AN ESSAY (or attempt)
IN
THE DESCRIPTION OF
THE HISTORY
OF
PORT MOLYNEUX
HUMBLY DEDICATED TO
THOSE THAT ARE GONE
AND ESPECIALLY
AND ESPECIALLY
THOSE WHO DANCED AT THE HALL
UNTIL MORNING LIGHT SAW THEM HOME
CONTENTS
Introduction
1 The Early Years
2 A Flourishing Port
3 Decline
4 The Great Flood
6 Scandal!
7 Holidays and Wars
With thanks to: the original writers of the material. The team at "Papers Past." The friends who have encouraged me.
INTRODUCTION
This is an experiment. I am using the technique I have developed to compile biographies from historic newspaper stories to try and compile the story of a location. This being the first time I have tried to do this, I don't know if it will work. Fortunately, being part of a blog, it isn't set in stone - or on paper - so I can correct mistakes and omissions. On the subject of mistakes, the writers of times gone had different opinions to those of today. Those opinions are presented but not necesssarily endorsed by myself.
Port Molyneux, Chapter 1: The Early Years
The place now known as Port Molyneux was discovered by Lieutenant James Cook, RN, in 1770. Sydney Parkinson, draughtsman to Joseph Banks, described it thus: "On the 4th March, 1770, after having been beat about with adverse winds for nearly a week, by the favour of a breeze from the north we again got sight of land, which tended away to the south–west and appeared to be of great extent. We had a continual rolling swell from the south–west, and saw the appearance of a harbour which we named Moulineux's Harbour, after the name of the master of our ship."
The discovery of "Molineux's Harbour" would have been news to the local inhabitants, who had discovered it themselves some time before.
The "modern" history of Port Molyneux as believed by this author (and, after a quick trawl through the internet, most other people) is that the Port was founded just before the Otago gold rush, flourished during the rush and died after the great Clutha River flood of 1878 broke through the long sand spit at the shore end and formed the current mouth. The truth, it turns out, is slightly different.
THE SOUTHERN MAORI.
STRAY PAPERS.
Written for the Otago Daily Times,
By H. Beattie.
XXXI. — The KAITAHU INVASION. (excerpt)
What his aged friends have told me is that Waitai used to make excursions inland, killing off the peaceful Waitaha, who then existed in considerable numbers, having been left unmolested by the Katimamoe. The bad example he set the latter and the effect of evil company are to be seen in the case of the famous Katimamoe chief Rakitauneke, who actually joined Waitai in a drive against the inoffensive inhabitants of the Port Molyneux district. The fighting here is remarkable, inasmuch as it caused a wholesale superseding of the old Waitaha place-names and the bestowing of a new batch marking incidents of the fighting.
The fighting began down at the Nuggets Point in the early morning and rolled northward. There is a cave near the Nuggets called Te-ana-o-tuwhakapau, and it was associated with the conflict, being named after one of the combatants. The huge cliff behind the lighthouse was called after a chief Taumata-o-te-rakipokia, and so was Campbell’s Point, its name being Taumata-kotare, while the creek there bears another warrior’s name Owaea, the reef of it being Te-tau-o-waea. Hay’s Gap runs through a big rock on the seaside and on top of one side is some hardy vegetation and a spring, and here a woman named Waitoriki was killed. One of my accounts says she was the mother of Waitai, but an old genealogy gives the name as that of the wife of Rakitauneke. In either case she was a lady of distinction, and both the spring and the gap have since borne the name Puna-a-Waitoriki.
The fighting in this confined space was very fierce, but the death of Waitoriki brought a breathing space, and the Waitaha hurriedly retreated northward, their foes soon following after. One of the Waitaha lingering behind to act as a rearguard to cover the retreat and to spy out what the enemy was doing was caught and killed at Cottage Point, since then known after his name, Te-awa-mokihi.
As dusk was falling the Kaitahu-Kati-mamoe force caught another Waitaha chief who was scouting and reconnoitring their advance, and they cooked him at the picturesque headland where is now situated the Maori Cemetery near the Reomoana School, his heart serving as a special delicacy for the lenders of his foes. That spot has since borne tho name Makatu, which was his name, but its full designation is Te-tunuka-o-te-manawa-O-Makatu (the roasting of the heart of Makatu). Nearby is the site of an ancient whare where a bone mere, partly burned, was dug up and given to Captain Bollons of the Hinemoa. The next point of interest is the creek called Whawhapo (groping at night), which received its name because some of tho holder spirits resumed hostilities during the night, and had to feel round for the enemy. Next morning the pursuit of the unfortunate Waitaha was resumed, and a chief was killed at Jenkinson’s Creek, since known as Wairawaru after him. At the point known as Tuapohia the man of that name was caught. He had smeared himself with scent extracted from a vine that grew at Papanui, Cape Saunders, and, becoming detached from the rest, he secreted himself, but the scent betrayed him, and he was captured. The survivors scattered and fighting ended. One of the leaders of the raiding force was Rakitamau, and his name was applied to the hill behind Kaka Point. It will be noticed that a dozen place-names came into existence through this fighting, but I was unable to secure any of the Waitaha names they displaced. -Otago Daily Times, 3/1/1931.
THE SOUTHERN MAORI.
STRAY PAPERS.
Written for the Otago Daily Times. By H. Beattie.
XXXV. OLDEN OTAGO VILLAGES. (excerpt)
The collector was more fortunate at Kaka Point, where the Maranuku Maori reserve is situated. One of my aged Maori friends spelt the name of the reserve Maranu-uku. Some hold that it is a genuine old Maori place-name; others say it is merely the Maori way of saying Molyneux. While it is probable that the Maori would transform Molyneux into Maranuku, there is extant some slight evidence that it is an old name, but I shall leave it a moot point. Not far distant from the present reserve is the old mouth of the Molyneux River, and on its south side was situated the very ancient village of Murikauhaka a village which was inhabited until after the white settlers came, but of which no trace now remains except the whare-eites. An old man considered that muri meant "behind” and kauhaka “a bay,’’ and that the situation was the origin of the name. He took me to the spot and showed me the sites of the wharekura and the dwellings, the canoe landing and the unu-tupapaku (burial ground), where his father, a brother, and a sister had been buried.
Another old man mentioned that Murikauhaka was “e kaika tahito” (an old village), and another of my informants remarked: “Behind the old pilot station there is no trace of the old kaik except some big stones known as Hau-maukoroa, and all smeared with red marks where the ochre was ground up to make red paint. The old kaik was called Murikauhaka, but the burial ground had a different name which I forget.”
