Bunyan St in Waltham – Named after John Bunyan (1628- 1688) Bunyan was an author who wrote Pilgrim’s Progress. 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. Bunyan Street is first mentioned in the Star in 1886 in a report of a meeting of the Sydenham Borough Council. First appears in street directories in 1913.A small amount of information from the library website. I haven’t read Pilgrim’s Progress since I was a teenager. Papers Past had the usual lots of birth and death notices. In September 1886 the street was declared a public street. Several entries for 1886 and it was all about a complaint from Robert Thomas. It started in June of that year after Robert Thomas had flood issues on his property. In November 1886 Robert Thomas claimed that the flood damage was caused by the uncleaned state of the drain and requesting £10 compensation. In December 1886 the Drainage Board refused to recognise liability for the damage caused by the stoppage of Jacksons Creek. At the end of 1886 the Drainage Board and the Sydenham Borough Council were blaming each other for the flooding issues. In 1911 sections were sold from the estate of the late Robert Thomas. In 1924 Bunyan St was included in a housing scheme for the city council. The saddest articles were in 1932 about Charles Bernard Robbins who along with another man died on a tramping club trip. Another man was injured and all three were school teachers. Charles Robbins was a teacher at Waltham School and it sounds like it was a huge funeral. They were all members of the Christchurch Tramping Club. Not exactly sure where this happened as one article said Mt Rosamund and another article said it was Mt Rolleston. I walked this street last Friday. Waltham Park is partly bordered by this street. A few older houses from 1910 onwards but most are from 2016. There is an entrance to the housing complex St Martins Green here and lots of building work happening here. I suspect if I went back in a couple of years that there wouldn’t be any older houses left on this street. Some of the older houses are in a reasonable condition. The street runs from Waltham Rd to Buffon St.

Buffon St in Waltham – Named after Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (1707-1788)Buffon was a French naturalist, mathematician, biologist, cosmologist and author. 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 in 1887.A small amount of information from the library website. Papers Past as usual for these older streets have many death notices and one stood out for but only because of the surname. In 1940 Mrs Penhalluriack died and I have no idea how to pronounce it and it looks like a Cornish name to me. In 1882 a house was destroyed by a fire but in 1893 2 houses were destroyed by fire plus another one damaged in the same fire. In 1886 the residents were asking for channelling on the street. The Devon Bakery was mentioned in 1897 and it was also mentioned in 1923. The bakery was owned by S D Besley and I found an obituary for him in August 1925. Sam Dixon Besley was born in Bampton, Devon and he died in Lewisham Hospital a few days after an operation. S D Besley came out to NZ in 1891 and he started the bakery business in 1895 with his sons. He left a widow and six sons. I found an entry for 1955 where an old 5 room cottage and disused brick bakehouse was sold at auction. In a letter to the editor in 1926 there was a complaint about schoolboys and girls being a nuisance at night with being noisy and using bad language. This was happening at Edwards corner opposite Besley’s Bakery on the corner of Buffon St and Bunion St. Bunion St amused me as it should be Bunyan St. The writer added that the behaviour was more suitable to a port town. This Lyttelton born person objects to this writer’s attitude. John Brightling a contractor for the removal of the city’s rubbish was in 1900 charged with allowing offensive matter to be deposited on his land. His property must have been bounded by both Buffon St and Bunyan St as I found the same information for both streets. In 1929 a car accessory business increased the size of it’s factory due to the demands for the product. I walked this street on Friday and there are a few older houses but there is a huge number of dwellings built in 2016. On the corner between Bunyan St and Vienna St there was a big complex of housing. This complex is called St Martins Green and is built on an industrial site was was destroyed in the earthquakes. There is a house from 1890 on this street but it was hidden behind a high fence.

Edited to say that the industrial site was PDL and I remember when it was Urlwin Ltd. When I checked google maps I realised which business was there but hadn’t realised that it went so far back to the other streets. Harry Charles Urlwin left London at the age of 16 and came to New Zealand. I couldn’t find much information online about the business when Harry Urlwin owned it. Stewart Robertson who owned PDL purchased the business and Stewart Robertson started out at Urlwin Ltd until he branched out on his own. My uncle who lived on Humboldt St worked at this business.

Bond Street in Waltham – formerly Little York Street. Little York Street first appears in street directories in 1908. Re-named Bond Street on 1 September 1948 when120 streets were renamed.

