World War II.
Photo caption – Karaitiana Takamoana (?-1879)
Credit: The Alexander Turnbull Library
[http]://timeframes.natlib.govt.nz/
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FROM 1886 – PRESENT DAY
Hastings Fire Station 1938
Working with communities to protect what they value
Remember
FIRE DEATHS ARE
AVOIDABLE
More than 22 people die from fire every year.
Smoke alarms & home sprinklers do save lives
Fire prevention does work
DON’T BECOME ANOTHER STATISTIC
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Cancer Society
Te Kahui Matepukupuku o Aotearoa
“Celebrating 51 years of support to Hawke’s Bay people who have been touched by cancer”
We offer a wide range of services to all those coping with cancer.
Support and information
Massage
Support groups
Home loan equipment
Compression sleeve loan for travel
Advocacy
Support and information
Massage
Support groups
Home loan equipment
Compression sleeve loan for travel
Advocacy
Shuttle Service – to and from Regional Cancer Treatment Centre
Accommodation options during treatment
Look Good Feel Better
(in conjunction with LGFB)
To access our services or for further information, please contact the
Cancer Society Hawke’s Bay Centre
P: 06 876 7638 E: [email protected]
34 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
GREATER HASTINGS AND THE BLOSSOM FESTIVAL
The Hastings Blossom Festival was first held in 1950, and was the creation of Greater Hastings, an organisation established initially to provide an Easter attraction
(The Highland Games, first held in 1951). Retailer Harry Poppelwell believed something should be done about the “glorious inactivity” in Hastings, and others shared his view that Hastings was lacking in post-war community spirit. In March 1950 Henry [Harry] and his friend Ed Culver, a Hastings Daily Telegraph reporter met, to plan the formation of an organisation to promote activities in Hastings: Greater Hastings. Hastings Mayor, accountant R D Brown, gave his blessing to “bring about a better and brighter Hastings”. Greater Hastings’ most memorable creation would be the Hastings Blossom Festival.
A Blossom Queen Contest was added in 1957 to the festival. The rules of the Blossom Queen Contest stated that contestants presenting themselves had to be aged between 18 and 28, unmarried and among other things possess: “… poise, personality, charm, beauty of face and figure, education, voice quality, speaking ability and be in good health”. No swimsuit parade would occur, and as the promotional material stated: “ THIS IS NOT A BATHING BEAUTY CONTEST – BUT A BLOSSOM FESTIVAL QUEST.”
At the height of the Blossom Festivals in the 1950s, an estimated 60,000 people crammed the streets of Hastings to view the crepe-paper-decorated floats.
Photo caption – Harry Poppelwell (1899-1998)
Credit: Michael Poppelwell
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PASCOES
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HASTINGS 140 YEARS 35
The festival recovered from the infamous, “Blossom Festival Riot” in September 1960, or more infamously known as the “Battle of Hastings”. One version of events said the riot occurred at approximately 3.30pm when a “European and Maori” began fighting outside the Albert Hotel, with a mob urging them on. Other fights soon broke out, and the police tried to restore order but were overwhelmed. Fire engines were called to assist, and upon their arrival many people thought it was a public display, and flocked to watch. A fire hose was turned on to disperse the crowd. Differences of opinion still exist to this day about the actions of the Hastings Fire Brigade. Some witnesses believe the firemen went beyond dispersing rioters and turn the hose on innocent bystanders such as women and children. The fire brigade stated the police had called them, but the police denied this saying a member of the public had smashed an alarm box and summoned the fire brigade.
The Blossom Festival lasted until 1972, when many people had grown tired of the effort required to decorate floats – a process which took months leading up to the annual September event. (The Blossom Festival was brought back in the 1980s and continues today.)
Photo caption – Heretaunga Butter float in a 1950s Blossom Parade
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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1896-2013
4 Generations Taylor Family
TOMOANA WAREHOUSING
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36 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
LONG-STANDING RETAIL BUSINESSES
Sam Tong arrived in Hastings in 1879 and began business as a furniture maker and undertaker. Sam also became Hastings’ first fire chief. His premises were in Karamu Road, and a visiting lady to the town saw the sign “S T Tong” and commented: “How interesting – a Chinese undertaker” – but Sam was English. Sam’s great friend and drinking buddy was his monkey Ginny, so named due to his liking for gin at the Carlton Hotel. The business is now called Tong and Peryer.
In 1885, W F Burnett took over an ironmonger business, with his assistant, Frank Bone. When Burnett, a past mayor of Hastings (1890-91) died in 1893, Frank and a partner took over the business. In 1900, Frank bought out his partner, and his advice to his son Bill was “never take a partner”. The business initially sold hardware, plumbing supplies, wood, coal and timber, but gradually focused more on general hardware. The business is still family owned, with Frank’s grandson Tony Bone running the business, which has now diversified into hardware, cooking equipment and heating systems.
