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Copyright 2009, by Victoria University of Wellington
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Errata: Volume 6 No 3. 2000: P59 'bunk in' should read 'bumkin'.
Published by
Edited by Dawn Smith.
Design & Layup by
Printed by Printhouse Nelson.
ISSN 1173-9711
Copyright: Permission to reprint any part of the Journal should be sought from the Committee of the Nelson Historical Society and the source of any such reprint should be acknowledged. We are grateful to the
It is with pleasure that I write this foreword for a further
Once again our Society members, and a local historian, have responded to the call for historical articles. With the addition of the 2008
There are three exciting information technology innovations which are facilitating historical research for Journal articles, or which will take effect in future.
Firstly, the internet age has brought a very valuable research tool, the National Library web site Papers Past, which enables us to search old New Zealand news-papers in the comfort of our homes. Some of these newspapers, including the Nelson Examiner, can be searched by key word topics, with all articles featuring those words being selected. This invaluable tool to researchers will become increasingly useful as more papers are made searchable. Previously, we have had to spend hours poring over old newspapers, or going frame-by-frame through microfilms, in museums or libraries. Papers Past, was the topic of a talk in May 2009, by visiting
Secondly, the Combined Tasman, theprow.org.nz and features a whole
Thirdly, the Friends of Nelson Libraries project to microfilm and then digitise all our past Journals has obtained all but a few copyright approvals from the authors or their descendants. The next step will be to have the journals microfilmed. It is hoped that the films will then be digitised, which would bring the possibility of making the Journals available on a web site, and to eventually be word searchable.
We certainly live in interesting times, with much advancement in information technology.
Finally, thank you to all article contributors, Dawn Smith for her editorial work,
This is a story about the young pioneer Takaka Valley
The area would have not long been surveyed, as some of the high land in
The two men had separate farms 14km away to the north at Sunnyside, West Takaka. They had taken possession of these farms from their father, John Masterman, arriving at 1 George, a veterinary surgeon, and his family moved to 2
They built the whare first, and the two oldest sons remained there while the parents returned to
George Sparrow was a member of the 3
They purchased land at Sunnyside on August 20, 1857, buying 300 acres (125 ha) at 10/- ($1) an acre. Clearly they were occupying land before that, maybe in anticipation of a crown grant. Two more grants were advertised as ready for issue to 4 This was later extended to 643 acres (268 ha) and was eventually divided between
Hops were grown in the Takaka Valley, including the Upper Takaka area and 5, but there is no mention of them in 18916. The price of hops had dropped, proving to be
In 1949 when we were haymaking for the Wintons, our neighbours,
Section 1 turned out to be one of New Zealand's unusual geological areas, as well as being a unique grazing block. The sheep do well on it and produce bright, deep-crimped, lustrous wool because of the soil, which has been formed from the weathering of graphitic Arthur Marble.
The bush on Section 1 was felled in stages and on July 8, 1902, eleven years to the day since
The shearing shed was built about the same time as the hut, or soon after, and it was a professional job complete with roller doors. A sheep dip with a drainage pen was also built, and the drainage pen's concrete floor is still there. A pipe was driven into a spring thirty metres from the hut to supply water to the dip. One hundred years later, the same pipe is still used to supply a trough across the valley. The materials for these buildings were probably sledged in; Charlie Fowler next door operated a sledge just after 1903. The essential equipment for hill country farming, new boots, were purchased on June 1, 1904.