The point on which the old pilot station stands is called Tu-apohia by the Maoris, a name given to it during some fighting 250 years ago. The rise behind it bears the name Ka-oriori, which was originally the name of a lump of greenstone brought from Westland by canoe and broken up here. Then we come to the Wai-rawaru, or Jenkinson’s Creek, a small bay called Huirapa, a tribal name, and then to the jutting Kaka Point, known formerly as Parau-riki. The rise behind this point bore the name Rakitamau, and near the road across it a small trickling spring was called Waitaha, a tribal name. Three of these names were revived since the pakeha came, when a garden was called Hakitamau, another Huirapa, and Henderson’s boarding bouse was called Waitaha. Near Inglis’s house behind Kaka Point is a place called Pau-upoko (hit the head), and this was once a celebrated spot where the Maoris dug up fine edible fernroot.
The name of the spot where the Kaka Point store now stands is O-tiwha. The word “tiwha” means a patch put on a poha or kelp bag which has sprung a leak, the patch consisting of a shell or stone or bit of wood so skilfully affixed that the bag can again be inflated without loss of air.
Crossing the Whawhapo (pronounced Fafa-po) Creek, we are on Maori ground. The rise where stands Potiki’s house was called Tiharua by one informant, but a better-informed elder said it was correctly Te Harua (the scab). The full name of the section, he added, was Te-harua-nui-a-taupo, and it was named in memory of the tipuna (progenitor) of that name who was a predecessor of the tribe called Kati-huirapa, and a very far-back-ancestor of Mrs Potiki.
A patch of sand lying between the whares and the Karoro Creek was planted under Government supervision with marram grass some years ago. The Maoris called it O-marama after a chief named Marama, who was a tipuna of the late Korako Terehe.
Our attention is now drawn to the school standing on Makatu point. The extraordinary fact about this school is that the Education Board officials coined a name, “Reomoana” for it when, by inquiry, they had a choice of numerous genuine Maori names within a radius of a mile of its site. About a mile behind Whawhapo is the flat known as Tuapapa; it was once densely bushed, but is now denuded of trees. The hill which is now the Port Molyneux Cemetery bore the ancient name Puketi (Cabbage-tree Hill) and the flat behind this rise towards Tuapapa has the modern name Tiniko. The whole ridge behind Port Molyneux is named after an olden chief, Tamahika.
The name of the rocks scattered along the shore under the Maori ground seems to be forgotten, but a rock well out in the bay is now called Makariri, after Wilsher's Maori wife, because she was a splendid swimmer, and was in the habit of swimming out to it. My oldest informant considered that its correct name was Tiko-moana, but another said this was a reef nearer the shore. Another rock further up the coast is named Honekai, after the chief of that name. The rocks in front of the bathing sheds were called Uru-tane (gathered by men), and there is an interesting tradition that the name was bestowed because of the gathering of a heap of mussels by a party of men. -Otago Daily Times, 31/1/1931.
THE SOUTHERN MAORI.
STRAY PAPERS.
Written for the Otago Daily Times. By H. Beattie.
XLII. — REVIEW OF FIGHTS AND APPROXIMATE DATES. (excerpt)
A number of years later an outbreak of trouble occurred in the Port Molyneux district, but what caused it I cannot say. The inhabitants of this ill-fated locality had had a trying time on many a previous occasion, but it is said they were practically wiped out this time, their place being taken in later years by those who drifted in from other parts. The fighting or killing started at Murikauhaka at the old mouth of the Molyneux, and then the scene of action shifted to Whawhapo. The leading men of the aggressors are said to have been Taikawa, Pokohiwi, Tamahika, and Waitai (second chief of this name). Tamahika chased a Katimamoe man for several miles and finally caught and slew him on the long ridge called Taukohu. Behind Parauriki (Kaka Point) there is a rise called Rakitamau, and here dwelt Te Hika-paki, a Katimamoe woman, whom Pokohiwi seized and carried captive to Pukekura, where she became his wife. Taikawa had cause to remember this armed excursion, for his little son Taita died during it and was buried on top of Hill above Wilsher Bay, and the top of that hill is now known as Taita after him. It was Taikawa who prevailed on the combatants to cease fighting, but there was only a remnant of the district folk left by that time. -Otago Daily Times, 21/3/1931.
THE SOUTHERN MAORI.
STRAY PAPERS.
Written for the Otago Daily Times By H. Beattie.
XLIII — SOUTH OTAGO. (excerpt)
Cannibal Bay’s name was Orakiutuhia and its point Te-rae-oraki-utuhia. Sandy Bay was Te-one-o-pirias and the boat landing south of it and also the hill was Pirino. The point north of it was Te-ra-tunuku, and Roaring Bay was called Haka-paraoa. The lighthouse hill at Nuggets was Taumata-o-te-rakipokia. The cave on the north side of the Nuggets lighthouse was known as Te-ana-o-katiwairua and was lived in by Te Rakipokia and his wife Hakinikini for some time many generations ago, but I do not know any particular story about that cave.
“Lying off Nuggets Point are about 20 of the islets and rocks called ‘nuggets’ by the whalers. They all had Maori names, but I only know four of them. One which had a cave was called Te-una-puta, another frequented by shags was called Pae-koau, three small ones on the north side were together called Makunui and formed a noted seal resort. The small nugget furthest out to sea was called Porokawa or Porokaua, and beyond it was a famous fishing ground. [Note: He drew me a rough plan of the 20 nuggets,] The landing place now used by the fishermen was called Te-matau, the point below it was Tawhiri and the hill behind it was also called Tawhiri. Hay’s Gap was called Puna-wai-toriki, and the hill behind Campbell’s Point was Taumata-kotare, Campbell’s Point was O-waea and the reef that runs seaward from it was called Te-tau-o-waea.
“The name the pakeha calls Ahuriri should rightly be Tauhuriri, and the point next to Wilsher’s Bay was Te-awa-mokihi to us, but is now called Cottage Point. Once two boats were coming up the coast and Tuhawaiki’s boat struck a sunken rock off Te-awa-mokihi Point, but managed to get off and landed safely. The other boat, the name of which I forget, went on and was wrecked at the bar of the Molyneux River and all her crew were drowned. Tuhawaiki’s boat was known as Kai-pirihi, which means that a codfish was not taking the bait properly, and ever since his escape from destruction in that storm that sunken rock or reef has been known as Kaipirihi.
"Wilsher’s Bay was called Te-karoro, and Fisherman’s Hill near it was generally given this name also. The Taukohu Ridge runs from Karoro Creek to Omaru. Kaika-te-ra is a wooded hill east of Mount Omaru and south of Romahapa township. The name means ‘a dwelling facing the sun,’ and William Hay built a house under it and called it by this name. The hill now called Mount Omaru by the pakeha was called Tipua-marakai by the Maori after the famous Katimamoe fighter whose name is usually shortened to Marakai. Romahapa is perhaps a name brought down from the North Island by some white man, as our name for that stream was O-maru, it having been named after Maru, a Kaitahu chief.
