After surviving the three month voyage from Scotland and completing his two year work contract with the Deans brothers of Putaringamotu (Riccarton), Samuel Manson, Canterbury’s first carpenter and father of the first European child born on the plains, must have felt a great pride when he built his own staff quarters on his own land. …
Unfortunately for the British-born Greenwood brothers – James, Joseph and Edward – their hard times weren’t to end with them fleeing from their farm at Purau. Even though it had only been Edward who personally experienced Canterbury’s first ever robbery, none of the three brothers now felt safe on the Peninsula and longed to leave …
On the evening of the 27th June 1846, as carpenter Samuel Manson (builder of the Deans Cottage 1843) was walking home from the Greenwoods’ farm of Purau to Gebbies Pass, three men appeared out of the darkness of Banks Peninsula and knocked on the door of the Greenwoods’ farmhouse. They were known to those inside …
“We have this year more than a dozen apple trees loaded with fruit, a good many plum, cherry and peach trees, all with more or less fruit, and a great many young ones coming on. We have also some gooseberry, currant and pear trees not yet bearing, and a few roots of rhubarb”. – John …
On 5th April 1844, Fredrick Tuckett (pictured), Dr. David Munro and their survey party arrived in Port Cooper (Lyttelton) to view the Port Cooper (Canterbury) Plains for a future Scottish settlement. A plan was made to split the surveyor party in two; one half viewing the plains by walking to Putaringamotu (Riccarton) from Te Waihora …
On 7th January 1844, a daughter was born to Samuel and Jean Manson, at Putaringamotu (Riccarton) on the Port Cooper (Canterbury) Plains. She was the first European child to be born on the plains and her name was Jeannie. Just two years before, her parents had been employed by John Deans back in Riccarton, Scotland. …
“William Deans stood all alone by the only dwelling on the vast plain, watching and waiting to welcome them. As the canoe with its contents could not be brought further up the river on account of the shallows, and the distance being too great for the children to walk, each father and boatman on landing …
For the oldest dwelling on the Canterbury Plains, there is very little written about the intimate details of the Deans Cottage build – not even the actual date was thought important enough to be recorded. All we know – is that it was constructed sometime in the latter half of 1843 from Kahikatea and Matai …
“Having reached the island which Quail Island raises to about 250 ft above the level of the harbour I landed at a shelly beach and ascended the hill in order to correct and complete my sketch. During my walk there I flushed several quail and from that circumstance I gave it the name Quail Island.” …
I’m sure as the schooner ‘Ballet’ sailed down the east coast of the Middle (South) Island from Port Nicholson (Wellington), William Deans leaned against the deck railing and watched the passing coastline with great interest. He was aboard Captain Edward Daniell’s schooner as an approved stow-away and he held great hopes for what he might …
