Quarters Place in Halswell – Named after the old stone cottage where many of the Halswell Quarry workers lived and which still remains in its original state. In the Quarry View subdivision. The developers submitted street names having a connection with the Halswell Quarry, its location and its product. Named in 2012. A small amount of information from the library website. At first I read the library description incorrectly and thought that they meant that the old stone cottage is actually on this street. The stone cottage is at at Halswell Quarry and I have visited it several times. This street runs off Findlay Ave and there is still houses being built here. A couple are occupied and I quite liked the house which used stone within the design.

Prospect Place in Halswell – too new for library website. This street runs off Provincial Rd in the new subdivision Quarry Park. At the end of the street was a walkway to what looked like a reserve. The houses are very new here and at least one or two looked occupied. The name relates to the Quarry. The street is too new to have any history.

Bellows Close in Halswell- too new for library website. I will confess that I didn’t actually walk this street as it is so new that they are still building houses here and the footpath and road was blocked with vehicles belonging to the builders. The name of the street is fairly obvious as most names in the subdivision Quarry Park relate to quarrying. This tiny street runs off Tempering Drive.

Hastings Street in Waltham and Sydenham- Formerly Gordon Street and Andrew Street. May have been named after two Sydenham Borough councillors of the time. Re-named Hastings Street and later Hastings Street East and West. Darwin Street was named after Charles Robert Darwin (1809- 1882). The purchase of Gordon Street was discussed at a meeting of the Sydenham Borough Council in 1882, reported in the Star. Andrew Street is also mentioned in a report in the Star of another meeting of the Council in 1879. Gordon Street first appears in street directories in 1887, running off Waltham Road; Andrew Street appears the same year running off Colombo Street. Gordon Street was re-named Hastings Street in 1909. Andrew Street was re-named Hastings Street in 1916. Darwin Street is first mentioned in the Star in 1883 in a report of a meeting of the Sydenham Borough Council. First appears in street directories in 1887. Re-named Hastings Street in 1916. It became Hastings Street East and West in 1991.A reasonable amount of information from the library website and there are mistakes in this information. The mistakes really confused things. Papers Past had lots of birth and death notices. I spend a lot of time looking at the maps of 1912 and 1929. The map of 1929 had it has one long street but the map of 1912 had four different names for the street. The library website have muddled up Gordon St and Andrew St. The map from 1912 has Hastings St from Colombo St to Cadogan St, then Ree St from Cadogan St to Burlington St, then Andrew St from Burlington St to Waltham St and finally Darwin St from Waltham Rd to Ballance St. Note Ballance St is now York St and the map of 1929 doesn’t show Hastings St going to York St and it finishes at Little York St which is now Bond St. In 1887 Gordon St is mentioned as being just off Colombo St. It looks like there was another Gordon St in Linwood near Cashel St. The Star of Sydenham Lodge of Oddfellows had a newly erected hall in Gordon St in 1909 but in 1910 onwards all mentions of this hall was that it was in Hastings St. There must have been an orchard selling apples here in 1910 as there were a few ads in Papers Past. I couldn’t find any mention of a Ree St or Rees St in Sydenham and it was possibly an informal name. In 1880 there was a boarding house in St Andrew’s St near Reece’s store. A couple of entries as St Andrew’s St but by 1883 it was Andrew St. In 1887 Andrew’s St is described as being off Gasworks Rd which is the old name for Waltham Rd. Very little information about Darwin St on Papers Past except for sections being for sale in in 1887 and 1909. I walked this street on Friday and it is a long street. A huge mixture of styles and there are a couple of older houses from 1890 plus one from 1880. A few from 1905 to 1920 but most are from 1970s onwards. Many are multi dwelling style of housing plus there is a social housing complex on this street. There is supposed to be a small park called Hastings Park near Burlington St but I don’t remember seeing it. I suspect that the social housing complex has taken over the park. At the Colombo St end there are shops. On the corner of Cadogan St and Hastings St there is a B & B and it is in an older house and is gorgeous. I could possibly live the Waltham St end of the street but I didn’t really like this street.

