Pigeon Bay lies to the south of Lyttelton Heads, and is in the county of Akaroa. It has a post, telegraph and money order office, and a population of about 360 persons. The district is devoted to dairy farming, and the production of cheese, and is connected thrice a week by steamer with Lyttelton; distance, twenty-one miles. A coach from Akaroa meets the steamer, and travellers to and from Lyttelton find this the quickest and pleasantest route. Pigeon Bay is one of the historic pioneer settlements of New Zealand, and was first settled in 1843 by Messrs Hay and Sinclair; Mr. Hay taking the head of the bay or Pigeon Bay proper, and Mr. Sinclair what is now called Holmes' Bay, a bay and valley on the west side, about five miles inland from Pigeon Bay heads. Mr. Sinclair sold out to the late Mr. George Holmes, the maker of the Lyttelton-Christchurch tunnel. The estate, about 5000 acres in extent, is now (1903) owned by Mr. G. G. Holmes, a nephew of the first proprietor. Mr. T. O. Hay, second son of the late Mr. E. Hay, is now owner of the Pigeon Bay estate. Mr. E. Hay and his family stuck to their holding, in the face of many difficulties, and kept adding to it for many years, and now, the estate, named “Annandale,” comprises about 8000 acres. The Pigeon Bay road district contains about 21,000 acres, which includes McIntosh and Decanter Bays, both of which were early settlements. All the different parts of the present Pigeon Bay page 621 road district sent away large quantities of sawn timber, posts and rails, and firewood, in the early days, especially from 1850 till 1875. The next largest estate to Mr. Holmes's is that of Mr. Menzies, about 3000 acres; and the other properties range from 1200 or 1300 down to twenty acres. Cocksfoot grass seed has been a most important factor in the prosperity of the residents of Pigeon Bay. Commencing in the late sixties, the industry increased yearly till 1874, which was the first big year—the first year with a phenomenal yield of grass seed. The shipments for years past have been from 8000 to 13,000 sacks. There are two schools in the district, a church, used by both Anglicans and Presbyterians, a store, and a business which combines blascksmithing and wheelwrighting.

Pigeon Bay.

Hay, Robert Steel, Farmer, Pigeon Bay. Mr. Hay has been engaged in farming on Banks' Peninsula for upwards of thirty years, broken by an interval of five years, passed in the North Island. He was born in Ayrshire, Scotland, in 1853, and is a son of Mr. Robert Hay, of Kilmarnock. Mr. Hay was educated at private schools, and was trained as a farmer. He arrived at Lyttelton towards the close of 1871, and shortly afterwards went to Pigeon Bay, where he lived for a few years at “Annandale,” the well known estate of his uncle, Mr. Ebenzer Hay. Subsequently he went to the North Island, where he remained five years. In 1880 he returned to Pigeon Bay, where he became manager of a large station, the property of the late Mr. Thomas MacIntosh. Two years later Mr. Hay visited Scotland, where he spent twelve months. On his return he leased a run at the Akaroa Heads, and carried it on till 1895, when he leased his present property in Pigeon Bay. Mr. Hay has been a member of the local read board for five years, and is a prominent office-bearer in the Pigeon Bay Presbyterian church. He was married, in 1895, to Miss E. Simpson, of Dunedin.

Standish and Preece, photo.
Mr. R. S. Hay.

McKay, George, Farmer, Melness Farm, Pigeon Bay.—Mr. McKay was born in Fifeshire, Scotland, in 1844. When two years of age he accompanied his parents to Sutherlandshire, and came out to New Zealand in 1859, by the ship “Cresswell.” His father bought the first part of “Melness” from the Crown in 1860, but it was subsequently added to by other purchases, and the property now consists of 321 acres. At the outset the selection, like most of the land on the Peninsula, was covered with heavy timber, which provided the material for buildings and fences. Mr. McKay grows grass seed, makes cheese, and fattens sheep and cattle for the market. Of cattle, he prefers Shorthorns and the Holstein-Frisian breed, and he finds three-quarter bred sheep the most profitable. He has formed a small flock of pure bred Leicesters by the purchase of a number of ewes, bred by Mr. Threlkeld, and he has also a flock of pure bred Lincolns. Mr. McKay's homestead overlooks Pigeon Bay, and is sheltered on the south-west by well grown trees. There is a small lake on the estate, and trout have been liberated in it. Mr. McKay has served as a member of the road board, school committee, and Farmers' Association. He was married, in 1873, to Miss Brodie, a native of the Orkneys, and has four sons and four daughters.

Mr. G. McKay's Residence and Family.

Pitcaithly, James, J.P., Farmer, “Rockbound Villa,” Pigeon Bay.—Mr. Pitcaithly is a son of the late Mr. James Pitcaithly, and was born in Glasgow, in 1853. He accompanied his parents to the Colony in 1860 in the ship “William Miles.” The family settled at Okain's Bay for three years, and then removed to Pigeon Bay, where Mr. Pitcaithly has ever since followed pastoral pursuits. He is a member of the school committee, and secretary and treasurer of the Presbyterian Church. He was made a Justice of the Peace in 1897.

