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The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Canterbury Provincial District]

Ashton

Ashton.

Ashton is a school district about two miles from Ashburton on the coach road between Tinwald and Longbeach, and close to the sea coast. The land is light and well adapted for sheep, though it also grows good crops, forty bushels of wheat and fifty of oats to the acre being not uncommon. The school has an average attendance of thirty scholars. Mails leave daily for Ashburton by coach.

The Public School Ashton, is situated in the centre of the Ashton district, at the junction of the Longbeach and Graham's Roads.

Mr. Thomas Mitchell, Master of the Ashton School, was born in Perthshire, Scotland, and educated at St. Andrew's and also at Edinburgh. He arrived at Port Chalmers by the ship “Velore” in 1861. For a number of years he was on a station, and then taught for two years and a half at a school at Waikerikikeri, on Banks' Peninsula, until he became master of the Ashton public school in 1887.

Farmers.

Taylor, Thomas, Ford Creek Farm, Ashton, near Ashburton. Mr. Taylor was born in the North of Ireland in 1841, and was brought up to farming. He came to New Zealand in 1864, in the ship “Statesman,” and landed at Auckland. Shortly afterwards he went to Hokitika, where, for twelve months, he was successful in mining. He then came to Canterbury, and farmed in the Leeston district for ten years. After that he bought his present farm, which was then Crown land, in its native state. He now owns another farm in the same district, and the two together contain 650 acres. During a recent season his wheat yielded thirty-five bushels per acre, and his oats, sixty bushels. Mr. Taylor is well known as one of the most successful horse breeders in the Ashburton county, and he has won a large number of prizes at many shows. Mr. Taylor was for five years a member of the Ashburton County Council. He has been associated with the Ashburton Agricultural and Pastoral Association since its inception, and was its president for a year. He took an active part in promoting the Ashton library; he is a member of the local cemetery board, and has also been chairman of the Ashton school committee for several years. Mr. Taylor was married, in 1871, to Miss Gilmour, of Glasgow, and they have three sons and eight daughters.

Mitchell, photo.Mr. T. Mitchell.

Mitchell, photo.
Mr. T. Mitchell.

Weston, Alfred, Farmer, Beach Road, Ashton. Mr. Weston was born in 1840, and educated at Stanwell Moor, near Staines, Middlesex, England. He spent five years at sea on board the British man-of-war “Arrogant,” and also on the “Black Prince,” the second ironclad launched by Great Britain. While in the navy he visited many ports in Africa and the Mediterranean. After buying his discharge he joined the merchant service, and was in one of Mr. Money Wigram's ships, the “Yorkshire,” trading between Melbourne and London, and was afterwards in the ship “Blandina Dudley,” trading between Callao and Genoa, New York, and London. He came to Lyttelton in the ship “Canterbury” on the 17th of June, 1865, and after visiting the West Coast, he returned to Canterbury, where he worked for three years at Westerfield. For four years he was in partnership with Mr. W. Streeter, as a threshing machine proprietor. On retiring from that business, he removed to Ashton, and purchased 123 acres from the Government, to which he afterwards added another area of 101 acres; and, at a later date he bought 126 acres from Mr. J. C. N. Grigg. He now has 350 acres of land, which extends to the coast line. Mr. Weston was married at Tai Tapu, in 1875, to Miss E. Streeter, daughter of a very old colonist, who came to New Zealand from Adelaide in 1858, and has one son and four daughters.