There were sheep on Section 1 by 1902, as it is written on the wall of the hut, so there would have been wool to sell. In the beginning it was probably fadged up and taken out by sledge or pack-horse to a wagon further down the road. Then it was perhaps put onto the
By 1919, 312 lambs were being tailed, and by July 1922 there were 656 sheep, with emphasis probably being placed on the wool clip and increasing sheep numbers. Writing on the hut walls states that the old ewes were sold to the Nelson Freezing Works, of which
One day, about 1920, the bush was being felled in the top half of Konini Gully, named for the fruit of the fuchsia tree. This area, the last to be felled at the southern end of Section 1, is very steep. The three bush fellers, including
The journey from Sunnyside to Section 1 became quicker with the arrival of the car. My father,
A netting and standard round and twisted type fence was erected right up the western side of Section 1, alongside
Section 1 and Hillcrest were auctioned in
He went to the auction and was the highest bidder at £2,700 ($5,400). Mr A.H (Brownie) Baigent, the local
We repaired the fence, which went across halfway up the hill, and in time ran 420 wethers on the top block and 700 hoggets on the bottom block. This made us well stocked up, because we were trying to maximise our wool return. Lucerne hay purchased from Waimea Plains was stored in the shearing shed before being packed up the hill by horse, two bales at a time. We erected a fence around the hut and shearing shed to make a one-hectare horse paddock. If the ground was wet, care was needed as the horse would slip on the wet surface and tramp over the man leading it on the way down. We did the dagging in the shearing shed using a portable petrol-driven shearing machine, but the fumes and noise were a problem. The sheep were taken down to the homestead shearing shed for shearing.
One day, when we were erecting the horse paddock fence, Dad said
A few years after we bought Section 1, Dad put our pedigree bull with other cattle to graze off the surplus grass. While he was mustering the hoggets, for some reason the dogs, as they do, started rounding up the bull. The ground was soft at the time and the bull ended up skiing down hill on all fours at great speed, unable to control himself. Luckily he came to no harm, and was taken down to the flats immediately; Section 1 was no place for a big bull.
On one occasion,
In the 1950s, there was an enormous flood in the Section 1 catchment area. A huge gouge was formed in the main gully, 400 metres long, up to 6 metres deep and 4 metres wide. This all happened in a few hours at night, with the road up to Section 1 being completely obliterated in many places.
During the 1960s a geologist,
Towards the end of the 1960s,
In 1995
Most of the ranges of the Takaka Valley have reverted back to bush, or are heading that way. Climate change legislation with no burning will hasten this reversion. The soils associated with the graphitic Arthur Marble are fertile and Section 1 would have produced over 2,000 bales of wool since the bush was felled. Wool buyers often ask me what causes the dark colour in the wool; is it charcoal from bush burn? No, it is the graphite-rich dust from the Arthur Marble. The price of wool has been very low for many years, due mainly to synthetics yarns, which are made from oil. With dwindling oil supplies, will it be wool's day again, and will
Since it was originally surveyed, only two families have farmed Section 1: the Sparrows and the Harwoods. Many people have worked on it, prospected it, and six have narrowly escaped with their lives.
Dedicated to the memory of
Sparrow family details are from the Sparrow Collection, held privately by the Sparrow family of
Today's immigrant to New Zealand can travel from the
Latterly I have been following the fortunes of one shipload of emigrants who arrived at Opawa and, although the passengers landed in
The Opawa, a new iron ship of 1076 tons built in 1876, was too big to come to the wharf and had to stand off beyond the Boulder Bank. Her
After one night there the Wallace for
Many Irish servants and most of the farming men were for
Some stayed in the
An Irish family from County Cavan,
The servant girls appear to have had no difficulty in getting live-in posts. An example is provided by the three Hickman sisters from
The miners and their families did not fare so well. They were taken to the Nelson Immigration Barracks when they landed, thinking that their jobs were secure. After all, they had been "ordered" by the
Arrangements were made for them to leave on the Opawa on August 22nd. On October 17, 1879, when the
The next letter to Opawa arrived, telegrams began to fly back and forth, with
Things began to move on December 16th, when Malvern colliery in
It is interesting to speculate why Opawa. They had also run a Sunday School for the children. Judging by their later activities on the
Christmas and New Year came with none of the miners or their families having been able to leave the Barracks. How did they occupy themselves during this time? One of the
January 1, 1880 appears to have been a welcome change in the routine. "All the persons in the Depot were invited to a picnic at Mr Oldham's (Dodson's Valley) and very well enjoyed ourselves. We were treated very well and got some good things provided. We had a walk up one of the mountains belonging to Mr Dodson and got some gooseberries and saw a palm tree. We left to come home at half past 7
The authorities began to have some success in finding places for the miners. Stella on January 19th to go to
This was not the end for either the Government or the miners, however. Barnsley Chronicle on February 28th. Written by John Lomas, one of the local preachers who had gone to Canterbury, it described Burn's reaction to the deputation: "
The other letter, from Thomas Greenshields Stephenson, late of Murton Colliery, Newcastle Daily Chronicle on February 25, 1880. By the 1890s most of the
Books in Māori, 1815–1900, a comprehensive 1 Collectively, the more than 1600 items described (nearly 400 for the first time) present a different and interesting perspective on the history of New Zealand during a period of extraordinary change for Māori.