“Although there is a point near Wilsher’s Bay called Tauhuriri, this is also the correct name of a hill near Macintosh’s place at Jacob’s Hill. The white man sometimes calls it Ahuriri. The hill at George Wilson’s near Glenomaru was called Oraki-matua-nui, and another hill near was Toheraki, a word which means ‘arguing the point,’ while the hill now called Thickwood was formerly called by us Ka-umu-o-kahauki because fires were lighted to cook a slain chief and some of his men. A hill near Glenomaru was called Opawa, one further south was Timu-patoka, one at the seacoast was Taikawa, and two behind Port Molyneux were Purehuatahi and Puketi. -Otago Daily Times, 28/2/1931.
In January, 1830, an American sea captain, trader and explorer named Benjamin Morrell visited Port Molyneux. His ghost-written accounts of his travels have been criticised and disputed in recent times, many of his claims being proven false or inaccurate. His diary entries are presented below, with that caution:
Jan. 8th. -- On Friday, the 8th of January, we left Stewart's Isle, with a fine breeze from south-south-west, and fair weather, and at 10, A. M., were close in with what is called Molyneux's Harbour, on the south-east side of New-Zealand proper; but instead of a "deep and spacious harbour," as reported by its discoverer, we found nothing but a small bend in the land, between two low points about three miles across, and one mile deep.
We soon had a friendly visit from about fifty natives, who came on board without the least hesitation, and opened an intercourse with us without reserve. We made them some trifling presents, which appeared to give them much pleasure. In return, they gave me a pressing invitation to visit their little village, at the foot of a valley near the head of the bay.
The village at the head of Molyneux's Harbour, which is called by the natives Tavaimoo, contains twenty-eight huts, of miserable accommodations. The best among them are shaped like our barns, being about ten feet high, thirty feet in length, and twelve or fifteen in breadth. The inside is strongly constructed, and well fastened together by osiers or supple vines. They are painted, generally, with red sides and black roofs, using the same kind of material as that with which they daub their faces. At one end is a small hole, just large enough to admit one person, stooping low; this serves as a door; while another hole considerably smaller, answers the double purpose of chimney and window.
Few of their habitations, however, are constructed in this luxurious manner. The most of them are less than half this size, and are seldom more than four or five feet in height. They are framed of young trees, and thatched with long coarse grass. Their household furniture consists of a few small baskets or bags, in which they deposit their fishing-gear, and other trifles. They squat down in the middle of these huts, around the fire, and often sleep all night in this manner, without any other covering than what they have worn during the day. -"A Narrative of Four Voyages to the South Sea..." 1841.
As a known port, Port Molyneux was visited by the whalers operating off the southern South Island, four men from the schooner "The Brothers" being reported killed by local inhabitants in the early 1820s. The shore station was at the southern end of Wilshire Bay By the late 1830s whaling had ceased in the area. It is difficult to assess population numbers of those days but there seems to have been a dramatic decrease in the Maori population of the area between Morrell's visit and the next account of the Port. This era coincides with the disastrous epidemic of measles among a people with no natural immunity to such illnesses.
Thomas Jones, a wine and spirit merchant of Sydney, also made extensive purchases and on January 7,1840, obtained two hundred and fifty six acres in the Molyneux district, a block some twenty miles square which Tuhawaiki disposed of for "thirty pounds sterling money of Great Britain and other goods," together with a twenty pound annuity. Although Jones took no steps to survey or subdivide the original block, some serious attempt was made to develop the land for settlement. A syndicate was formed in Sydney and plans for establishing a colony at Molyneux Bay were at once proceeded with...There was need for haste for, on January 14, Governer Gipps of New South Wales (and, at the time, New Zealand) issued a proclamation forbidding future sales except to the Crown...
Thus eventuated on February 15, 1840 - a full month after Governor Gipp's proclamation - the most amazing land transfer in the history of the south when Wentworth and Jones signed an agreement with Tuhawaiki, Karetai and three subordinate chiefs, Kaikoarare, Taikawa and Poneke, all of whom had arrived in Sydney on January 31. -History of Otago, A H McLintock
This transaction was, as far as Jones and Wentworth were concerned, the buying of the entirety of the South Island of New Zealand, except for areas already sold to others. This was a gamble on the Australians' side. They were hoping for a title to be ratified by the new regime which was expected to arrive in New Zealand shortly. It was not.
On June 9, at Ruapuke Island, Tuhawaiki signed the Treaty of Waitangi which had been brought there by the HMS Herald.
In 1840 a small party of four settlers arrived to take up land in the area. A large amount of land had been bought by Thomas Jones, a Sydney merchant, from the Chief Tuhawaiki. This transaction, as many others, was annulled under the auspices of the Treaty of Waitangi which forbade selling of Maori land to agents other than the Crown.
One was a Mr George Willsher (sometimes spelt "Wiltshire") after whom the bay is named.
On Monday morning early Mary Anne Terehe, better known as Makariri, died at the Kaika near Port Molynoux. She had been ill for rather more than a while. In her younger days Makariri saw something of the world, as she went with a sea captain to Sydney and other ports. When they returned to Port Molyneux, Makariri and another woman were sent ashore to wash clothes, and instead of returning to the vessel they concealed themselves in the bush, until the vessel, which waited some time for them, sailed away. At another time she distinguished herself by protecting some sailors who had landed at Tokata Point, between Port Molyneux and the Nuggets, and who would have been killed and eaten had not Makariri put her mantle over them, and so prevented anyone from touching them. Makariri was the daughter of Terehe, a great chief, and therefore had considerable influence with her tribe. When an important person wished to protect a prisoner from violence, the way was to throw his or her garment over him and he was thus to all intents and purposes Tapu (holy). In the bush at Tokata Point there are several skulls just beneath the ground. Evidently some other victims have been demolished there, having no friendly Native to intercede for them Makariri has been very kind to Ben Rakitapu's children since their mother died, and has been true to her womanly instincts, although childless herself. The man who is leader in the meeting at present being held at Waitaki is brother to Makariri. The funeral took place on Wednesday afternoon, when the chief at the Kaika, Haimona Rakitapu, read the service in Maori. -Clutha Leader, 13/3/1885.
