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The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Wellington Provincial District]
Mr. John Blackett
Mr. John Blackett,
M. Inst., C.E., was born at Newcastle on-Tyne in 1818, and died at Wellington on the 8th of January, 1893. Mr. Blackett studied engineering with Messrs. R. and W. Hawthorne from 1834 to 1841, and then became draughtsman and office engineer to the Great Western Steamship Company, 1841–44; he was head engineer in iron ship-building and railway work with T. R. Guppy, A.I.C.E., 1844–46; engineer to the Governor and Company of Copper Mines at Cwm Avon, South Wales, 1846–48;
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and from that year up to 1851 he practised as a private engineer, and then emigrated to New Zealand, and lived for some time in Taranaki. In 1859 he was appointed provincial engineer at Nelson, where he did good service in opening up the country towards the West Coast, and in Marlborough and Amuri districts, then parts of the Nelson province; from 1864–66 he was Commissioner of the Nelson South West Goldfields during the great rush. In this capacity he held supreme power as administrator, resident magistrate, warden, and head of the police, etc., over the districts now covered by the Grey Valley, north of that river, and the Inangahua and Buller counties, at a time when the population was large and the revenue from miner's rights and gold duty enormous. The Nelson Government wisely gave Mr. Blackett a free hand to spend this money in roads, bridges, and administration, and the brightest days of the goldfields where when he in a modest, unpretentious, yet firm and always considerate manner, was practically the dictator over some 8000 miners, among whom were many turbulent spirits, and not a few criminals. In 1870, when the public works policy was initiated, he became acting engineer-in-chief of the Colony, and had a busy time of it in the early days of railway construction and other public works; and it required a man of his magnificent physique to stand the strain of his West Coast experiences and pioneer work in the first year or two of the developments of public works in New Zealand. His wide knowledge in all branches of engineering led to his appointment as marine engineer in 1871. In 1878 he was made engineer-in-charge of the North Island, a similar positon. being held by Mr. W. N. Blair in the South Island, This arrangement continued until 1884, when Mr. Blackett became engineer-in-chief of the Colony and Mr. Blair assistant. In 1890 Mr. Blackett, who had then seen over thirty years service in the Colony, went Home as consulting angineer of the Government and Mr. Blair took his place, but died on the 4th of May, 1891. Mr. Blackett returned to the Colony, and, his health failing, he retired from the service on the 31st of October, 1892, and died three months later. His eldest son George, who had risen to the position of district engineer in Nelson, died in 1885.