Twenty-two items in Books in Māori relate specifically to the Books in Māori.
The term 'relate specifically to the
Of course, many other publications included in Books in Māori—for example, the Maori-language government gazette, published for nearly 70 years—would also have 2
The Nelson-related publications listed here fall broadly into two categories: Practical & Administrative (including legislation) and Religious. The listing follows that pattern, with items described in chronological order within each category, prefaced by the unique reference number from Books in Māori (e.g. BIM 113).
Copies of all the items described in the bibliography (with a few exceptions) are available for reference use at the
Remote access to the newspapers themselves is available in Niupepa 1842–1933 (microfilm or microfiche), which can be either borrowed on interloan through the library system, or purchased from the
We are indeed indebted to the
It is a Great white shark (White pointer) Carcharodon carcharias, known as Mango Taniwha to Maori. At today's prices, shark jaws have been reported to be worth $18,000 and teeth $1,700. Great white sharks are threatened with extinction and are now protected in New Zealand and some international waters.1
During April 1990 I phoned local residents with the surname of Crapper. This led me to Peter Crapper, who lived at Westdale Road, Redwoods Valley, who was the grandson of the adult in the photograph. Peter, who had also been a fisherman, had a copy of the photo with notes on the back of it written by his father.
These notes identify the people in the photo from left as James (Peter's father), Eclipse. For monetary comparison, in 1916 a Ford car was worth £180 and a horse £40.
I found no references to the shark in Nelson Evening Mail of Saturday October 7, 1916:
"A monster shark was captured by Mr J Crapper in the Cut, near the mole, this morning. It is of the taniwha (sic), the most vicious species of shark, and is 12 feet long, 7 feet in girth, and weighs three quarters of a ton (1,680lbs). This shark was well known to fishermen, and it is stated, had attacked several dinghies, and it will be a relief to know that it has at last been safely netted. The monster has a formidable set of teeth, for which Mr Crapper has already refused an offer of £10. It is on view at his shop in Hardy Street".
On page 6 of the same paper an advertisement states: "Monster of the Deep. Huge Shark, captured at the New Cut, on view at Mr J Crapper's Fish Shop, Hardy Street until Tuesday. Admission:- Adults 6d, Children 6d".