Willsher and Russell (excerpt)
Romance found its way into the lives of the new settlers, as it is claimed that but for the intervention of Mata Makariri, the Maori chieftainess, Willsher and Russell might have been killed by the Maoris and possibly served up at a cannibal feast. Willsher married Makariri, and their life together has been woven into the legends of Early Otago. She is reported to have possessed an ungovernable temper, and in her rages she frequently threw about the pots, pans, and furniture of their home. On the other hand, she was ill-treated, by Willsher, and to escape from his beatings it is said that she would swim out to a rock known at Makariri’s rock, where she waited until his temper had subsided. The couple had no children, but they adopted the eldest son of the chief Haimoni Rakiraki, also known as Ben Lakitapu, and between the two foster-parents, the boy had a very Spartan upbringing. Many tales are recounted of the prowess of Makariri as a swimmer, and she is credited with once swimming a distance of a mile in a heavy tide holding a lighted pipe in her mouth to win a bet. George Willsher appears to have been a tall, powerful man, with a good education and a pleasant manner when he chose. He conformed fairly closely to the trader and whaler type of those days. Russell was a quieter more resolute person, who had once followed the trade of a stonemason. He never became reconciled to the conduct of Willsher in marrying a Native woman and then treating her so badly, and relations between the two settlers became strained until Willsher deserted his wife and finally went to England to live.
No account of Willsher’s activities can be complete without a reference to his famous bull, which indeed has won for itself a permanent place in our history. The solitary cow which survived the rough wintry passage in the Portenia gave birth to a fine bull calf not long after she was brought ashore. It is stated that from these two animals there sprung a herd of 600 cattle, and by 1855 Willsher was sending his beasts as far afield as Clydevale to graze. In his old age the bull became a great roamer, and wandered off to Wyndnam where he died, his remains being found there and identified by brand marks. In 1844, when Frederick Tuckett, the New Zealand Company’s surveyor, made his preliminary survey in connection with the selection of a suitable site for the Free Church settlement, he found Willsher and Russell well established on their holdings. He did not treat them with the deference, however, that he accorded Johnny Jones at Waikouaiti. On the contrary, when he advised Daniel Wakefield, the agent of the company, that he had decided on the land that should be acquired for the settlement, he advocated that these squatters should be evicted, as they had no claim to the land at the Molyneux other than that they represented a Sydney firm. This view was not adopted by John Jermyn Symonds, the agent for the Government, who after investigation, found that the settlers were justly entitled to the land they had acquired from the Natives. He recommended that their claims should be noted for favourable consideration by the Government, and as a result Crown grants were issued to them in due course. -Evening Star, 28/6/1940.
Frederick Tuckett, conducting his survey of the geography and resources of the Otago area for the proposed Scottish Free Church colony, was dropped off by the brig Deborah at Moeraki in April, 1844. He engaged local guides and walked to what is now known as Otago Harbour. There he met the Deborah again and walked further to the mouth of the Molyneux.
As a known port, Port Molyneux was visited by the whalers operating off the southern South Island, four men from the schooner "The Brothers" being reported killed by local inhabitants in the early 1820s. The shore station was at the southern end of Wilshire Bay By the late 1830s whaling had ceased in the area. It is difficult to assess population numbers of those days but there seems to have been a dramatic decrease in the Maori population of the area between Morrell's visit and the next account of the Port. This era coincides with the disastrous epidemic of measles among a people with no natural immunity to such illnesses.
Thomas Jones, a wine and spirit merchant of Sydney, also made extensive purchases and on January 7,1840, obtained two hundred and fifty six acres in the Molyneux district, a block some twenty miles square which Tuhawaiki disposed of for "thirty pounds sterling money of Great Britain and other goods," together with a twenty pound annuity. Although Jones took no steps to survey or subdivide the original block, some serious attempt was made to develop the land for settlement. A syndicate was formed in Sydney and plans for establishing a colony at Molyneux Bay were at once proceeded with...There was need for haste for, on January 14, Governer Gipps of New South Wales (and, at the time, New Zealand) issued a proclamation forbidding future sales except to the Crown...
Thus eventuated on February 15, 1840 - a full month after Governor Gipp's proclamation - the most amazing land transfer in the history of the south when Wentworth and Jones signed an agreement with Tuhawaiki, Karetai and three subordinate chiefs, Kaikoarare, Taikawa and Poneke, all of whom had arrived in Sydney on January 31. -History of Otago, A H McLintock
This transaction was, as far as Jones and Wentworth were concerned, the buying of the entirety of the South Island of New Zealand, except for areas already sold to others. This was a gamble on the Australians' side. They were hoping for a title to be ratified by the new regime which was expected to arrive in New Zealand shortly. It was not.
On June 9, at Ruapuke Island, Tuhawaiki signed the Treaty of Waitangi which had been brought there by the HMS Herald.
In 1840 a small party of four settlers arrived to take up land in the area. A large amount of land had been bought by Thomas Jones, a Sydney merchant, from the Chief Tuhawaiki. This transaction, as many others, was annulled under the auspices of the Treaty of Waitangi which forbade selling of Maori land to agents other than the Crown.
“In April, 1840, I joined Mr. Jones in the purchase of the Brig ‘Portenia’ for the purpose of establishing a settlement upon the land purchased of the Natives, and we embarked on board that Vessel a number of Settlers consisting of a Surveyor and builder, Superintendent, an Agriculturist, Carpenters, Sawyers and a Ploughman. We also shipped on board the Brig a full sized whale–boat, twenty–seven cows, one bull, six working bullocks, drays, harness, ploughs, harrows and other farming implements. Houses in frame, pitsaws, Carpenters’ tools for erecting houses, together with stores of every description necessary for eighteen months’ consumption; and pigs, goats, poultry, grain, potatoes and garden seeds, and, in fact, everything necessary for the use of first inhabitants forming a New Settlement.
“The Settlers were landed with much expense and trouble at Molyneux Bay in June, 1840, and the Brig discharged her cargo. She afterwards returned to Sydney, where we sent her a second voyage to Molyneux with a further eighteen months’ supply of stores for the Settlers.” -Edward Hunt, letter, 10/10/1846.
One was a Mr George Willsher (sometimes spelt "Wiltshire") after whom the bay is named.
A SCRAP OF EARLY HISTORY.
(Southland Times.) A copy of a letter has been handed to us, for publication by a gentleman from Sydney at present in Invercargill. It may be interesting to our readers at this day, having been written 49 years ago, and was probably the first letter written by a settler in Otago. The epistle was evidently written with a pointed stick and a dark red fluid, probably the juice of the tutu berry. It is very much faded, many of the words being quite illegible. The Mr Cohen to whom the letter was written was afterwards the manager or other officer in a bank in Melbourne, where he died many years ago. He never came to New Zealand: had he done so, and brought the rabbits with him as advised, what a deplorable condition the country would have been in when the first Scottish settlers arrived! The writer of the letter was engaged by the person to whom it was addressed to settle upon and impreve several thousand acres of land at the mouth of the Molyneux river (Molyneux Bay) purchased, from the New South Wales Government early in 1840. For this the writer was to receive certain moneys, and also a portion of the land so improved. Owing to the conditions not being fulfilled neither of the received his land; the claim being disallowed by the Land Commissioners at Auckland a few years after, subsequent to the control of matters pertaining to land being transferred from Sydney to Auckland in 1841. The writer of the letter was killed by natives at one of the South Sea Islands in 184l. Some of the foregoing particulars, so says our informant, were obtained from an aged lady resident in Sydney, the widow of one of the persons spoken of in the letter; a lady under whose hospitable roof and encouragement a portion of the opera "Maritana" was written and who arrived in Sydney at a time when Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, and Auckland were not yet in existence. The letter was written before envelopes were invented, being a double sheet of paper folded up, into letter shape and sealed with wax.