Photo caption – F L Bone, one of the longest surviving retail Hastings businesses.
Credit: Hastings District Libraries
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HASTINGS
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Celebrating 140 Years
Hastings City
Thomson’s
SUITS
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355 Heretaunga Street West Hastings
06 8789740 [email protected]
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GRIEVE DIAMOND
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GRIFFITHS
Quality
FOOTWEAR
Est. 1914
From 1914
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the present day
“you sit, we fit … the perfect shoe for you”
OPEN 6 DAYS
211w Heretaunga Street, Hastings
Ph: 878 9303 [www].griffithsfootwear.co.nz
HASTINGS 140 YEARS 37
Three businesses next year will celebrate bring in business 100 years in Hastings. Hector Jones was initially an electrical firm, but has diversified into power tools. The founder Hector Jones died young at 37 while overseas in 1930, and therefore did not see his building ruined by the Hawke’s Bay Earthquake, in which two shop assistants died. Griffiths Shoes was started by Charlie Griffiths, who told his young shop assistant, Charlie Davis, when he started, “you’ll have a job for life”. And he did, becoming the store’s second owner and staying nearly fifty-five years before retiring in 2004. Carl Vogtherr opened his bacon business at Stortford Lodge in 1914, and he opened a delicatessen in Heretaunga Street on the day World War I broke out. The Holly Bacon business is now in St Aubyn Street, and carried on by Carl’s great-granddaughter Claire Vogtherr.
Two large department stores which no longer exist are Westerman & Co and Roachs’. Westerman’s name disappeared in the 1970s, and Roachs’ in 1981, three years short of their centenary.
Photo caption – S T Tong’s premises in Karamu Road
Credit: Rona McCarthy
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Making you look good & feel great since 1930.
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Hastings branch:
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HASTINGS
38 HASTINGS 140 YEARS
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY USED
Anderson, Len (1974). Throughout the East Coast. The story of Williams & Kettle Limited. Pictorial Publications.
Boyd, Mary B. (1984). City of the Plains: A History of Hastings. Victoria University Press.
Conly, Geoff (1984). Watties: The first fifty years. J. Wattie Canneries Limited.
Fowler, Michael (2007). From Disaster to Recovery: The Hastings CBD 1931-35. Michael Fowler Publishing Limited.
Mooney, Kay (1973). History of the County of Hawke’s Bay Parts I to IV. Hawke’s Bay County Council.
Reed, A.H. (1958). The Story of Hawke’s Bay. A.H. & A.W. Reed.
Wilson, J.G. (1976). History of Hawke’s Bay. A.H. & A.W. Reed.
Wright, Matthew (2001). Town and Country: The History of Hastings and district. Hastings District Council.
NEWSPAPERS:
Hawke’s Bay Herald Daily Telegraph Hawke’s Bay Tribune Hastings Standard
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
Madelon van Zijll [Zijl] de Jong, Chris Johnson, Gilliam Christie, Rose Mohi, Alexander Turnbull Library, Kim Salamonson, Hastings District Libraries, Jo Dryden and Shirley Randell.
This publication is copyright. Apart from fair dealing for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review, as permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright holder.
© Michael Fowler 2013
Printed by APN Hastings for Hawke’s Bay Newspapers
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IONA COLLEGE
HAVELOCK NORTH, HAWKE’S BAY
Pursuing Personal Best
Iona College is proud to be
part of this community and
congratulates Hastings as it
celebrates 140 years as a city.
Celebrating 100 Years
1914-2014
Address: 42 Lucknow Road, Havelock North
Website: [www].iona.school.nz
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 06 877 8149
SHAPING OUR YOUNG MEN FOR 100 YEARS
HEREWORTH
DESIGNED FOR BOYS
Join us to celebrate our school’s first 100 years in Havelock North.
This significant event will showcase the history of both Heretaunga and Hereworth. Join us at the Centennial Dinner, come along and see how the school has changed and watch the heritage rugby match against Huntley.
9th & 10th August, 2013.
Contact us today to secure your tickets.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Freephone 0800 444 244 or visit [www].hereworth.school.nz
Te Mata Road Havelock North 4130 Hawke’s Bay New Zealand
INDEPENDENT DAY AND BOARDING SCHOOL FOR BOYS YEARS 1-8
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204 ST AUBYN STREET WEST, HASTINGS
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[List of names in this title still to be added – HBKB]
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Newspaper supplementDate published
June 2013Publisher
Hawke's Bay TodayAcknowledgements
Published with permission of Hawke's Bay Today and Michael Fowler
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618328Supporters and sponsors
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