Barrington Street in the suburbs of Addington, Spreydon and Somerfield, Christchurch

Barrington Street – Formerly Wilderness Road. Named after Wilderness, the home there of John Parker Marshman (1823-1913). Re-named Barrington Street. Named after the maiden name of Louisa Edith Simeon, née Barrington, (1790- 1847), mother of Captain Charles Simeon (1816- 1867). She was the daughter and heir of Sir Fitzwilliam Barrington (1755- 1832), 10th Baronet Barrington of Barrington Hall, Essex. Charles Simeon’s four sons, Philip, Algernon, Geoffrey and Hugh, were given the middle name of Barrington, in honour of their maternal grandfather whose male line expired on his death in 1883. Marshman was an emigration agent and head of the provincial railways in the 1870s. Wilderness Road is first mentioned in The Press in 1871. The 25 May 1912 newspaper article says all the property from the Heathcote bridge to what became Barrington Street was once known as Wilderness Farm and was owned by Lord Lyttelton. Re-named Barrington Street in 1885 at the request of Messrs Harman and Stevens on behalf of Sarah Jane Simeon, widow of Capt. Simeon, She said that as there was no longer a property named Wilderness there was no point in retaining the name. The next month the Board was asked to alter street signs accordingly. Captain Simeon purchased Rural Section 154, land in Spreydon. He held the office of Resident Magistrate at Lyttelton and Christchurch at different times. He was also the first Provincial Treasurer after local government had been granted to the provinces and was elected speaker on the opening of the Provincial Council in 1853. Originally ran in a direct line from Lincoln Road to the hills, but motorway construction in 1980 caused alterations in parts of Barrington, Jerrold and Edinburgh Streets and Taramea Street (now Place), resulting in Barrington Street meeting Lincoln Road at Whiteleigh Street.

A huge amount of information from the library website. I found the same information about the name change of the street on Papers Past. For a few years both names were used. The article from May 1912 was interesting. The information about Marshman’s home Wilderness and Wilderness was a bit confusing but after a lot of reading on Papers Past plus searching ancestry website I figured it out in my head. I didn’t find out who owned the land where Wilderness / Wilderness Farm was situated was probably owned by Lord Lyttelton as it was leasehold land. John Parker Marshman was there in 1854 before moving to Avonside area. Then a Stephen Kimber leased the land in the 1860s until he purchased his own land out at Greenpark. The next person was Cordner but he went bankrupt in 1872. Several ads for tenders for the lease in 1872 and instead of the normal 7 year lease they were offering a 14 year lease. The next person to hold the lease was John Grigg but it looks like he employed a manager Mr Straw. Before Mr Straw the manager was T Lowe. Confused.

This street is a long one and part of it I walk frequently.. It starts at Lincoln Rd, goes past Addington Park, then houses until Barrington Park, Spreydon Library and Barrington Mall. Several shops in the Barrington Mall area. The parks and Mall are all on one side of the road whereas the other side is mostly houses with an occasional business. The road ends at Cashmere Rd by the Heathcote River. Hohepa Home is at this end. The main entrance to Cashmere High School is at this end. The houses are from every possible decade and there are still some older wooden villas on the street. I was amused at one part where several houses had exactly the same dark blue painted trims. There was at least one toilet block style of house. On the opposite side there were two or three houses with exactly the same green painted trims. This is a very busy main road.