The Johnstons were keepers of the Otago Hotel at Skippers, which opened i 1866.
A FREE OPENING BALL & SUPPER
WILL BE GITEN AT JOHNSTON'S
OTAGO HOTEL,
SKIPPERS REEFS,
On Friday, 2nd November, 1868.
Dancing to commence at Eight o'clock sharp.
Hoping all will accept this as an invitation.
S. JOHSTOX, Proprietor.
-Lake Wakatip Mail, 27/10/1866.
UPPER SHOTOVER.
(from our own correspondent.)
Skippers, April 14th, 1879. On Saturday evening, the 12th inst., I strolled up to Skippers Point. There was a good stir amongst the people, and some business of importance seemed to be on hand. On enquiry I found there were no less than three meetings and a billiard match — the last-mentioned being held at Johnston's Otago Hotel, where some very plucky play was exhibited, but, as often happens, the favorites at starting came off second-best. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 17/5/1879.
Our Skippers correspondent, under date 12th instant, says: — "Christmas is over, and everything is getting into the original old quiet style. I cannot say there was much stir up here. We had the usual Christmas dinners, then Boxing-Day sports, at Johnston's Otago Hotel. We had, also, the Annual School Ball on New Year's eve, and I must say it was the tamest affair ever held here. If it had not been for the very handsome wedding cake presented by Mr S. Johnston, I very much doubt if it would have paid much into the school funds — as it was, there was the modest sum of £14 to the good of the school. We had some very heavy rain on Saturday, which will no doubt give an impetus to the sluicers. I suppose the dullness of our Christmas was owing to the amount of picnics and excursions down Queenstown way." -Lake Wakatip Mail, 16/1/1880.
Mr Johnston, of the Otago Hotel, Skippers — who was refused a bush license at the last sitting of the Licensing Bench, although he had for years past, been allowed to carry on business with one — writes us and takes exception to one portion of our report when Mr Turton, on behalf of the County Council, remarked, while making objection, that the applicant could well afford to pay for a general license, as he derived such a considerable benefit from those balls &c. held in his neighborhood. It is wellknown that counsel have great latitude and go as far as they can on behalf of their clients. The duty of the press is to report facts. Probably an injustice was done Mr Johnston because, from what we can learn he is very liberal at these "balls" (which happen about once a year) by donations; and his mainstay is his own immediate business — baking and confectionery. He is in error in supposing that he may have to pay more than his neighbors, for all will be treated alike. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 24/6/1881.
Upper Shotover.
(from our own correspondent.) Skippers, August 23, 18S2. On Sunday afternoon, about half-past three, the inhabitants of Skippers Point were suddenly startled by the unusual cry of "Fire." On looking for the whereabouts it was ascertained to be from a fine stack of oats, situated in a small paddock in front of Johnston's Otago Hotel, and of which Mr Sam Johnston is the proprietor. As good luck would have it there happened to be a good Dumber of people about, and amongst them two visitors from Queenstown — Messrs Dewar and Logan — who buckled to and manfully assisted in saving some portion of the stack. How any of it was saved seems to me to be a miracle. The stack was a long one, and the fire burst out at the end furthest from the house. There is little doubt it would have been totally consumed but for the presence of mind of someone jumping, or being assisted, on the stack and calling for wet blankets, and smothering the fire as it worked its way along the stack until water was procured from Mr Aspinall's race. Then, with the aid of willing hands, half of the stack was removed to a safe locality. About five tons of oats were burnt, besides what was damaged, and the loss of blankets. Altogether Mr Johnston's loss will not be under £50, as it is well known to the packers that horse feed here means money. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 25/8/1882.
Our Skippers correspondent states that the sports at Johnston's Otago Hotel on Boxing Day were quite up to those of previous years, although there were not quite so many people present, but the prizes were very good indeed for such a small community. There were Men's Quoit Match, £1 10s. first and 15s. second: Men's 100 Yards Race, £1 10s. and 15s.; Men's Handicap Hurdle Race, £1 10s. and 15s,; Throwing 161b. Hammer, £1 10s. and 15s, Boys' Race, 7s. 6d., 5s. and 3s. 6d.; Youth's Race, 10s. and 5s.; Girls Race, 10s. downwards; and Small Boys' Race, 7s., 5s. and 3s. The Boys' Quoit Match was very interesting, and pretty well contested, the quoits being close to the iron every shot. Every one was diligently assisted with refreshments and in the evening dancing commenced in earnest, a billiard match being carried at the same time, the prizes being £2 10s., £1 10s., 15s. and 10s. There was a repetition of the fun on New Year's Day (all but the hammer throwing) and all enjoyed themselves to their heart's content. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 4/1/1884.