James Crapper's fish shop was at 107 Hardy Street and his occupation was listed as both fisherman and fishmonger. The shop was located on the north side of Hardy Street two shops east of Alma Street and three shops before the Panama Hotel at the corner of Collingwood Street.2
The Colonist of October 9, 1916 carried a report on page 4:
"A monster shark, of the taniwha species, was captured by Mr W(sic) Crapper, a fisherman, on Saturday morning in the new entrance to
The following observations and additional facts come from New Zealand shark scientist and advocate
Average size of white sharks landed around mainland New Zealand is 3–3.5m. Females mature between 4.7–5.2m in length, males between 3.5–4.1m. The largest accurately measured female was 6.4m, and the largest male 5.5m total length (TL). This is measured in a straight line from tip of snout to tip of the tail, not over the curve of the body makes a big difference in a big shark. There are, however, reliable length estimates of 7m for two females, one taken off Cuba and the other off
White sharks are present in NZ waters all year round but, according to rig and school shark fishermen in 3
When ordering the shark photo I found that Southland Times of October 7, 1916, proving the tooth's provenance:
Huge Shark CapturedInvercargill Boy's Plucky ActionFor some years past a monster shark has been in possession of the bay at
Nelson and, needless to say has caused many anxious moments for the fishermen, in that locality. Several attempts have been made to capture "Blue Peter," as he was knownto the fishermen, but he managed to evade all attacks made on him till last Friday, when he was successfully landed. It appears that Mr James Crapper (son ofMr J Crapper , Bowment street), was engaged in the act of searching his nets which had been set the night previously, when he discovered that they had been removed some considerable distance, from the place where he had set them and on making further investigations, he found that his net contained the notorious "Blue Peter". To attack the monster single handed is a task that very few would care about, but after a struggle lasting over an hour Mr Crapper was successful in killing the brute, which was then conveyed by the pilot boat to the wharf, where it was necessary to use a steamer's winch to haul it up on to a lorry. The shark which measured 12ft in length, 7ft in girth and weighs three quarters of a ton, is of the taniwha species, which is known as the most ferocious a kind, and it is indeed creditable that anInvercargill boy should have the proud distinction of capturing such a monster, which is known to have attacked several of the fishing boats. For the teeth alone Mr Crapper has already refused an offer of £10, so it will be seen that after all the risk he took was worth while".
The Crapper family came from 4
"You ask me to tell you about our live stock. We find
Last summer we reared thirty very fine turkeys, and never gave them a thing from the time they were a week old. They lived principally on the locusts in summer, of which there are great abundance; they were all remarkably fine flavoured during the time the locusts were about.
We keep a few pigs for the purpose of hams and bacon, but they are a thing I do not take much interest in. Horses, cows, and dogs, are my favourites amongst animals. My little Jessy is a great favourite with us both. She is a very fine tempered horse. We have two other mares, and two foals.
Our garden is beginning to look very nice; we have been planting lots of fruit trees in it, and native shrubs, so that in a few years we shall be quite shut in with trees, which will be delightful. All the trees here grow very fast, particularly peach and almond trees. We have some of the latter in our garden that are only three years old and about fourteen feet high [about 4½ metres] – they are at present covered with blossom, but we do not feel sure, whether they will ripen here".
My great, great grandfather, John Thomas, was Perthshire on August 21, 1852. He had been left with four children when his wife died and brought Edwin with him, while the eldest three stayed in
John purchased land in Appleby, between River Road and Appleby Road, near
John's eldest son, Sir George Pollock. According to a report in
He built a hotel called The Horse and Jockey on the corner of his father's property which was used as a passenger stopover and was probably also a mail collection point. It was near Monro's Crossing on the
Siamese twins were born while the family was living at The Horse and Jockey, two girls who were beautifully formed, fat and very healthy looking. They were conjoined from collar bone to navel, the latter being common to both. The rib cage round to a common sternum was also joined, leaving a single cavity in which the two hearts and livers were united. The babies died at birth and were buried on the farm, beside their grandfather's mud cottage. A Banksia rose planted on the grave is still growing there.
James drowned in 1889 when returning by boat from
For many years Dad grew 12,000 tomato plants in combination with the orchard. The five children worked in the apples and tomatoes as we grew up, and it was a very busy life for the whole family. My father, sadly, died suddenly aged 58 in 1962 and my mother and brother then worked both properties. We were all married by this time. The orchard was sold first, followed later by the farm. Mum married Victor Smith in 1971 and died in 1982.
My thanks to my cousin,
The
Britannia Heights was first used as the location for a signal staff in 1841, following the arrival of the 1
The signal staff was needed because 2
A nine-pounder carronade was put beside the flagstaff on January 24, 1842 for use as a signal gun. It was one of four obtained from Bailey Pegg and Company, iron merchants and founders of Gun Wharf, Wapping in 3
When the Fifeshire, the first of the immigrant ships, sailed into the Haven on February 1, 1842, the signal gun was fired in salute. From September that year it was fired at noon every Saturday as a time signal, for people to check the accuracy of their timepieces. The first firing, carried out by Captain Wilson, was noted by John 4
The signal staff became the target of vandalism, with a reward of 10 pounds being offered for information in the Nelson Examiner of July 23, 1842:
"Whereas the signal staff on Britannia Heights was maliciously cut down on the night of Monday the 11th of July the above reward will be paid by the undersigned to any person or persons who shall give such information as shall lead to the conviction of the offender or offenders.
