2

In December, 1871, William Horner, blacksmith, signed an

Agreement for Sale and Purchase of “Springlands,” Papanui,

from Alfred Cox, Esquire, for £2600; the property of fifty acres or

thereabouts, being 2 miles, 28 chains from Christchurch.

“The Canterbury Association for founding a Settlement in New Zealand” had set up a ballot system for the allocation of land that had previously been paid for in England at the price of £3 per acre, generally in Lots of 50 or 100 acres. Such land purchasers received a “Land Order—Rural Land” which then entitled them to a ballot duly held in the new settlement after the arrival of the first official settlers in December, 1850. Subsequent land documents have a reference “RS” and the number that follows records the sequence in which the Orders were taken.

RS 304 is part of the block currently bounded by Papanui Road,

Main North Road, Proctor Street, and Grants Road.

3

BEFORE WILLIAM HORNER’S PURCHASE

There had been considerable legal activity involving the

fifty acres comprising RS 304, between its being originally

selected in 1851 and its sale to William Horner in 1871.

“By Mr Godley‟s advice we selected land situated at

Papanui...At that period the section was a swamp. There being

only about three acres of dry land” So wrote Rev. George

Dunnage‟s son in later years.

The Reverend George Dunnage, chaplain on board the

“Fatima” in 1851, suffered a slight stroke of paralysis on the jour-

ney out from England, and was unable to take up his appointment

of „vicar-elect‟ to St Paul‟s Anglican Church at Papanui. He died

in May, 1853 and was the first interment in the church yard.

The Dunnages were anxious to get settled on their land

selection of RS 304, to erect the house which they had brought

from England. This house became the basis of what became

“Springlands.” (And for its fuller story see the Heritage Booklet

“The Tea Caddy House, Papanui.”)

After Rev. George‟s death, a mortgage to Messrs. Bealey,

Jacobs, and Tancred (significant names in the first days of the set-

tlement) was taken up by Mrs Mary Dunnage, widow, and George

Dunnage, the Reverend having died intestate. The mortgage in-

cluded “a dwelling house and other buildings have been erected

on the said land.”

This mortgage is the first of a whole series of legal activities

involving the holding of this fifty acres.

Then follow—a Settlement for Marriage, a Grant, and a

Clearance of Mortgage— all to enable George (Jnr.) to hold

appropriate title to the property.

Other transactions follow and include the names of

A G Percival, G D Lockhart, and John Studholme.

4

Between 1862 and 1864 the Reverend John Lillie (in some

records Lilley, but the Deeds‟ records and signatures all show

“Lillie”) comes in to the records. John Lillie held a degree of

Doctor of Divinity and was a Presbyterian clergyman.

These records are of a number of transactions which

appear to involve the settlement of a whole chain of matters

of Lillie‟s affairs and transactions, including, in a Conveyance in

1873: “Alfred Cox, formerly of Springlands” as one of the

“Others” .

Before we turn to William Horner and his tenure of the

fifty acres of RS 304 from 1871, it should be noted that some

Deeds‟ records are filed and written up some time after the

original transaction; or there is noted: “no deed was ever

executed” so that it is not always easy to establish a precise

chronological sequence of the land-holders.

However, it appears that after Horner‟s purchase from Cox

(see first paragraph on page two) and taking up a Mortgage of

£2000 in 1873 with solicitors Garrick and Cowlishaw, that they

and Horner effectively, under an extensive Schedule, became

vendors of any sales.

“Lyttelton Times:” December 1, 1863 “Lost, Found, &c” (front page) [Comment: does the D in the signature stand for Doctor?]

5

WILLIAM HORNER—BLACKSMITH

William Horner was born on 9th December 1832 at Pately

Bridge, Yorkshire. On Christmas Day 1855 he married Mary

Proctor. Mary was born 9th July, 1835 at Lofthouse, Yorkshire.

They arrived in Christchurch in January 1859 aboard the

“Clontarf” with two children: James William and Mary Elizabeth.

They eventually had a family of thirteen—7 boys and 6 girls;

twins (a boy and girl) and two daughters died in infancy.

William died 4th August, 1905, and Mary 5th June, 1919.

They are both buried at St Paul‟s cemetery, Papanui.

It is reported that William set up his forge in one of the

caves at Sumner, and bought land in that district, as well as some

in Marshlands before he finally settled in Papanui.

There are accounts of William, certainly a hardy man, walk-

ing from Lyttelton in the morning to Papanui to work in the Bush,

for the day and then walking home again to Lyttelton. Then later,

when he shifted to Papanui, he walked from there to the cave near

Redcliffs where he had a forge.

William had been a blacksmith in England, and continued in

that trade at Papanui. He later opened a produce business as well,

and Church records tell of the Church‟s old schoolroom being sold

for removal for £15 to Mr Horner, it being moved across the road

and in due course having another story added. In 1878 he also

bought for removal the old church which became part of the

blacksmith‟s shop which stood on the site of the Papanui

Memorial Hall. William served in various offices of St Paul‟s

Anglican Church.

He was known as a fine athlete and as being fond of all

sports, especially cricket. It is said that he paid rent on the

Church‟s glebe land for the use of Papanui sports, notably cricket.

He featured in local affairs, standing for the Avon Road Board in

January, 1871, at a time when the Board was in trouble. This

election was declared informal, but subsequently Horner was

elected.

6

His wife, Mary, featured too in the local community. She is

reported as one of those who provided a tray at the tea that

followed the laying of the foundation stone of the second St Paul‟s

church; and was reported to “drive a good pair of ponies.”