The Shotover District and its Mines. (excerpt)
There is a public school built of stone, and Mr Johnston, of the Otago Hotel, has made a beginning with re-building his hotel in stone. The new building is partly excavated out of the side of a hill, and substantiality built in stone and lime. Mr Nelson Thompson, who is creditably known for the substantially of his work, is the builder. The first section, which is now nearing completion, will be furnished and set apart chiefly for visitors. No expense is spared to make the accommodation equal to the best of any up-country house, and, combined with Mrs Johnston's considerate kindness and attention, will make a visit to the unique township of Skippers a pleasant remembrance to all tourists and travellers who may be attracted to it and its mines. Already the number of ladies and gentlemen who penetrate so far is steadily increasing, and all pronounce themselves as highly delighted with the trip, which with time and the completion of the dray-road promises to become one of the most favorite excursions from Queenstown. In conclusion, your "Special" desires to thank all people he came in contact with, for the readiness with which information was imparted to him, for the many kindnesses he received at their hands, and to assure them that he has none but most pleasant remembrances of his tour. Nothing, indeed, could exceed the kindness and urbane hospitality he has met with from the people of the Shotover. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 4/6/1886.
DEATH.
Johnston. — On Tuesday, 21at instant, at his residence, the Otago Hotel, Skippers Point, Samuel Johnston, native of Belfast, Ireland, and the beloved husband of Eliza Jane Johnston, aged 61 years. Deeply regretted. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 24/4/1896.
"THE LICENSING ACT, 1881."
THIRD SCHEDULE.
NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR AN ACCOMMODATION LICENSE.
I, Eliza Jane Johnston, of Skippers Point, Accommodation House-keeper, do hereby give notice that I desire to obtain, and will, at the next Licensing Meeting to be holden at Queenstown, on the 5th day of June' 1896, apply for a Certificate authorising the issue of an Accommodation License for premises situate at Skippers Point known as "The Otago Hotel."
Dated the 4th day of May, 1896.
ELIZA JANE JOHNSTON. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 8/5/1896.
Two pioneers of our early days have passed away within the last week or two. The first was Mr Samuel Johnston, of the Otago Hotel, Skipper's Point. Mr Johnston also carried on a bakery, which he started long before there were any tracks up the Shotover. All provisions and material had to be packed up on men's backs; it is therefore not surprising that the 41b loaf was 10s — that was when you could get it, crowds of men besieging the bakery till the batch was out, and fighting for possession of the bread. Even until very recently the loaf at Upper Shotover was 1s, with this difference, that when it was 10s the price of it was more easily procured than the ls is now. Mr Johnston had been ailing some time previous to his demise, so that his end was not unexpected. The deceased leaves a widow and grown up family, for whom general sympathy is felt throughout the district. -Southland Times, 18/5/1896.
Banquet at Skippers. — A public banquet was tendered to Messrs T. Monk and N. McInnes on their retiring from mining, and leaving the Upper Shotover for a quiet residence at Queenstown for the remainder of their days. They are both of the race of gold diggers dating back to the early rush to the district, where they have worked as mates for the past 37 years in their celebrated claim near the Sandhill, Upper Shotover. Messrs Monk and McInnes count with the most successful miners on this river, retiring upon a well-earned competence. As neighbours they were ever ready to assist wherever their help could be of avail, while as citizens they never failed in contributing according to their means, and in supporting with whole-hearted energy any movement that had for its object the advancement of the locality in which they lived. It is therefore not surprising that the banquet tendered them should have been an unqualified success, and that it will be the means of still further endorsing the sterling qualities of the two men, who are of the few remaining gold diggers now fast passing away. The banquet, which was catered for by Mrs Johnston, took place at the Otago Hotel at Skippers Point, and was all that the most fastidious could desire. Nearly every resident of the neighbourhood was present, and seldom have the speakers on similar occasions had a more genuine or pleasing duty to perform than was the case in this instance when speaking of the good and manly qualities of Messrs Monk and McInnes. It was universally regretted that Mr McInnes was prevented by indisposition from being present, but many good wishes for his speedy recovery were expressed. -Otago Witness, 26/4/1900.
LAKE COUNTY.