The signalling system became more sophisticated in 1844, taking advantage of the fact that the site was also visible from the town. Under the new system, when a vessel appeared in the bay, a pennant was hoisted to the top of the staff. Once it had been identified, a further signal was raised showing one of a series of shapes representing a number. This identified the vessel type, from a barque, brigantine, schooner, cutter, sloop or lugger to a British man of war, foreign merchant ship, whaler, government colonial vessel or steamer. The ever-vigilant John 5
The custom of firing the time gun lapsed after a while, but it was revived in September 1858.
The Colonist commented that this would be a great boon, as the lack of an authentic source from which to correct timepieces had been felt for a long time. The first firing took place on September 11, 1858, causing "a simultaneous examination of watches and timepieces as had rarely been witnessed in
"On Saturday, for the first time, the Time Gun, as advertised by the Government, was fired, and a general expectation seemed to prevail amongst the inhabitants. The watches of some showed noon so far past that they began to think it had been forgotten. At last, however, the sound of the gun was heard, and the white smoke curling along the side
The signalman at the time was
A new signal staff with two yard-arms was erected in 1860 at a cost of 20 pounds. The new signal code featured a system of flags and balls, with a red flag and a ball at the masthead at low water. The ball was lowered when there was 10 feet of water over the bar and the red flag kept flying until high water. Ebb tide was denoted by a Blue Peter at the masthead. It was about this time that a signal station was built, which included living quarters for the signalman. The type of vessel arriving was signalled by balls at various places on the yard-arms. For example a ball at the south end of the lower arm indicated a barque, while a ball at the north end of the upper yard meant a brig. The code for steamers was a ball with a white flag at the north end of the lower yard for one from the north and at the south end for one from the south.6
A new set of signal balls and a tide flag were purchased in 1861 and an additional smaller staff was erected about 1865, which had a code identifying 11 individual coastal vessels. The larger staff now had individual codes for the steamers 7
8
There was great dismay in May 1888, when the tide staff was removed to the Boulder Bank. This increased when it was learned that the main signal staff was also to be relocated. The Nelson Evening Mail stated that, unless the City Council could
The Colonist also weighed in to the controversy, hoping that the community's parliamentary representatives would take the first opportunity to make strong representation on the subject. It suggested the City Council organise a petition to revert to the old order of things, as virtually every citizen would sign it. HA Levestam, the local MP, obtained a promise that neither the signal staff, nor the signalman would be interfered with.9
It proved to be only a temporary stay of execution, however, and in April 1890 it was reported that the Marine Department had decided to do away with the signal staff on Britannia Heights. A staff was to be erected at the Post Office, from which the approach of vessels would be signalled on receipt of telephonic messages from the lighthouse keeper. At that time the Post Office was in Upper Trafalgar Street.
The new flagstaff was installed at the beginning of May by the pilot boat crew, under the supervision of the Pilot, Mr Low. The somewhat unsightly staff was fixed to an upright piece of wood in the passageway leading to the mailroom, and to the moulding of the parapet of the building. The top of the staff was only 20 feet above the parapet, which limited its visibility. A wickerwork ball was fixed so that it could be hauled up and, on its own, would indicate the arrival of a sailing vessel. A blue or white flag would signal a steamer from the north or the south, and a white pennant with a red centre would be used for vessels carrying English mail.