7

WILLIAM HORNER—LAND-HOLDER

As has already been indicated, William Horner took over the

fifty acres of RS 304 in 1871. And there are records of other land

-holdings, for example, 150 acres bordering Dudley Creek with

one, Borgfeld. However, we confine our more detailed

account to RS 304.

There are a couple of interesting notes in Deeds that follow

the 1871 purchase.

In the Mortgage he contracted dated June, 1873, with his

regular solicitors Garrick and Cowlishaw, “...and will also keep

insured the dwelling house on the said land now in occupation of

one John Matson and the stables and outhouses attached…”

And in another transaction of the same date is noted that it is

“signed in the presence of Henry Matson,

Estate Agent.”

(Matsons are a significant name in Papanui‟s early days.)

In the Deeds Books‟ records at NZ Land and Information

Office in Christchurch about this time, and referring to RS 304,

there are a number of transactions which seem to indicate arrange-

ments to sort out processes involving Rev. Lillie‟s affairs and

Trustees after his death to enable William Horner to operate with

his Solicitors to enable him to sell sections.

In G.R.MacDonalds‟ “Dictionary of Canterbury Biogra-

phies” he writes “[Horner] offered for sale 100 quarter-acre sec-

tions facing the North Road at the junction of Papanui and Hare-

wood Roads” In the Deed Books a subdivision plan (DRP 3141)

dated 2 December 1880 is a marvellous map showing William‟s

intentions, including giving the streets names of his family:

Horner, (obviously), William (now Wyndham, with an earlier

map, - Sails Land - showing it as James after the eldest son James

William) Mary for his wife, Proctor as Mary‟s maiden name,

Lofthouse (later shortened to Loftus) after his wife‟s birthplace,

8

and Frank after his youngest son.

On 23 July 1873 William Eldred, clerk, paid £30 for the

section on the south corner of Proctor Street, designated as

“Lot 16.” This appears to be the first of the quarter-acre sections

sold.

The next sale was of Lots 3 amd 40 on Horner Street to

James Jackson, butcher, on 10th September 1873 for £85.10.0.

Next sale, of Lot 7, on 31st October was to James Potts,

“Gentleman of Waimakariri” for £42.10.00.

The next transaction is on December 1st, and involved

Henry Matson, Commission Agent; William Norman, farmer;

Clement Carnegie Crymble, Esquire; as trustees in trust for a

Public Library. This was for £30, for lot 15.

Sales of Lots went on quietly through 1874 (10 lots to 6

persons), 1875 (9 lots to 5 persons), 1876-80 (28 lots to 16 per-

sons); among which was Lot 46 for £110 in September 1877,

to John Barlow hotelkeeper of Papanui, which gave him signifi-

cant access: Lofthouse Street, between Papanui Road and Horner

Street, and Horner Street and Papanui Road right through

to Proctor Street.

G.R.MacDonald continues in his Biography of William

Horner, “He had a further subdivision sale of sections in August

1880. These were less than a quarter-acre and brought up to £90.

He averaged £452 per acre.”

And see page 10 for a copy of the full page-length

“Press” advertisement of 14th August, 1880.

To round off William Horner‟s land dealings we quote

again G.R.Macdonald, “His property bounded by Sawyers Arms

Rd., Gardiners Rd., and Claridges Rd., was offered in farm lots of

2½ to 7 acres Aug. „90. It was known as Potters Farm and the

48 ac. sold at £54 an acre. He had another land speculation

when he bought what was known as the Clearwell Estate next to

Matson‟s block on the Papanui Rd. It was 132 acres and he paid

£6500 for it in June „85”

9

Location Map: indicating the early-numbered Lots along

Papanui Road and around into the Main North Road; copied

from the Deed Books plan of William Horner‟s subdivision.

Note the given street names and the strategic location of

“Horner‟s Corner” triangle.

16

15

46

40 3

10

Full page-length (necessarily split) “Press” advertisement

14 August, 1880

11

LAND SALE

At the Land and Estate Salerooms of Messrs. H. Matson & Co.,

on Saturday last, a large number of sections of land in the Pa-

panui township (the property of Mr Wm Horner) were submitted

to public auction. Great interest was evidently evinced in this

most rising suburban town by the very large concourse of peo-

ple assembled, the spacious saleroom being crowded. The

whole of the sections were placed before the buyers for selec-

tion, and the biddings went off with much animation.

The total amount realised £2,607, the total acreage being 5

acres, 3 roods, 3 perches, averaging £452 per acre.

(an extract from the “Press‟ dated 16 August1880)

As the above newspaper reports, there was a moderate

response, and there were further sales after the auction. William

is usually described as “blacksmith” in the various transactions,

however, one in May 1881 refers to him as “wheelwright” in a

sale to a storeman named Henry William Wright.

More Lots were sold over subsequent years and RS 304

gradually dissolved. By 1898 Henry Tisch was living at the then

10 acres of “Springlands.”

William and Mary continued to live in Papanui. He died at

“residence , Middle Heathcote” although his obituary states he

died “at Papanui” in August, 1905. Mary died in June 1919 at

Horner Street. They are both interred in the cemetery at St Paul‟s,

Papanui.

12

Photograph one of the huge pages of a Deed Book at NZ Land Information, Christchurch, showing “Horner’s Fifty Acres” planned subdivision

Compiled and edited by Warren Hudson December, 2008

a PAPANUI HERITAGE GROUP Publication

ISSN 1173-6909 07 (print)

ISSN 2253-4830-07 (online)