Scott, Eli, Farmer, Pigeon Bay.—Mr. Scott was born in Yorkshire, in 1839, and during his early years he worked with his father in the manufacture of cloth. Before he left Home he learnt the brick and tile trade. In 1859, he came out to New Zealand in the ship “Zealandia,” on that vessel's second voyage. For the first two years he settled at Christchurch. He bought his firs' piece of land at the Malvern Hills, but sold it, and then bought the farm he now lives on. Since then, he has increased his area of freehold to 357 acres. Mr. Scott did not escape the gold fever of the early days, and in 1861 he tried his luck at the Dunstan, and in 1865 on the West Coast. Though his farm necessarily requires a great deal of attention, Mr. Scott finds time for public affairs. He is a member of the Akaroa County Council, chairman of the Pigeon Bay Road Board, and of the Pigeon Bay main and side schools, chairman of the Wainui Dairy Factory, a director of the German Bay Dairy Factory, and an active member of the Agricultural and Pastoral Association and the Farmers' Association. Mr. Scott was married, in 1857, to Miss Ellis, and has eight sons and four daughters.

Mr. E. Scott.

White, A., Farmer, “Seaview,” Pigeon Bay.—Mr. White was born in 1835 in the North of Ireland. He left home in November, 1862, in the ship “Chariot of Fame,” and landed early in 1863. Some years after he bought his present farm of 115 acres, and settled on it in 1871. It was then all covered with dense bush, but it is now all cleared and highly improved, with a good dwelling-house, garden and orchard, outbuildings, and fences, in first-rate order. Mr. White devotes his farm to the production of grass seed and cheese. He has been a member of the road board. Mr. White was married, in 1862, to Miss Kerr, and has four sons and six daughters.

Mr. A. White's Residence and Family.

Mr. Thomas Kay, sometime of Pigeon Bay, was a native of England. For many years he was engaged as a clerk in the Privy Council office, and was afterwards coach driving in North Wales. He arrived in Lyttelton in 1859, and shortly afterwards settled at Pigeon Bay. There he entered into partnership with Mr. Alexander Montgomery, and conducted a farm and a general store. Mr. Montgomery subsequently got into difficulties, the partnership was dissolved, and Mr. Kay continued as a farmer until his death in 1878.

Mr. G. W. Marshall, Old Colonist, of Pigeon Bay, was born in North Leith, Scotland, in 1821, and was apprenticed to the shipbuilding trade. He subsequently entered the East India Company's service, in which he remained six years. On the 3rd of March, 1852, he landed at Lyttelton in the ship “Samarang.” Soon after his arrival he purchased a small vessel named the “Caledonia,” with which he traded round the coast of New Zealand. In 1854, he settled at Pigeon Bay, where he commenced shipbuilding, and built the vessels “Canterbury” and “Midlothian.” He started the first sawmill in 1857, and in 1861 he went to Otago, and sailed a vessel up the Waihola Lake for the purpose of carrying stores towards the diggings. Subsequently he entered into a contract with the Otago Provincial Government to remove snags from the Clutha and other rivers, to facilitate their navigation. In 1864, he returned to Pigeon Bay and began dairying, to which he added the business of a wood merchant. He afterwards visited Scotland, and went Home in the ship “Glenmark.” Two years were spent in the Old Country, and Mr. Marshall then returned to New Zealand by the ship “E. P. Bouverie.” During his residence at Pigeon Bay, Mr. Marshall served on the road board fourteen years, and also acted as the board's surveyor and clerk. He died in 1873, much lamented as a most honourable man of business, a man of sterling integrity, and a true friend.

The Late Mr. G. W. Marshall.

Miss C. Marshall, sometime of “Seafield,” Pigeon Bay, was a sister of Mr. G. W. Marshall, and, accompanied by her sister, came to the Colony in 1855, by the ship “Grassmere.” Miss Marshall settled with her brother at Pigeon Bay. “Seafield” estate consisted of 800 acres, and was partly devoted to grass seed growing, for which it was admirably adapted; and there was a good flock of long-woolled sheep. Miss Marshall was descended, on her mother's side, from Wylie of Kincardine-on-Forth, and her father was a man of means and of Norman descent. She died about two years ago.

The Late Miss C. Marshall.

Mr. James Pitcaithly, Old Colonist, arrived at Lyttelton in 1860, and settled at Pigeon Bay about three years afterwards. He was born in Fifeshire, Scotland, in 1824, and in his early years he served in the Railway page 624 Department at Crabbridge. During twelve of the years he resided at Pigeon Bay he was a member of the road board and the school committee. He was married, in June, 1852, and left a widow and family when he died in 1886. Mrs Pitcaithly died in 1899, aged seventy-five years.

The Late Mr. J. Pitcaithly.

The Late Mrs J. Pitcaithly.

Mr. William Webb came to the Colony in 1846. He was a carpenter by trade, and settled first at Akaroa, where he built a house for Mr. Rhodes; he also built the homestead at Flea Bay, and then removed to Pigeon Bay. He took up the first land at Okain's in 1851, and purchased cattle imported from Tasmania in 1852, but could not get them to Okain's till the track was cut in 1854; and they were running in Island Bay for two years. From these cattle descended many of the herds of the bays. Mr. Webb was too busy to take much part in public affairs, but he served on the road board. He died in 1879, and Mrs Webb also died during the same year.

The Late Mr. W. Webb.