Author Archives: lytteltonwitch

Wilmers Road in Hornby – Wilmer’s Road is first mentioned in the Star in 1898. Teams were engaged in the formation of Wilmers Road in 1933. First appears in street directories in 1960. Streets in Hornby are not listed separately until then. A small amount of information from the library website. I found the same …

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Doyle Place in Avondale and there wasn’t any information on library website. There are only 8 houses here all built in 1970s and one has been modernised and looked weird. It is possible that this street is named after Arthur Conan Doyle as he lived in Hampshire for many years. I visited his grave when …

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Cowper Place in Avondale – Named after William Cowper (1731-1800). In a subdivision between the Avon River, west of the Bower Bridge, and the northern end of the Avondale Golf Course of a 50 acre farm formerly belonging to Stewart Clendinning Hampton (1908- 1993). Developed from 1969 by Merrit-Beazley Homes Ltd. All the streets are …

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Besant Place in Avondale and there wasn’t any information on the library website. This street runs off Orrick Crescent and the houses were built in 1970s so I was surprised that there wasn’t anything on the library website. I searched Papers Past and Ancestry website with no luck. It sounds like a surname but couldn’t …

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Sheraton Place in Redwood- nothing on library website. I was surprised that there wasn’t any information on the library website as at least half the houses were built in 1980 and the rest in 2000. None of the houses stood out for me but there was one two story place that was OK. The street …

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Grahams Road in Burnside and Bishopdale and Ilam – Named after Douglas Graham (1818-1872). Graham arrived in Canterbury in 1852 and was the manager of John Deans’ cattle from 1854 until his death. Grahams Road was cut through his holding of 141 acres which he leased to William Boag. His home was near the corner …

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Kendal Ave in Burnside – formerly Kendal Street Named after Kendal, a town in the Lake District. Blogg Brothers Ltd. built “half of the streets in the Wairarapa riding including Kendal Avenue and Springbank Street”. Kendal Avenue was one of the first streets in the South Island to have underground reticulation of power and telephone …

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Rembrandt Place in Burnside – Named after Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (1606- 1669). Rembrandt was a Dutch artist. First appears in street directories in 1983. A tiny amount of information from the library website. This street is too new for me to get information from Papers Past. The street runs off Grahams Rd and splits …

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Rubens Place in Burnside – Named after Pieter Pauwel Rubens (1577- 1640) Rubens was a Flemish painter. First appears in street directories in 1987. A tiny amount of information from the library website. Street too new for me to find any information on Papers Past. The street runs off Grahams Rd and is a pleasant …

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Parkham Drive in Burnside – Named after Douglas McIntyre Park (1888?-1968)Park was in business with Mabel Winifred Witbrock (1893-1991). They ran a vegetable market in Bedford Row. First appears in street directories in 1980. Information supplied in 2010 by Ngaire Anne Kelly, granddaughter of Annie Witbrock and niece of Mabel Witbrock, in an interview with …

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