A small amount of information from the library website. Not a lot of information on Papers Past. In 1928 there was a meeting to discuss exempting the street from road widening. In 1938 it was tar sealed. In the 1940s onwards the Opawa Baptist Church Hall was mentioned as being on the corner of Wilsons Rd and Little York St. It was also called Baptist Mission Schoolroom. It was a bit confusing as in the 1920s and 1930s this building is described as being on the corner of Hastings St and Wilsons Rd. Looking at the map of 1929 solves the mystery as the map shows Hasting St crossing Wilsons Rd to meet Little York St. Little York St was a tiny street that ran off Hassals Lane. It now runs from Hassals Lane and curves around to Wilsons Rd. Nothing in Papers Past about this change to the street. In 1961 there were several ads for buying new houses that had been built on the street. Out of the 20 properties on this street about 7 or 8 of them were built in 1960s. There are 3 ugly houses built in 2018. There is the most gorgeous wee cottage from 1890 and it is near the Hassals Lane end. There is no longer a church hall here and where it would have been are new houses. I walked this street yesterday on that very windy day and I was amused to see that No 7 had 007 on the fence.

Westby Street in Waltham – Named after Westby Brook Perceval (1854- 1938). Perceval, a lawyer, was the Member of Parliament for Christchurch 1890-1891, and agent-general for New Zealand in the United Kingdom from 1891. First appears in street directories in 1912.A small amount of information from the library website. Very little information on Papers Past. The residents agreed to the street being widened in 1928 and gave land for this. In 1930 it was recognised as a public street. I suspect that there was originally only two or three houses here and they were on big sections. I walked this street yesterday and it is a lovely wee street. There are only 9 properties here and two date from 1910 and another from 1920. Then there is one from 1950, one from 1960, one from 1980 and then two from 1990. One modern house from 2016. If you want to read more about Westby Brook Perceval I covered him fully when I wrote up Percival Street.

Eastern Terrace in Sydenham and Beckenham – Runs along the bank of the Heathcote River. First mentioned in The Press in 1911 when land is advertised for sale there. First appears in street directories in 1916.A tiny amount of information from the library website. There was less information on Papers Past than I expected. In 1914 there was talk about forming a track on Eastern Terrace between Corson Ave and Norwood St in the suburb of Fisherton. Also in 1914 the road along the Heathcote Riverbank to be renamed. The part between Norwood St to be Western Terrace and the part between Norwood St and Wilsons Rd to be Eastern Terrace. I checked the 1929 map and Western Terrace was where Waimea Terrace is situated. Eastern Terrace on the same map runs from Birdwood Ave to Tennyson Street. The part of the road from Tennyson Street to Wilsons Road on the map said it was Fifield Terrace. A bit different to the council renaming information. The street now runs from Birdwood Ave to Waltham Rd / Wilsons Rd.In 1924 there was money allotted for building houses for the city council housing scheme. The year 1930 was busy for entries on Papers Past. There was concern about the outlets of the ponds which drain into the river from Beckenham Park being in a dangerous state and should be covered. The same year there was flooding on the street. In 1939 there were complaints about the rubbish pit concerning the smell. There seemed to be a lot of rubbish pits in the Sydenham area. I walked this street yesterday and it was a very windy day. I stayed cleared of any trees. The houses here range from the dates of 1905 to 2019. Many were built in 1950s and 1960s. One of the modern houses had an Art Deco look and the genuine Art Deco house looks a bit shabby. I love the street art on the toilets in Beckenham Park. It would be a pleasant street to live on if it wasn’t for the flooding risk. This street is on the higher side of the river and many of the houses should be safe from flooding but not the street itself. If I lived here I would get myself a kayak.

Roxburgh Street in Sydenham- formerly Regent Street. Regent Street first appears in street directories in 1931. Re-named Roxburgh Street on 1 September 1948 when 120 streets were re-named. A small amount of information from the library website. I didn’t manage to get much information from Papers Past apart from death notices. There were so many Regent Streets and Roxburgh Streets that I had to use Sydenham and Beckenham in my search so I probably missed information. I narrowed my search down to four newspapers and still there were so many entries. There was a Regent St in Woolston and it wasn’t helped that New Regent Street was called Regent Street. In 1934 a butcher was fined for breaches of the Butcher’s Award and failing to pay overtime and false entries in the time and wages book. In 1960 a house was purchased to be the vicarage for the parish of St Saviour. They were looking forward to when the new church was to be built on the land adjacent to new vicarage. I walked this street on Friday and the street runs off Colombo St. At the Colombo St end there is the church and a shop. Next to the church church there is a house connected to the church called St Anne’s House. Only 27 properties here and most were built in the 1930s. Many of the houses from the 1930s are lovely. The modern houses from 2017 and 2019 are ugly and don’t fit with the rest of the houses on the street. Looked like a lovely street to live on.

