Cooper's Creek (Woodside) is situated on the side of the hills, about three miles from West Oxford. The residents, who numbered 168 at the census of 1901, are principally employed in the timber industry, but a good deal of dairy farming is also carried on in the district. There is a creamery, and the post office is at the local store. The public school is called Woodside public school, but the post office is designated Cooper's Creek post office. The district is situated in the Oxford riding of the county of Ashley.

Cooper's Creek Post Office dates from January, 1902. The business is conducted at the homestead of Mr. J. Vallance, and three mails are received and dispatched weekly. The office is subsidiary to the West Oxford post office.

Mr. John Vallance, Postmaster at Cooper's Creek, and farmer, was born in Melbourne in 1853, and was brought by his parents to Canterbury in the following year. The family settled at Sefton, where the subject of this notice was brought up to a country life. In 1879 Mr. Vallance commenced farming on his own account at Flaxton, and seven years later, removed to Cooper's Creek, where, in conjunction with his brother-in-law, Mr. R. Taylor, he farms 169 acres of freehold land as a dairy and sheep farm. Mr. Vallance also has teams, and a good part of his time is employed in carting. He has served for a number of years as a member of the local school committee. Mr. Vallance was married, in 1879, to a daughter of Mr. W. Taylor, of County Armagh, brother of Mr. R. Taylor, and has three sons and three daughters.

The Public School at Woodside (Cooper's Creek) was established in 1882. It stands on a section of three acres, partly planted with fine shelter trees. The building is of wood and iron, consists of one class room and a porch, and has accommodation for eighty children. There are fifty-three names on the roll, and the average attendance is forty-two. There is a school house of six rooms on the property. The staff consists of a master and assistant mistress.

Mr. David Arnott, Headmaster of the Woodside Public School, was born at Fernside in 1876. He served his pupil-teacher-ship at Waikari, and was for a year at the Normal Training College, Christchurch. Mr. Arnott was for one year and a half at the Summerhill school, near Cust, and has been stationed at Cooper's Creek since June, 1899. As a volunteer he has been a sergeant of the Cust Mounted Rifles since 1900, and was a member of the Federal Contingent which went to Sydney in January, 1901.

Cooper's Creek Creamery, Cooper's Creek. This creamery is the property of the Central Dairy Company, Limited, and was opened on the 28th of November, 1901. The building is of brick, wood and iron, and contains a four-horse power steam engine with a boiler, and an Alpha Delaval separator, which runs 5,600 revolutions per minute, and is capable of treating 400 gallons of milk per day. There were about thirty-five suppliers during the first season, and an average of 350 gallons was put through daily. During the winter months the creamery is worked only half time. The cream is sent from West Oxford station to the factory at Addington.

Milne, Charles W., Carter, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Milne was born in Oamaru in 1869, and was brought up to farming by his father. In 1882 he engaged in bushwork at Oxford, and in 1899 started carting with a dray and team of three horses. Mr Milne has a comfortable home on part of a three-acre section, which has a well grown hedge at the front and side and a clump of pretty natural bush at the back. He has been a member of the Loyal Oxford Lodge of Oddfellows since 1887, was a member of the Woodside school committee for three years, and is a member of the Cust Mounted Rifles. Mr. Milne was married, in December, 1889, to a daughter of page 508 Mr. R. Marsh, of Woodside, and has one son and three daughters.

Mr. and Mrs C. W. Milne.

Mount Oxford Sawmill (Manager, John William Rossiter), Cooper's Creek. Mr. Rossiter was born in Oxford, and since leaving school he has worked in connection with his father's sawmill, of which he was appointed manager in 1899. Mr. Rossiter was a member of the Loyal Nil Desperandum Lodge of Odd-fellows at East Oxford for three years. He was married, in 1898, to a daughter of Mr. Joseph Page, of Lyttelton—an early settler—and has one son and one daughter.

Tolputt and Clarke, photo.
Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Rossiter and Children.

Bowman, Richard, Farmer and Threshing-Machine Proprietor, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Bowman was born on the 18th of May, 1846, at Bridlington, Yorkshire, England. He commenced his career as an engineer, and served as such for two years and a half in Yorkshire. Mr. Bowman arrived in Lyttelton by the ship “Mermaid” on the 15th of February, 1864. He was farming for three years at New Brighton, and removed to Malvern, where he was similarly engaged for eight years. Mr. Bowman was afterwards, for a time, at Riccarton, where he continued his experience in the working of portable engines and threshing-machines. In 1872 he removed to West Oxford, to drive an engine at the sawmill owned by Mr. D. Sladden, and he continued in that employment for ten years. Ultimately he settled on land, and went in for modern machinery, a full plant of which he has since owned and worked for many years. Mr. Bowman farms 310 acres of freehold land in the Oxford district. He served for a time as a member of the Cooper's Creek school committee, and has been connected with the Loyal Oxford Lodge of Oddfellows since 1874. Mr. Bowman was married, in 1874, to a daughter of Mr. A. Smith, of Oxford, and has had five sons and six daughters, of whom one son and one daughter are dead.