There were originally four persons who settled at Molyneux Bay, bringing with them the stock mentioned in the letter in the ship Portenia, Captain Morris. Of the cattle only one cow was landed. Fortunately this cow was in calf, and with much joy to her owner, Mr Wiltshire, the calf was a bu11. From this beginning a herd of 600 head was eventually raised. Some of the goats and pigs that were landed strayed into the bush. These pigs probably formed the nucleus of the wild pigs at present in the southern portion of the Middle Island. For some years there were were goats about the Nuggets and Catlin's river, but after being sought after by subsequent settlers for their flesh they have decreased out of existence. The names of the original settlers were Thomas Russell, Robert Conning, Mr Wiltshire (acting for Thomas Jones, merchant, of Sydney), and T. W. Bessant (acting for Cruickshank and Cohen, of Sydney). Of these Russell and Wiltshire obtained grants of land. Bessant and Conning resided there about 12 months, and being disgusted with the solitude and privations forced upon them returned to Sydney at the first opportunity. Russell died about 15 or 20 years ago in Dunedin; Wiltshire left for England about 12 years ago, and it is not known whether he is still alive. Until the Lower Molyneux and Inch-Clutha were settled by farmers or graziers these intrepid pioneers endured a hard life for 10 or l2 years. They lived on potatoes and vegetables grown by them; for meat they shot the wild pig, pigeons, &c., whilst fish was relished as a luxury. A whaler putting into the bay once in 12 months or so provided them with a taste of flour, tea and sugar, and received in exchange potatoes, ducks, and other wild fowl, money having for a time gone out of use with these two primitive settlers. Russell's grant, about two miles south of the township of Port Molyneux, is now owned and resided upon by the Wilson Brothers, and evidences are still left of the early settlement. Russell was a stonemason, and built a chimney to his house which is still standing, and on one of the stones of which he cut the date, "1840." The letter is as follows :—
“Molyneux Bay,
“Monday, July 6th, 1840.
Dear Cohen, — Here we are, and have been since Sunday week, after a passage of four weeks exactly [from Sydney], during which we experienced all kinds of misforturne. In the first place, on leaving Sydney Heads we popped into the midst of a heavy gale of wind, which lasted four days and destroyed twenty–eight head of cattle. You can imagine the state the hold was in — the dead cattle all rotting. The people had to cut them up and heave them overboard. As you may suppose, our provision for the stock was soon wasted, and we were at our wits' end to find feed for them. I am sorry to say poor Billy and one of the pigs died, and one of the goats dropped her kid. Russell lost one goat and two pigs. We are now all on shore with our stock and some of the things, but they are not all landed yet. By the by, you may guess what a harbour it is when I tell you you must bring all your things in ironbound casks, except the small cases you can carry. I have had to unpack all mine, and find the iron has destroyed all the [illegible]. Now I must tell you the land is, by everyone's account, and I think so too, everything you could wish, and when Jones gets his piece, as he says he will, the place will prosper.
The land here is covered with a thick bush, and all around the place is the same, but by the river all tremendous hills and dales with nothing but grass and flax upon them. You cannot imagine how beautiful the country looks.
Russell and I penetrated a long way back yesterday and found some splendid trees [indistinct, may be grass], and the whole country watered by small bits of brooks. I must tell you the chart is no more like the place than you. There is no island in the river, but a bar thrown up by the sea, and impassable for any boat. Jones is a man of no enterprise or the place would soon be valuable; we have been a week here now, but instead of laying out a town he is fuddling about on board ship for fear his wine would be drunk in his absence.
However, we have got our houses at the only landing place, and it, of course, will be the town. My goods are all at the tent, and I have got a house nearly finished. I have a small stream of water at the door. I do not think he intends measuring the land now, but talks of sending a surveyor down and plenty more people; but as long as he will measure the water frontage we can do the rest. Of course, I cannot tell you the bounds, nor can Conning sign the deed (as we have not got the land yet), but you may rest assured I am on the lookout, and will take pretty good care of them all.
I like Russell and Conning very well indeed. Conning is a hard–working fellow; Russell is a schemer. The captain no doubt will speak bad enough of the bay, so I will only say look at the best side of the question, as a sailor, of course, looks to the safety of his ship, and not at the land. If we could get a craft from 60 to 80 tons we should do splendidly, and I hope some day or other we will. Russell says, ‘Never mind, the hills are as good as the dales, and the dales as good as possible.’ The whole country is covered with flax. Mr. Jones says he will get a piece here, and if so we shall soon … There is a very heavy surf here, but a whale boat can always manage to land. Should you get a boat, it must be a whale boat … It is good holding ground for a ship, but the bay is quite open. Our stock are all running about, and find such food they will not eat anything that we have to give them. As for the weather, it is not at all cold, though winter time.
In our excursion yesterday we shot a tremendous dove … it was the size of a fowl … and we had him for supper. When you come, please bring … a cap as I always wear a … and a pair of strong shoes. You could not do better than bring the cattle and some rabbits, another billy goat, etc. We must get a cutter, and if, by and by, we should be able to get a brig or schooner from Home, it would be a fortune about here, for Johnny Jones has too much of his own way.
We went to Rubucka (Ruapuke - GBC) Island, where Bloody Jack lives. Mr. Jones went to see him. It was about five miles from the port. He was ill, but talks of calling on us when he gets well. He engages to defend Jones in his purchase, and gave him to the chief to come with us.
PAGE 13
I shall very likely write to Mr. Ellard, but as the land is not measured yet, have nothing to tell him. I forgot to say there is a clerk of Johnny Jones' living with Bloody Jack, and there are no natives at Molyneux, so, of course, we have no assistance; but I do not mind that, as they understand money so well as to prefer it to anything else, and will do nothing here for a handkerchief. I could say a deal, but cannot put in a letter. Come as soon as you can and persuade as many as you can, for the place wants people more than anything. Do not forget to look out for my letter and give my brother a paper or two.
Relying upon seeing you, I am, with best respects to Mr. and Mrs. Cruickshanks, etc., etc.
Yours truly,
T. W. BESSANT.
Morris says he promised to write from Port Nic (Wellington) and will do so. I expect to see you next trip. Russell and Conning want you to put a paragraph in the paper about the place; they intend doing so. Jones has a store here, and you should get one too, for we shall have callers from all the places about here. Here comes the boat. Goodbye. Should you have a store, buy plenty of spirits. I intend making a survey of the harbour, and am going up the river to have a look at the land, I hope you will be able to make this out, but can hardly do so myself, I shall write by the first ship that we see and take it out (the letter) in the whaleboat.
