Cabbage Close in Halswell – Cabbage Street – William “Cabbage” Wilson, was Christchurch’s first mayor. He has significant links to the Halswell area, being an owner of the quarry between 1872 and 1886. William was a politician and nurseryman. He was known as “Cabbage” because he used to wear a hat made out of cabbage.
A reasonable amount of information from the city council minutes about the naming of several streets in a subdivision.
I couldn’t find any information on Papers Past about William Wilson being an owner of Halswell Quarry apart from in his obituary in 1897. He never lived in the Halswell area and if you want to know more about him read my write up of Bedford Row. He had been bankrupt at least twice and charged with fraud at least once. He was a nasty violent man who frequently beat up his wife.
I decided to walk the streets here after a letter to the editor in The Press on 12th May 2023. The letter writer was complaining about the name of this street. This street is so new that it isn’t on any maps and there aren’t any houses here yet. It was only a couple of months since I was last in the area and at that stage the area was fenced off and part of Kennedys Bush Rd was only one way and controlled by lights.
Lytteltonwitch's Walking the streets of Christchurch Project 