Tolputt and Clarke, photo.
Mr. And Mrs R. Bowman.

Harle, Thomas, Farmer, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Harle was born in the parish of St. John Lee, near Hexham, Northumberland, England, in 1836. He was brought up to country life, and was farming for some time before he left England for Lyttelton by the ship “Matoaka,” in 1861. Mr. Harle was employed for nearly twenty years on the Mount Pleasant station on the Port Hills. Lyttelton. In 1882 he settled at Cooper's Creek, where he bought a property of 313 acres; twenty-five acres open, grassed, native bush; one hundred acres drained swamp, and the balance mixed grazing land. Mr. Harle has been a member of the Oxford Road Board for several years, part of the time as chrirman, and was also for many years a member of the View Hill school committee and of the View Hill library committee. In 1865 Mr. Harle was married at St. Michael's church, Christchurch, to Jane, second daughter of Mr. William Fenwick, of Kirkharle, Northumberland. Four sons and four daughters have been born of the union.

Tolputt and Clarke, photo.
Mr. T. Harle.

Jensen, Anders, Farmer, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Jensen was born in Denmark, in 1853, and brought up to a country life. He farmed for a time on his own account before coming to Wellington by the ship “Halcione.” in 1873. After four years' experience of a digger's life on the West Coast, Mr. Jensen settled in West Oxford, where he went heartily into pioneer work as a sawmiller, and also in cattle dealing, bullock driving and sheep-farming. He has been successful in most of his undertakings, and owns a fine farm of 603 acres of freehold, in three different blocks. Mr. Jensen has served on the local school committee. He is a director of the Central Dairy Company, Limited, and expects to milk forty cows in the season of 1903. Mr. Jensen was married, in 1884, to a daughter of the late Mr. F. Rossiter, of Dannevirke, and has two sons and six daughters.

Tolputt and Clarke, photo.
Mr. and Mrs A. Jensen.

Farmer, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Lilly was born in Suffolk, England, in 1839, and followed farming until he left for Lyttelton in 1865 by the ship “Glenmark.” He found employment at bushwork and road contracting, and was one of the first to settle at Woodside. Mr. Lilly at first leased his land in 1868, but has since bought it. He has twenty-five acres which he uses as a dairy farm. Mr. Lilly was for five years a member of the Woodside school committee. He was married, in 1859, to a daughter of the late page 509 Mr. A. Jones, of Rangiora, and has five sons and four daughters.

Tolputt and Clarke, photo.
Mr. and Mrs J. Lilly.

Marsh, Robert, Farmer, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Marsh was born in Nottingham, England, in 1840, and went with his parents to France, where he stayed for six years. He then returned to Derbyshire for three years, and came to Lyttelton in 1851. After being for some time in the Lincoln district he was for six years on the station of Mr. Higgins, at West Eyreton. In 1857 he went to Oxford, and became a pioneer settler at Woodside. He started farming in 1860 on twenty-five acres of bush land, which he has cleared and cultivated. A well grown border of trees, planted by himself, surrounds his pleasantly situated residence. Mr. Marsh drove the first bullock dray over Porter's Pass to Craigieburn, in 1859, and was driving on the road for three years, during which he had many difficulties to contend with, having in several places to put his load all on one side to keep the dray from tipping over. Mr. Marsh was a member of the Woodside school committee for fifteen years. He was married, in 1863, to a daughter of the late Mr. Abraham Jones, of Rangiora, and has had six sons and six daughters. One son and one daughter are dead.

Wrigglesworth and Binns, photo.
Mr. and Mrs R. Marsh.

Taylor, Robert, Farmer, Cooper's Creek. Mr. Taylor was born in County Armagh, Ireland, in 1853. He was brought up to a country life, and came to Lyttelton by the ship “Cicero,” in 1877. For a time he resided at Papanui and was afterwards at Templeton. In 1886 he removed to Cooper's Creek, with which he has since been prominently connected. With his brother-in-law, Mr. J. Vallance, he farms 169 acres of freehold and 150 acres of leasehold bush land. The farm has been greatly improved, and a considerable portion of it has been stumped. Mr. Taylor served for a number of years on the local school committee. He was married, in 1880, to a daughter of Mr. J. Vallance, of Sefton, and has had three sons and five daughters; two of the daughters have died.

Tolputt and Clarke, photo.
Mr. and Mrs R. Taylor.