This letter was addressed to W. H. Cohen, Mr Cruikshanks, Pitt Btreet, Sydney,
Of the four settlers who arrived on the "Portenia" in 1840, two were still there the next year - Willshire and Russell. Willsher formed a relationship with the daughter of the local chief - Makariri, daughter of the Chief Tahu. The other remaining settler, Russell, must have objected to this arrangement - he did not speak to Willsher again.
On Monday morning early Mary Anne Terehe, better known as Makariri, died at the Kaika near Port Molynoux. She had been ill for rather more than a while. In her younger days Makariri saw something of the world, as she went with a sea captain to Sydney and other ports. When they returned to Port Molyneux, Makariri and another woman were sent ashore to wash clothes, and instead of returning to the vessel they concealed themselves in the bush, until the vessel, which waited some time for them, sailed away. At another time she distinguished herself by protecting some sailors who had landed at Tokata Point, between Port Molyneux and the Nuggets, and who would have been killed and eaten had not Makariri put her mantle over them, and so prevented anyone from touching them. Makariri was the daughter of Terehe, a great chief, and therefore had considerable influence with her tribe. When an important person wished to protect a prisoner from violence, the way was to throw his or her garment over him and he was thus to all intents and purposes Tapu (holy). In the bush at Tokata Point there are several skulls just beneath the ground. Evidently some other victims have been demolished there, having no friendly Native to intercede for them Makariri has been very kind to Ben Rakitapu's children since their mother died, and has been true to her womanly instincts, although childless herself. The man who is leader in the meeting at present being held at Waitaki is brother to Makariri. The funeral took place on Wednesday afternoon, when the chief at the Kaika, Haimona Rakitapu, read the service in Maori. -Clutha Leader, 13/3/1885.
Willsher and Russell (excerpt)
Romance found its way into the lives of the new settlers, as it is claimed that but for the intervention of Mata Makariri, the Maori chieftainess, Willsher and Russell might have been killed by the Maoris and possibly served up at a cannibal feast. Willsher married Makariri, and their life together has been woven into the legends of Early Otago. She is reported to have possessed an ungovernable temper, and in her rages she frequently threw about the pots, pans, and furniture of their home. On the other hand, she was ill-treated, by Willsher, and to escape from his beatings it is said that she would swim out to a rock known at Makariri’s rock, where she waited until his temper had subsided. The couple had no children, but they adopted the eldest son of the chief Haimoni Rakiraki, also known as Ben Lakitapu, and between the two foster-parents, the boy had a very Spartan upbringing. Many tales are recounted of the prowess of Makariri as a swimmer, and she is credited with once swimming a distance of a mile in a heavy tide holding a lighted pipe in her mouth to win a bet. George Willsher appears to have been a tall, powerful man, with a good education and a pleasant manner when he chose. He conformed fairly closely to the trader and whaler type of those days. Russell was a quieter more resolute person, who had once followed the trade of a stonemason. He never became reconciled to the conduct of Willsher in marrying a Native woman and then treating her so badly, and relations between the two settlers became strained until Willsher deserted his wife and finally went to England to live.
No account of Willsher’s activities can be complete without a reference to his famous bull, which indeed has won for itself a permanent place in our history. The solitary cow which survived the rough wintry passage in the Portenia gave birth to a fine bull calf not long after she was brought ashore. It is stated that from these two animals there sprung a herd of 600 cattle, and by 1855 Willsher was sending his beasts as far afield as Clydevale to graze. In his old age the bull became a great roamer, and wandered off to Wyndnam where he died, his remains being found there and identified by brand marks. In 1844, when Frederick Tuckett, the New Zealand Company’s surveyor, made his preliminary survey in connection with the selection of a suitable site for the Free Church settlement, he found Willsher and Russell well established on their holdings. He did not treat them with the deference, however, that he accorded Johnny Jones at Waikouaiti. On the contrary, when he advised Daniel Wakefield, the agent of the company, that he had decided on the land that should be acquired for the settlement, he advocated that these squatters should be evicted, as they had no claim to the land at the Molyneux other than that they represented a Sydney firm. This view was not adopted by John Jermyn Symonds, the agent for the Government, who after investigation, found that the settlers were justly entitled to the land they had acquired from the Natives. He recommended that their claims should be noted for favourable consideration by the Government, and as a result Crown grants were issued to them in due course. -Evening Star, 28/6/1940.
WILLSHER GRANT. — A CORRECTION.
TO THE EDITOR. Sir, — In your to-night's issue appears an interesting account of the annual gathering at Willsher Bay, Port Molyneux. There is one statement, however, made therein which I hasten to correct—namely, that the property was the gift of Mr Thomas Mackenzie, M.H.E. Perhaps I can best serve my object by giving a brief history of how that charming property has become a public park. The land was originally granted to George Willsher in 1854 by Governor Wynyard. Willsher came over in the very early days, and settled at Korero Stream, where he married a Maori wife named Makariri, a woman of high birth and temper. Of these folks Mr William Hay can tell many a good story. Many fears ago Willsher disappeared, and no trace of his whereabouts could be found. The reason why the land was granted to Willsher was because of his hospitality to the Hon. Walter Mantell, and it was, I understand, on his recommendation that the gift was made. As I have said, Willsher disappeared, and the property became a sort of no man's land. The settlers for miles around always held their New Year's gatherings there. As the land became more valuable speculators tried in vain to find the owner, in order that they might acquire the land to cut up into building sections. It was felt that were such to happen it would be a very great loss to the whole district. There is no lovelier spot in all Otago for a healthy social gathering. It is situated on the sea coast, with miles of golden beach stretching along. The beautiful Korero Stream sweeps around several acres of deep green sward, whilst native forest covers the remainder of the property. Hills rise around covered with noble pines, ratas, kowhais, etc.; whilst the denizens keep the retreat alive with their lovely melody. A New Year's Day, spent there is a treat to be remembered. From early morn may be seen conveyances of every description all wending their way to the one goal. The glens, the plains, and the uplands pour forth their hardy settlers, all bent on spending a really happy New Year, drays, buggies, waggonettes, spring carts, horsemen, all going to swell the glad throng. There may be seen the honest farmer plodding along in his capacious straw-cushioned dray, with his jolly wife and family, all looking as happy as can be. Everybody knows everybody; no class distinctions exist, and "Happy New Years" go ringing out in the most whole-hearted manner conceivable. Then, when the place is reached, picnicking begins, the lasses dance on the green, while the lads try their prowess in the ring. The old folks meet old friends, and many happy reunions occur. Everything is bright, happy, and wholesome. As far as I am aware, no licensed booth has ever been on the place, and I hope never will be. But to my story. While I was attending a meeting of the Education Board in January, 1896, by the purest accident I heard that Mr Chapcott had discovered in going through some old papers which he was burning that he held the deeds of Willsher's property, and was also attorney for it. The whole affair had been absolutely forgotten by him for thirty or forty years. I forthwith went in quest of Mr Clapcott, and to make a long story short I took home with me that night the Crown grant of Willsher Bay. And that fact was good news to the Clutha folk. Everybody helped to make that property a park for the people for all time. Prominent among the helpers were Mr Wm. Hay (of Romahapa), Messrs Paterson, Shiels, Wilson, Campbell, Alf. Jenkinson, and others. Concerts and lectures were given and collectors appointed. Government, too, helped through Clutha's member, Mr J. W. Thomson. All, therefore, have had a hand in making that spot a public park. And such briefly is the history of a spot which will for generations to come be in the possession of the people. —I am„ etc., Thomas Mackenzie. January 3. -Evening Star, 4/1/1902.