Vienna St in Waltham- Part of Thackeray Street. Named after William Makepeace Thackeray (1811- 1863). Re-named Vienna Street. Named after the city of Vienna because Thackeray supposedly had connections with this city In 1981 the Brougham Street expressway extension cut several streets in two. One of these was Thackeray Street. The council decided to change the name of the southern part of the street to Makepeace Street after Thackeray’s middle name but residents objected as they thought the name would be open to ridicule. Vienna Street first appears in street directories in 1987.

A reasonable of information from the library website. I have already written up Thackeray St and the library don’t mention that Thackeray St used to be a longer street. Waltham school is on Vienna Street and it held it’s 50 year jubilee in August 1941. In 1891 the school is mentioned as recently being opened and by 1892 it was already overcrowded. In 1893 there were discussion about additions to the school. The school was closed for a short while in 1934 because of the measles epidemic. There are still a few houses dating from 1880 and 1905 but most date from 1970s onwards. A mixture of styles and some I liked. There is a wee walkway through to Brougham St here. Near this walkway there are some unusual looking apartments and they go all the way to Cecil Place.

Hassals Lane in Waltham – Named after Thomas Maberly Hassal (1834- 1879). Hassal lived at The Oaks in Opawa. First appears in street directories in 1892.A small amount of information from the library website and this street is now considered to be in Waltham rather than Opawa. Very little information on Papers Past. A couple of ads for someone selling a car and someone looking for a servant. It sounds like the house The Oaks was demolished in early 1960s and probably was between York St and Ensors Rd. In June 1961 there was a letter to the editor from N E Avery pointing out the mistakes in the report about the demolition. I couldn’t find this report but it must have claimed that Joseph Martin Heywood owned the house. N E Avery’s mother was born in the house and was the third child of Thomas Hassal. After Thomas Hassal died the trustee of the estate was Joseph Heywood on behalf of the Hassal family. This was very common especially if the person who inherited property was a woman. Thomas died in October 1879 of rheumatic fever and he was only 45 years of age. His widow would have been young with a young family which is why a trustee would have been appointed. The letter also said that Thomas Hassal purchased the house from a French family. The previous owner was a member of the Le Fleming family who were from England and one of those came over with William the Conqueror families. The house was let in 1880 and then again in 1900 on a long term lease. Frank Egan leased the house from 1901 but I am not sure who owned the house by this stage as Allan McLean seemed to eventually have a connection to the house. I walked this street on either Friday or Saturday. Just checked photos and I walked it on Friday. That is the trouble when you walk a lot of streets in the same area over a two day period. The street runs from Wilsons Rd to just past York St. Going by google maps there is a walkway that takes you all the way to Ensors Rd but this has been blocked off. Not many houses on this street with a couple from each decade of 1960, 1970 and 1980. A couple of ugly ones from 2015. The place that I liked wasn’t because of the house but because of the garden. The artwork in the garden was fantastic and I had a lovely chat with the owner. At the end of the street where I came to a dead end because of the walkway being closed off there was a sign saying Seven Oaks School. Slightly confusing as this school is out in Halswell. Apparently the school leased the property until the school in Halswell was built. There is another school on the property called Te Kura Kaupapa Maori O Waitaha but I couldn’t tell if it is open or still being renovated. On the same grounds there is supposed to be a Free Theatre but I thought this group were in the Art Centre. The Free Theatre called themselves Waldheim at Seven Oaks and their website said that Waldheim is the Germanic version of Waltham and means home in the woods. When I googled Waltham it only gave me some place in the US and gave the same meaning that the Free Theatre had on their website. The UK Waltham is in Lincolnshire and is much older than the one in the US. Waltham in the UK said that Waltham is an Anglo Saxon word and Walt means woodland and ham means village. They also gave an alternative origin of the word and is possibly from the old English word of Wealdhant. It was an interesting street even if the houses didn’t do much for me.

Korimako Lane, Karoro Lane and Hoiho Lane and these lanes are too new to be on the library website. They are probably private lanes as well but the signs didn’t say this. There are 90 houses here built by Otautahi Community Housing Trust and Brougham Village used to be here. The housing complex was only opened at the beginning of this year. The residents have access to ebikes and electric cars. Korimako is our bellbird. Hoiho is the yellow eyed penguin and Karoro is the black backed gull. The complex is built in a block bounded by Brougham St, Burlington St, Hastings St and Waltham Rd. The units actually look OK but I didn’t actually walk these lanes for safety reasons. There was a murder here in April plus recent assaults so I erred on the side of caution.

