Archive for the ‘Historic’ Category

Archaelogical importance recognised

Friday, May 2nd, 2008

An April 2008 archaelogical assessment prepared by Rosie Geary Nichol and Katherine Watson for Grant Mitchell Design and Associates recognises the possible significance of the Patiti Point site.

Note that the report is not referring to the adjacent Patiti Point Reserve, but to the flat paddock at approximately sea level that was the site of the proposed development. The report makes interesting reading, and most certainly does not dismiss the site in the way that TDC and the developer had. Points of particular interest in the report include:

  • “the site appealed to successive groups”
  • “the section has the potential to be rich in archaelogical material”
  • “the proposal to develop…may destroy…an archaelogical site”
  • “it is illegal to destroy, damage or modify an archaelogical site etc.”

If you want to read the full report enquire at TDC Planning Office.

Friends of Patiti Point wish to thank Jeff Elston for valuable preliminary work he did in this regard, drawing everybody’s attention to the significance of the site.

Posted in Historic | No Comments »

Desecration of a sacred site

Friday, December 14th, 2007

Tuesday 11th December Jeff Elston, Pam Booth, Ian Waite and Sue Lowe attended a council meeting, and Jeff presented some facts about the historical significance of several sites contained in an area from Coupland’s building in the north to the lagoon at Otipua in the south. From north to south: a whalers lookout; the original government landing services site; the place (at the bottom of Queen Street) where Bishop Selwyn held the first ever divine service in South Canterbury; the Hine te Kura stream; the Hine te Kura encampment; Wellers whaling station 1838-1845; Peeress Town 1874-1888; an archeological site at Patiti Point Reserve itself; and the Tipua lagoon where the remains of a giant were found. Jeff gave a lucid account, painting a picture of an area of considerable historical significance, his opinion well-supported with documentation. The Historic Places Trust requirements are all in evidence: aesthetic, archaeological, cultural, historical, spiritual, and traditional qualities. This may be a place of sacred significance to Maori. There were no questions, and each of the councilors received a package for their later perusal.

Posted in Historic, TDC | No Comments »

Peeress Passenger List

Friday, December 7th, 2007

By all accounts the Peeress had a rough time of it on her 118 day voyage from Gravesend, London. She arrived in Lyttleton in July 1874. Four children were born on the voyage out, and six people died. If you see your name here it may be that your family came out on the Peeress, you may already know that. When these people arrived they were housed at Peeress Town, and when you’re standing in the car park at South Beach immediately by Patiti Point you’re standing right on the site (look in the maps section for the overlay).

Among the passengers who landed were:

Bailey, Beere, Blackwell, Blake, Boyer, Brown, Bryan, Butler,
Carter, Castle, Clancey, Coles, Cook,
Darby, Davis,
Earl,
Fly, Foulkes,
Gabb, George, Gilbert, Godfrey, Gray, Grey, Gurney,
Hart, Hayes, Hillyer, Hiorns, Hoare, Holder, Horsley, Hubbard, Hunt,
Joyce, Judge,
Kenyon, Knight,
Mainer, Mann, Maycock, Metson, Mills, Morgan,
Naughton, Neal, Noble,
Payne, Paynton, Phillips, Poole, Powell, Price, Prue,
Robinson,
Seaby, Sell, Shave, Smith, Southward, Stapely, Stewart, Symes,
Taplin, Tooth, Tubb,
Wallace, Waller, Washington, Watts, Wheeler, Wilcox,
Wild, Wilkes, Willingham, Winrow, Woodford.

The site of Peeress Town is of historical significance, and it is in the future it may be listed with Historic Places Trust. You can read more about the voyage of the Peeress on the NZ GenWeb Project.

Posted in Historic | No Comments »

What is it with abattoirs?

Friday, November 23rd, 2007

What is it with meat works that they always put them in choice places overlooking the ocean? Pukeuri, Pareora, Timaru. It took me some time to realise the answer, outfall pipes [1]. In Victorian times with frozen meat fetching twice the price in England than on the domestic market [2] focus was on industry, not the pretty view.

Belfast Meatworks

It is perhaps not surprising then that in such a young country pragmatic decisions are still valued over aesthetic ones, or that where town planners start to buy into aesthetics their eye is naive. I believe that computer generated plans and architects impressions tend to paint rosy pictures — drag and drop makes it too easy to create fantasies from your desktop. Architects work for clients for pay, so it is a natural mistake that they sometimes turn a bit of a blind eye on their code of ethics, and show what the client wants to see rather than what will actually be.

1. Golder Kingett Mitchell are consultants working in this area, a good starting place is their Stormwater Services page.

2. Solow, R (2007) The Nineteenth Century Heritage: Refrigeration And The Meat Industry. [Online] Available from: here (Accessed: 23rd November 2007).

3. Christchurch City Libraries (2005) The works of the Canterbury Frozen Meat Company at Belfast [picture, online] Available from: here (Accessed: 23rd November 2007).

Posted in Historic, Seashore, Urban spaces | No Comments »

Historic Site

Wednesday, October 17th, 2007

Patiti Point is an historic site of national importance. “In a recent report for the Department of Conservation are listed 87 New Zealand shore whaling stations and sites for which there is good archaeological and/or historical evidence” (Pricket, 2002). Further down in the report is a warning: “A watch needs to be kept on whaling sites in areas of urban or seaside development to help protect surviving remains. Development earthworks should be monitored to learn more about the sites from sub–surface remains. Such sites include Bluff, Riverton, Moeraki, Otago, Tautuku, Molyneux, Waikouaiti, Patiti, Timaru, Waiopuka, South Bay, Tom Cane’s Bay and Mahia” (Pricket, 2002).

Pricket, N. (2002) The Archaeology of New Zealand Shore Whaling. [Online] Available from: here (Accessed: 17th October 2007).

Posted in Historic | No Comments »