April 6. — The event of last week was the opening ceremony of Skippers Bridge, which was made a gala time by the residents of the Shotover. For weeks past the event has been made the subject of conversation, great doings being anticipated, the realisation of which were in no way disappointing. Although a full and detailed account of the affair, the orators, and their orations has already been furnished you, these notes, in order to present something like a continuous historical account of the passing events in these parts, must take some notice of so important an affair as was the opening of the Skippers' bridge. The bridge is on the suspension principle, and is a strongly and well-built structure. All the woodwork, except the planking of the roadway, is of ironbark timber, and will therefore require no costly repairs for two generations to come. The bridge is 315ft long and 8ft wide in the clear. It is 278ft above water level, and ranks in this respect as one of the highest bridges in the colony. The approaches are easy, and though they might have been improved, access to the bridge from either side presents no difficulty. Skippers' bridge is the third important bridge that spans the Shotover, not counting the old and now discarded one at Skippers. It stands as a monument of the importance of the mining industry of the Shotover, for there is no farming nor any other industry to require a bridge. Looked at as an aid to mining, however, it might have been better located. Maori Point would have been the spot where the bridge would have done the most good, for it would have benefited Stony, Pleasant, and Londonderry terraces, which will probably be working, and yield payable returns, when every other gold deposit in the Shotover Valley has been exhausted. However, the thing is done now, and the bridge will be a boon to a large portion of the residents in the neighbourhood. The weakness of the innovation is that the road leading from it ends nowhere. The stranger who lands at the Skippers end does not know "where 'e are," except that he has come to the end, and that end, ominously enough, is the cemetery! This must be remedied, and that soon. A movement has been set on foot to carry the load as far as Skippers Point proper — that is, Aspinall's Terrace. The whole distance is made ground, and there is available a large stream of water to sluice a roadway through it, at a low cost in a short time. This, no doubt, will be done, and the sooner the better. The ceremony of the opening was a gay one. The bridge was decorated with banners, flags, and evergreens, having a floral arch at either end, the whole presenting a very pleasing effect. The ladies, dressed in bright and pleasing garments, lent the charm of colour and variety to the sombre habiliments of the sterner sex. The "tout ensemble" presenting a very animated and pleasing effect, can be seen from the picture being forwarded to you for reproduction in the Witness, which was obtained with no small trouble and judgment. Amongst the guests were the Hon. the Minister for Mines (Mr McGowan) and the Secretary for Mines (Mr Elliott), and representatives from centres of population far and near. Due to time, Mr McGowan called upon Mrs Johnston, as the earliest surviving lady pioneer of Skippers, to christen the bridge in the orthodox fashion with a bottle of champagne, and cut the red, white, and blue ribbon that barred the passage of the bridge. This done, Mr McGowan, leading Mrs Johnston, walked across the bridge, the general public following. There was loud and hearty cheering and applauding of the speeches. Shortly after the ceremony the banquet at Mrs Johnston's Otago Hotel took place. About 50 guests sat down to a sumptuous spread that exceeded the expectation of most of the partakers, being more varied and complete than they expected to find at a place so far inland as Skippers. The dessert, which was chiefly furnished from Mrs Johnston's orchard, comprised fruit that could not be excelled anywhere for flavour or for size. In the evening came the ball, which was arranged for the benefit of the new library and public hall. Looking found the room it was difficult to realise this was the locality where less than 40 years ago the eternal solitude of tussock and hill was broken by no other sound than that of the weka, and where the hardy pioneer penetrated at the risk of life and limbs. Dainty damsels arrayed in silks and satins tripped it on the light fantastic toe, as to the manner born. And so the festivities ended that marked an epoch in the history of the district. Beside its value as a means of facilitating communication, the bridge will be the means of attracting tourists to the golden banks of the Shotover. Tourists and travellers of all kinds have now the opportunity of extending their visit to any of the large sluicing claims on the northern bank of the river, instead of terminating their outing at Long Gully. It is currently said that tourists who engage conveyances to take them to the Shotover are dumped down at Long Gully, and made believe by their drivers that they are at the Shotover. This pious fraud cannot be worked any longer, and tourists will want to see what they were promised for their money. -Otago Witness, 10/4/1901.
THE OTAGO HOTEL,
SKIPPERS POINT.
DISTANCE, 19 MILES FROM QUEENSTOWN
Tourists and others visiting Wakatipu are reminded that the trip to Skippers Point comprises some of the most interesting views in inland Otago. The famous gold-bearing Shotover river and its terraces, where gold dredging, hydraulic sluicing, quartz and every description of gold mining can be seen. The Skippers suspension bridge, spanning the elevation of 300 feet, a marvel of engineering skill, is in itself one of the sights of the Alps of Otago. The journey from Queenstown to Skippers Point and back can be easily accomplished in one day.