Goldsmith Place in Waltham -Oliver Goldsmith Street and Goldsmith Street. Named after Oliver Goldsmith (1728-1774). Goldsmith was the author of The Vicar Of Wakefield. One of the “poets and writers” streets of Sydenham, Addington and Waltham named by a committee of the Sydenham Borough Council on 19 January 1880. First appears in street directories as Oliver Goldsmith Street in 1887. Becomes Goldsmith Street in 1892 and Goldsmith Place in 1983 when the Brougham Street Expressway was put through. A small amount of information from the library website. What a boring street as there was practically nothing on Papers Past apart from death notices. No complaints or drainage issues. The street used to be longer but got cut in half by the motorway. I walked this street on Friday and went through the tiny walkway from Brougham St. The oldest house is dated from 1880 but it is just a square box. I never thought that I would ever say this but the most interesting houses were the ones built this century.

Domett St in Waltham – Formerly Goethe Street. Named after Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749- 1832). Re-named Domett Street. Named after Alfred Domett (1811- 1887). Goethe was a German playwright. Goethe Street is first mentioned in The Press in1886. First appears in street directories in 1911. Re-named Domett Street in 1917 at the request of residents. There was public dislike for German names during and after World War I. Domett was a journalist, politician, public servant, Premier and writer. A small amount of information from the library website. A few birth, death and marriage notices on Papers Past. Many reports about the petition for renaming the street in 1916 and 1917. Residents objected to the Teutonic name of their streets especially as neighbouring streets rejoice in names from great figures of British literature. Councillor McCombs argued against the name change and he pointed out that Goethe was Prussian and he lived when Prussia was an ally of Great Britain. He was outvoted. Council agreed to rename the street and renamed it in honour of Alfred Domett an English born New Zealand poet who was Premier of colony for a little over a year and he was a friend of Robert Browning. In 1900 there was another mention of Brightling’s gravel pit and the dumping of rubbish. It looks like Brightling’s property covered a big section between Bunyan St, Buffon St and Domett St. I walked this street on Friday and it is a short street that runs from Wilsons Rd and Bunyan St. Waltham Park is on one side of the street and 15 houses on the other side of the street. The oldest house is from 1910 and several from 1990. Waltham Park on the 1929 map has the name Opawa Park.

Cecil Place in Waltham – Horsley Street and Cecil Street. Probably named after Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne Cecil, 3rd Marquis of Salisbury (1831- 1903). Horsley Street was re-named Cecil Street on 31 October 1898 at the suggestion of Harman and Stevens. Probably re-named to continue the theme of “poets and writers” streets of Sydenham, Addington and Waltham named by a committee of the Sydenham Borough Council on 19 January 1880. Maps in 1983 street directories show Cecil Street split into two, the section between Brougham Street and Shakespeare Road becoming Defoe Place and the section between Hastings Street and Brougham Street becoming Cecil Place. A small amount of information from the library website. The only mention of Horsley St was when the street was renamed in 1898. I did find a Mr J Horsley who was superintendent of Sydenham Methodist Sunday School until he resigned in 1914. There is also a place in England called Horsley. There was also an English artist John Horsley who died in 1903 and credited with the painting of the first Christmas Cards. In 904 there was a letter to the editor complaining about the state of the street and that they were better off with the Borough Council rather the the Greater Christchurch Council. Apparently one side of the street was partly asphalted and the other side had weeds two foot high. In 1928 Fowler and Son applied to the council for permission to erect a brick building for storage of petrol on the block of land bounded by Shakespeare Rd, Waltham Rd and Cecil St. The application was refused for safety reasons. Cecil Street was a lot longer until motorway was built and it is now Cecil Place. I walked this street on Friday and there are only 11 houses here and the ones from 1905 and 1915 are lovely. There is an entrance to Tommy Taylor Courts here which is city council housing and built in 2001. The traffic noise from Brougham St would put me off living here.