Frederick Tuckett, conducting his survey of the geography and resources of the Otago area for the proposed Scottish Free Church colony, was dropped off by the brig Deborah at Moeraki in April, 1844. He engaged local guides and walked to what is now known as Otago Harbour. There he met the Deborah again and walked further to the mouth of the Molyneux.
Monday May 6th.
As we proceeded, about the time of low water, along shore I was gratified to observe very abundant large pieces of drift coal of good quality, still no bed was visible in the face of the cliff, further on the beach became again rocky and quantities of coal were lodged between the rocks and soon appeared in view a black cliff, I felt certain it must be a vast formation of coal, although M. Jones at Waikauirati (Waikouaiti) had declared that there was no other coal discovered along the coast but the insignificant appearance which I had examined at Matakaea. Approaching this cliff I found it to be a mass of coal for about 100 yards length, in thickness from 12 to 20 feet, as seen in the face of the cliff above the sand, and to what depth it exists beneath the sand I could not ascertain, I should suppose from the appearance of coal adjacent, to the depth of low water. The beach is not accessible on account of the heavy swell and great surf. The coal must therefore be worked inland and the bed will be no doubt discovered near the bank of the Matau River, which in a direct line inland is probably not more than 4 or 5 miles distant.
As we proceeded, about the time of low water, along shore I was gratified to observe very abundant large pieces of drift coal of good quality, still no bed was visible in the face of the cliff, further on the beach became again rocky and quantities of coal were lodged between the rocks and soon appeared in view a black cliff, I felt certain it must be a vast formation of coal, although M. Jones at Waikauirati (Waikouaiti) had declared that there was no other coal discovered along the coast but the insignificant appearance which I had examined at Matakaea. Approaching this cliff I found it to be a mass of coal for about 100 yards length, in thickness from 12 to 20 feet, as seen in the face of the cliff above the sand, and to what depth it exists beneath the sand I could not ascertain, I should suppose from the appearance of coal adjacent, to the depth of low water. The beach is not accessible on account of the heavy swell and great surf. The coal must therefore be worked inland and the bed will be no doubt discovered near the bank of the Matau River, which in a direct line inland is probably not more than 4 or 5 miles distant.
My next discovery proceeding along shore was a carcass of a fine young whale recently stranded and quite fresh, of which I took possession by cutting out a few steaks for my hungry dog, it measured upwards of 50 feet in length.
Within the Nuggets I was glad to observe the schooner at anchor, for this overland journey having occupied six days instead of three or four as I had expected, and then not arriving until the seventh, I was afraid that she might have left to return to Otago. We fired the guns along shore, which was observed by Mr. Wiltshire, and when we reached the bank of the Matau his boat was coming across the river to convey us over.
The Matau is a River which even an American would not contemn, its course inland is so distant that I cannot pretend to estimate the distance. The hills west of its course are certainly 20 miles from the shore and no snowy mountains are visible, Mr. Wiltshire informed me subsequently that he had ascended it in a Boat for at least 50 miles, and that it was still navigable for a long boat, also that many navigable creeks unite with it, by one of which a boat may be taken to a lagoon, called Kai Tangata, and then by a narrow channel to another lagoon, called Raki-toto, from whence the distance to the Tiaria valley does not exceed six miles.
Mr. Wiltshire is an agent of a Mr. Jones of Sidney, and has the care of a few head of cattle, he landed 4 or 5 years ago and beyond erecting a good dwelling house, neither he nor his neighbour Mr. Russell appear to have made much progress. This Mr. Jones pretends to a claim for land here preposterous in extent, it was not submitted to Col Godfreys investigation (?of the Land Commission), Russell states that he has purchased land here of Jones. They appeared to be ill supplied with the comforts and necessaries of life. This Mr. Wiltshire is well known by some of my relations, and I had become acquainted with him and pleased with a brief intercourse which occurred a few weeks previous to his embarkation at Bristol for Sidney, but I did not recognise him, and had he not alluded to the circumstance I should have left Molineux without an idea of having ever seen him before.
Tuesday May 7th.
Paid my Maori guides, or rather followers and engaged two other Maoris, resident at Molineux, to accompany me inland to Tutu Rau, a district separated from Molineux Plain only by low grassy hills and said to present a very extensive District of level and good land. From thence I was to proceed along the S. W. bank of the Totui River to its mouth, an uninterrupted succession, they say of rich land on the banks of a navigable River. Impossible as I should have thought this to be whilst surveying lands in the Settlement of Nelson, it was almost credible after seeing the Plain of the Matau from the mouth of the Totui. I was to walk along shore to the Bluff (near Invercargill) and thence to the New River (Oreti River, Invercargill), the journey to the Bluff, they assured me would be accomplished easily in eight days. On starting I should have gone some miles up a south western branch of the Matau and across the lowest land of the Plain to rising ground, which would have afforded me an opportunity of estimating the extent of swamp land and the facility of draining it. For providing that there is a sufficient fall area that the earth will nearly sustain a mans weight in walking without us sinking, I consider that the land in New Zealand can hardly be too wet in its natural state. At the first rise of this Plain, as I looked down upon its extent, I observed a continual line of dry land, indicated by the number of Te trees and the frequent succession of Pine groves.