A FIRST CLASS BILLIARD TABLE ON THE PREMISES.
The Otago Hotel possesses every accommodation for the comfort and convenience of travellers.
Table good. Liquors excellent.
CHARGES MODERATE.
Mrs E. JOHNSTON, , Proprietress.
Formerly of Bendigo, Victoria. -Lake Wakatip Mail, 16/9/1903.
SKIPPERS NOTES.
(from our own correspondent.)
Death. News came to Skippers on Saturday last of the death of James G. Johnston, the eldest son of Mrs Johnston of the Otago Hotel, Skippers. Deceased had been on the Dawson City Goldfields for the last seven years. No details of his death are to hand further than that he died from exposure and exhaustion on February 8th, 60 miles west of Dawson City. The sympathy of the entire district is with Mrs Johnston and family in their sad bereavement. -Lake County Press, 11/5/1905.
The Vancouver correspondent of the Auckland 'Star' supplies some further particulars of the sad end of Mr James G. Johnston, eldest son of Mrs E. Johnston, proprietress of the Otago Hotel, Skippers. The circumstances surrounding the death are of a very painful nature and we can only extend our sheerest sympathy to the bereaved relatives, The correspondent says: — "To be frozen to death was the dreadful fate of a New Zealander named James Gilbert Johnson. His lifeless body was found by the North-west Mounted Police in Owl Gulch, in the Sixty-mile country, west of Dawson. Sergeant McMillan took the body to the Klondike capital on a sleigh. Johnson was frozen while en route from Glacier Creek to Walker's Fork. He was travelling alone. When found he was off the main trail and on a rabbit run, and, from marks in the snow, it was evident that he had fallen a number of times. The day he left Glacier he bought a bottle of whisky. It is known that he had a brother at a place called Slippery Point (this, no doubt, should be Skippers Point), New Zealand, and he may have left other relatives in that country." -Lake Wakatip Mail, 19/5/1905.
News was received here yesterday of the death in the Arrow Hospital of Mr R. Johnston, youngest son of Mrs E. J. Johnston, proprietor of the Otago Hotel, Skippers. Deceased who has not enjoyed good health for some years past, became an inmate of the Arrow Hospital a few weeks ago. The disease of which he was a victim, had unfortunately a firm hold of him and carried him off yesterday. Deceased was of a retiring disposition and was greatly respected in the Skippers district of which he was a native. Much sympathy is felt for his sorrowing mother, brothers and sister who lose a devoted son and brother. -Lake Wakatipu Mail, 14/1/1908.
OBITUARY.
Mrs E. J. Johnston.
At the age of 85 years there died on Thursday at the residence of her son, Mr J. A. Johnston, Shiel Hill, Otago Peninsula, one of the pioneers of the province in the person of Mrs E. J. Johnston, relict of Mr Samuel Johnston, of Skippers. The deceased was born at Portrush County, Antrim, Ireland, and left there at an early age for Canada and the United States. But her stay was of short duration, for she landed in Victoria after a long and eventful voyage in the early fifties, and witnessed many of the stirring events of the early digging days of that State. Many were the tales she told of the doings of that period. Attracted by the news from New Zealand, the deceased with her husband, whom she married in Australia, landed at Invercargill in 1868. They made their first home in the Dominion at Arthur’s Point. The reefing boom at Bullendale caused another shift, and thence they went, afterwards moving to Skippers Point, where, as proprietors of the Otago Hotel, the Johnstons were long and favorably known. Of a generous disposition, many received a helping hand, and every good cause was given support. The arduous journey to Bullendale was undertaken for the moat part on horseback. The Shotover River was crossed by means of the “chairs” put across by the earlier diggers, Mrs Johnston being one of the first ladies to cross by that meant, an undertaking not without its thrills. Altogether, the deceased lady spent about 50 years of her life on the Shotover River, her eldest son James, who died at Klondyke, being one of the first children born at Arthur’s Point. Mrs Johnston leaves one son, three daughters (Mrs Flynn, of Tisbury; Mrs McKay, of Clifton; Mrs McIntosh, of North Invercargill), 25 grand children, and two great grand-children. Her husband predeceased her by some 22 years. Mrs Johnston was a close relation of the President of the United States (Dr Woodrow Wilson). The funeral took place on Sunday, the burial service being conducted by Mr D. C. Brown (Queenstown). -Lake County Press, 18/12/1919.
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