The Nelson Evening Mail was scathing of the new set up. It suggested someone in the Marine Department was playing a joke upon the citizens of
In 1900
John
The planting was set for July 25, 1900, Boys' Arbor Day, after being postponed a week for wet weather. At about 9am a great number of boys armed with spades and like implements were seen going through town en route for Britannia Heights. They were divided into companies under 11
Nothing had been done by the time of the next meeting, which caused a regular hubbub, and various councillors insisted that the resolution to replant the tree be carried out. Cr Baigent pointed out that the inscription saying
And so, on August 20, 1900, Crs Baigent, Akersten, Kirkpatrick and Lock, together with The Colonist and 12
A secure fence was put up to save the tree from the depredations of grazing cows 13
The brass plate had gone by the time of the centenary of settlement in 1941, when the area around the tree was tidied up, with a lawn being sown. The notice board was repainted and a new seat, donated by BB Jones, was put in place. A ceremony on Britannia Heights followed the unveiling of a memorial stone on Wakefield Quay on November 2, 1941. The Union Jack was broken out from a sapling flagstaff, which had been put on the site of the original, by 14
At some stage the time gun was moved to Albion Square and from there to the Queen's Gardens. When the Turkish pontoon was installed there at the end of 1915, the time gun was put beside it, together with another of the four original carronades. In 1843, three of them had been used in the fortification of Church Hill and then, in 1851, two had been shipped to
"Public Garden, Trafalgar SquareComplaints are frequently made of the injury done to the trees and shrubs of this garden by persons who frequent there. It is common practice to break the gums, mimosas and other trees, which are so great an ornament in the garden. Names are carved on the seats and the cannon which, if taken care of, might add to the attractiveness of the place is made, by the roughs complained of, to batter down the shrubs. Some authority should interfere to put an end to this gothic amusement of the town urchins who do not seem to have been sufficiently well educated to respect public property".
15
The two cannon and the pontoon were mounted outside the RSA premises in Rutherford Street in 1953, but ten years later they were in the way of an extension to the building. The pontoon was consigned to the tip and it was proposed to return the time gun to Britannia Heights and put the other cannon in Isel Park. There was conjecture at the RSA that they were also to be dumped and, in a pre-emptive strike, they were removed to two private addresses late one night.16
A request by the Regional Committee of the 17
The two cannon made an appearance at the opening of the Trafalgar Centre in February 1973, with one of them being fired to mark the occasion. In August 1973 it was reported that the time gun was to return to its original site on Britannia Heights, when road works in the area had been completed. This did not happen, however, and the notice board was put in place in 1974. The cannon were in 18
The last word, of course, has to go the
At the prospect of war with the Maori, the family moved to Rapid and the schooner Dove. James commanded one of the vessels himself and employed a master for the other, who may have been Cheeseman, as the pair seem to have been partners in the mid-1860s, trading between
They leased two berths at Green Point, where the Custom House Hotel is situated today. James had a lime-kiln built at the foot of the cliff at Green Point, where Guard's Sea Services is now. Part of Guard's boat shed still has some lime on the ceiling, in the remains of the building where it was stored. In the 1860s the two vessels were carrying up to 15 tons of limestone from
When James stepped back from business his son Edwin carried on the lime burning. James died aged 71 and the flags at the Port were at half-mast for him. His obituary, published in The Colonist 16 July 1897, says that he was keenly interested in Port
There is a large photograph showing the lime-kiln in the entrance to Countdown
"Another of those miserable domestic squabbles
In the early 1900s, settlers were scattered throughout
Newman Brothers' coach went through from
Among the sheep farmers in the Valley in 1896 was Frank Roscoe Bird, a son of
A telephone office was added in 1901 and then toll call facilities in 1907. This began the Bird family's long association with the Whangamoa Post Office, which lasted forty-one years, except for a short break from 1910 to 1912.
In 1908
As motorised transport came into general use,
One day she was driving home from
On January 6, 1920, a Peace picnic was held in HV O'Beirne's paddock at Hillwood, on the Wakapuaka Road. It was to celebrate the end of the War and to welcome the returned soldiers from
Elizabeth continued to live in the Post Office in the Valley with her son
Years later
"My letter of appointment to Postmistress is dated 1st July 1935, so I was fifteen. Payment was 27 pounds per annum, plus opening fees, 1 pound 10 shillings for each party line owner, and 2 pounds for each party line.