Paid my Maori guides, or rather followers and engaged two other Maoris, resident at Molineux, to accompany me inland to Tutu Rau, a district separated from Molineux Plain only by low grassy hills and said to present a very extensive District of level and good land. From thence I was to proceed along the S. W. bank of the Totui River to its mouth, an uninterrupted succession, they say of rich land on the banks of a navigable River. Impossible as I should have thought this to be whilst surveying lands in the Settlement of Nelson, it was almost credible after seeing the Plain of the Matau from the mouth of the Totui. I was to walk along shore to the Bluff (near Invercargill) and thence to the New River (Oreti River, Invercargill), the journey to the Bluff, they assured me would be accomplished easily in eight days. On starting I should have gone some miles up a south western branch of the Matau and across the lowest land of the Plain to rising ground, which would have afforded me an opportunity of estimating the extent of swamp land and the facility of draining it. For providing that there is a sufficient fall area that the earth will nearly sustain a mans weight in walking without us sinking, I consider that the land in New Zealand can hardly be too wet in its natural state. At the first rise of this Plain, as I looked down upon its extent, I observed a continual line of dry land, indicated by the number of Te trees and the frequent succession of Pine groves.
The Captain of the Schooner and the Pilot examined at my desire the entrance of the Matau, it has but a narrow channel and a bad bar adjacent, so that the water breaks across although this is more than two fathoms at low water, and five fathoms in a beautiful basin within. I believe that the schooner might have entered and with the aid of a steamer a much larger vessel. To the owner of a vessel it may not be very agreeable to be the pioneer, but time will verify my present opinion.
Messrs Barnicoat & Davison engaged, with permission of the resident Maoris, on surveying the roadstead and mouth of the River, they remained on shore and I returned on board to complete my arrangements for another journey overland. During the night a swell set in from the north east, and the Master, fearing a gale of wind might ensue, heaved anchor and stood out.
The principal Maori resident is an aged woman named Toki, the widow of Tahui, formerly chief of Kurreroa, the native name of Molineux Bay, she is a relation (aunt) of Tuawaiki, who does nothing to make the remainder of their existence comfortable, though he can well afford to do so. I sent her a half cwt of sugar, a blanket and a shirt. Her daughter Makariri protects Mr. Wiltshire, they, with an old man Toweras and three younger men, Raki Raki, Mirihou and Tahatu, are the only resident natives, as far as I could ascertain, excepting Te Raki and his family who sometimes reside here, but usually on the Tiaria. The native name of the S. E. point of Kurreroa Bay, opposite the Nuggets is Tuwata. The rivers Matau and a branch called Te Koau, contains between them an Island called Jacks Island, said to be 25 miles in length and about one mile in breadth.
George Willsher lived at Otago until he left for "Home" in 1859. In that time his one surviving cow, which happened to be in calf when she landed, became the ancestor of a good herd, the calf being a bull.
The next settler family to arrive in Willsher Bay were the Hays.
George Willsher lived at Otago until he left for "Home" in 1859. In that time his one surviving cow, which happened to be in calf when she landed, became the ancestor of a good herd, the calf being a bull.
The next settler family to arrive in Willsher Bay were the Hays.
The family landed at Willsher Bay early in March, 1849, and were welcomed by Makariri, the Maori wife of Mr Willsher. Maoris at that time were numerous at the Bay, but they were still somewhat uncivilised. Besides Mr Willsher an Englishman named Thos. Russell lived at the Bay. Shortly before the arrival of the Jumping Jackass the Maoris under the old Chief Tongata had forcibly seized Mr Russell and robbed him of all his movable property. Lakitapu, the well-known chief who died a few years ago, was present at, but not a party to the robbery, and through his instrumentality the whole of Mr Russell's property was subsequently returned. On another occasion Makariri was compelled to conceal herself in the bush for a day or two in order to avoid being killed by a Maori named Rawore, who had been pursuing her with murderous intent with a tomahawk. It was also related that Makariri herself, when in a "pet" with her husband, Willsher, was in the habit of retiring up the wide chimney of Willsher's hut, and that Willsher on such an occasion would induce her to abandon her exalted retreat by lighting a smoky fire beneath her. The late Mrs Hay, however, would not vouch for the truth of this story, as she was ever most distinctly of opinion that Makariri was the senior and more potent partner in the Willsher matrimonial firm.
After the arrival of the party at Willsher Bay Messrs Fuller settled on land which is at present comprised in the Hilly Park property, and the Messrs Chalmers took up the land afterwards purchased by the late Mr David Dunn, of Romahapa. Mr and Mrs Hay for the first six months lived with the Messrs Chalmers, and afterwards returned to Willshcr Bay, where they lived about four years. At that time there were no regular means of communication with Dunedin, and the settlers had often to depend for provisions on potatoes and what they could obtain in the way of native game, fish, and wild pigs. Pigeons and Kakas were speared by the natives with long manuka spears, and the settlers also used spears consisting of a steel or iron blade affixed to a wooden shaft for the purpose of killing wild pigs. For many months at one period the Hay family had no flour and no tea. As a poor substitute for tea an infusion of manuka leaves or biddi-biddi was used. After remaining at Willsher Bay for four years Mr Hay bought Fullers' property, and he and his family removed to what is now known as Hilly Park, which became the headquarters of the family.
After Mrs Hay's arrival in New Zealand a son James, a daughter Helen and a son Charles were born. James was born at Saddle Hill, near Dunedin, and his mother carried him from there on foot to Willsher Bay, crossing the intervening rivers in Maori mokis or any other available boat. The moki was a rough boat made from flax stalks. It was not watertight, and its occupant usually sat half submerged. Miss Helen Hay was the first white girl born in the Molyneux. -Bruce Herald, 9/1/1908.
Shipping Intelligence
H.M.S. Steamer "Acheron." — The Otago News of the 8th of June has the following notice of the recent exploring trip of this vessel: — H.M.S. Acheron, Capt Stokes, arrived from the southward on Tuesday last, having been absent about 11 weeks. The principal part of this time was passed at New River, where exploring parties were sent to Jacob's River, the Bluff and towards the source of the New River. Mr Hamilton and Mr. Spencer left the Acheron and proceeded overland to the Molyneux, which they reached on the 6th day. The country through which they passed is described as one extremely favourable to pastoral pursuits, but rather scarce of timber. After a stay of a few days in the Molineux district, finding the Acheron did not make her appearance, they started for Dunedin, and arrived here a few day ago; thus accomplishing a journey of nearly 200 miles, the greater part through a country seldom if ever traversed by Europeans. We believe the Acheron did not make any lengthened stay at the Molineux, but will possibly return there in spring, for the purpose of taking an accurate survey of the bay and the bar at the entrance of the river. New Zealander, 31/7/1850.
Coastal shipping began to cross the bar of the Molyneux River but it was a dangerous pursuit. A ship large enough to brave the sometimes heavy seas on the voyage from Dunedin would draw too much water to make it far up the river. It soon became apparent that the idea way to take freight to and from the lower Molyneux River district was to use shallow-draught steamers on the river and to trans-ship freight inside the river bar. The beginning of coal mining at Kaitangata, not far from the river mouth, meant fuel for river steamers and further exports to Dunedin. Thus was born Port Molyneux.
Chapter 2 - A Flourishing Port. Link here.
Chapter 2 - A Flourishing Port. Link here.
