Brenchley Avenue in the suburb of Strowan, Christchurch

Brenchley Ave in Strowan – Named after Brenchley Farm in Lyttelton. Samuel Rollin Webb (1848-1933), a mayor of Lyttelton, at one time owned Brenchley Farm. He retired to 51 Normans Road. Named in 1928. First appears in street directories in 1929.A small amount of information from the library website. There is also a Brenchley Rd in Lyttelton. I am not sure that Samuel Rollin Webb actually owned Brenchley Farm but he certainly lived there. Brenchley Farm was at least 4 properties known as Brenchley Farm and was leasehold land. Samuel Rollin Webb’s father leased part of Brenchley Farm but possibly purchased it eventually under the lease agreement. His son Samuel was living on the property after his father died. The street was named in 1928 and it was the straight stretch of College Ave and Urunga Ave. The council felt that because of the confusion about where Urunga Ave stopped and College Ave began that it was easier to make it a separate street. Not a lot of information on Papers Past apart from birth, death and marriage notices. The street also featured frequently in the various best street, best garden and most beautiful street competitions. Many of the houses here were built in the 1920s and are lovely wooden villas. There is one modern place on the corner of Brenchley Ave and Watford St and it is extremely ugly. I checked street view from a few years ago and there was a lovely 1920s villa on the site. I walked this street over a week ago while geocaching in the area but making the most of a horrible wet day today to catch up on my street project.