One of the conditions was that telegrams and toll calls on the private business of the telephonist were to be paid for, and that in the absence of an approved arrangement to the contrary, received telegrams were to be delivered free of charge within a distance of one mile from the Office. (No one lived that close in
The Post Office was a small building on the end of the big front verandah; we had to go out the front door and along the open verandah. It was cold in the winter
One night we were trying to listen to a play on the radio which was most difficult as the main bell kept ringing the different bays, so my brother Douglas jammed some paper in it.
The Nelson Post Office used to ring at 9am each morning for everyone to check their clocks. This particular morning we realised we hadn't heard the 9 o'clock bell and went into the office about 9.30am to get ready for the mail car arriving, threw the switch over for the bells to ring in the Post Office and our ring was going. When we answered
Glenda hurried down the hall and removed the wad of paper, shivering in her shoes while thinking of what would have been said if a linesman had been sent out all the way from
As in any small community, there was one customer who did not like the Post Office. The Birds had a private phone in their living room, connected to the party line and to Wisharts beyond Kokorua. They couldn't ring
Previously, the man had called at all hours for his mail, as many others did, after work etc.
She also wrote letters for a Maori family who came to
There were three Postmasters and four Postmistresses who came after
Open any
The dictionary definition of 'icon' is a sacred painting or mosaic. Although not physically 'paintings', both Morrison Street Café and Chez Eelco are certainly 'sacred' identities when painting a picture of
Mention 'The Chez' and peoples' faces will light up with fond memories of this famous
In 1951 at age twenty, Boswijk arrived in 1
Through the help of friends in
Boswijk's philosophy of Chez Eelco was simple and direct: "It is a place where people can sit and wait without needing to buy something but fulfilling the need of being somewhere to pass the time".1
When Chez Eelco first opened, 2
Nelson College for Girls students were strictly told by the Lady Principal that Chez Eelco was out of bounds. Teenagers ignored this and Friday nights at the Chez Eelco became adolescent bonding rituals. It brought a sophistication that had not previously been available, and became the "vibrant place to be".3 Chez Eelco became known throughout New Zealand and internationally.
Customer service was very important to Boswijk, with happy staff equalling happy customers for him. "There was a waiter who was the smiling one, the helpful one. I became him".4 He encouraged his guests to just be there: "Anyone could sit here without feeling they had to buy anything – they could read a paper or play chess".5
In addition to his charming host manner, Boswijk's love for the arts also made Chez Eelco special. In its second year, a gallery room was added at the rear of the café.
In 1979 Boswijk introduced another first in the café scene to 6
Chez Eelco helped to put 7 With personal problems resolved, philosophies debated and marriage proposals made and accepted within its walls, the Chez Eelco became an iconic
Morrison Street Café is another true
– "When we first opened, people said 8 However she believed that coffee in
Field opened Morrison Street Café, in small premises in Morrison Street, as the base for a catering business. It was small and family orientated, with her mother and sister-in-law helping out. Her desire to produce quality coffee saw the café business taking over. When her brother,
What makes this particular café an icon and can its triumphs be connected with those of Chez Eelco? In common with Boswijk, Field believes that a fine atmosphere is essential. The café is cosy but has a city feel, with its sunny courtyard and spacious wooden interior. Then there is the strong team spirit among the staff. Manager 9
The menu at Morrison Street Café is another factor. There is something on the menu to entice anybody, with vegans and allergy-afflicted being well provided for. Its influences come from many parts of the world, with seasonal changes like the chicken and hummus wraps, or warm pancetta and artichoke salad keeping it fresh and exciting. Yet the continuing favourite – bacon and eggs with designer hollandaise sauce and pesto remains on the menu.
The arts have also played a notable role in this icon, with well known artists and graduates displaying their work at Morrison Street Café. The café fully supports the local art that comes through, and a recent study by a visual student at
10 Then there is her partner,
A significant element of Morrison Street Café's art of first-rate coffee making can be traced back to a former barista,
Chez Eelco and Morrison Street both conjure fascination and distinctiveness when the subject of true
Morrison Street has also received distinctive honours, having won the award for Best Café in the
Both cafes stand out as images of
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