Hume Street in Sydenham- Named after David Hume (1711-1776). Hume was a writer on religious topics. 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 in 1892. Approval was given by the council for the street to be extended to Eastern Terrace in 1957.A small about of information from the library website. As usual Papers Past had lots of complaints about the state of the street in the 1880s and 1890s and in 1887 the council said that that couldn’t carry out the work requested by the residents as it is a private street. In 1892 Mr Ringwood complained about the nuisance near his property. The council promised to talk to the drainage board about the dumping of sewage in a pit on the street. The business Waltham Vineyard was mentioned several times and in the 1870s was referred to as Lord’s Vinery. James Narcarrow purchased the business in November 1879 after it was put up for auction as Thomas Lord was returning to England. The same year in the July Thomas Lord died in Adelaide. The vineyard was auctioned again in January 1895 as a mortgagee sale and James Narcarrow was a bankrupt. The vineyard was near Messrs Innes Brewery, In 1898 the vineyard was available to let. In 1901 there was talk of widening the road and then not many mentions apart from birth and death notices until 1957. In 1957 Hume St was extended to meet Eastern Terrace. I walked this street on Friday and some of the street seemed pleasant enough. A mixture of houses with the oldest dating from 1905. A large number from 1970s and 2000s. The houses from 2021 are ugly but then we all know that I don’t usually like modern houses. As you get closer to Austin Street there is the back wall of the Alto Packaging factory. Nearby on the opposite side is another business called Clovelly Gardens which as the name suggests it sells garden products. I will confess when walking past it I didn’t realise what type of business it was so it obviously didn’t stand out for me. Let’s be honest I don’t really do gardening type of activity or even housework type of activity.

Gilbert Place in Sydenham – Named in 1957. Not a lot of information from the library website. Only one entry on Papers Past and it was that a small cul de sac off the western side of Hume St and has been named Gilbert Place. This street is between 72 and 80 Hume St. I searched ancestry website to try and find anyone with the surname Gilbert living on Hume St but had no luck with this. I walked this street yesterday and there are only 15 houses here and there is a new one being built on the corner. A couple were built in 1950 and one in 1960 but the rest were built in 1970 apart from one from 2017. A reasonably pleasant street but no outstanding houses except for the one with the interesting decorations on the house and fence.

Faraday Street in Sydenham – Named after Michael Faraday (1791-1867). Faraday was an English chemist and physicist, also writer and lecturer. 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. [It is mis-spelt in the report of the committee as Farraday.]

A small amount of information from the library website. Papers Past had several birth, death and marriage notices for the street. In 1883 the ratepayers living on the street wrote to the council requesting that the council take over the street and undertake to do the repairs. There were the usual drain issues in 1884. In 1896 the Sydenham Lawn Tennis Club opened their season at their court in Faraday St. In 1904 after the council purchased land at the back of Faraday St they closed the right of way that led to Milton St. Several articles about this and the Works Committee investigating the matter claimed that the right of way was legally only available to the occupiers of the land that the council had purchased. One of the petitioners against the closing of the right of way had taken legal advice and that because it had been opened and used by residents for over 20 years that it couldn’t be closed. There was mention of an agreement dated 1871.In 1954 Bruce Monk a plumber was fined for using his premises as a workshop. In 1958 there were complaints about a building where two young men had began a plumbing business. Council said that the business had now moved to Industrial Site B and that the building was only to be used for garaging of cars. I walked this street on Friday and it just looks like an entrance to the shops beside the street. There are no longer any houses and no street sign saying Faraday St so I had to keep checking the map on my phone to see where the street was. I believe there is still a council storage yard behind the street but it is well and truly fenced off.

Rogers Street in Sydenham – Named after Samuel Rogers (1763-1855). Rogers was a poet. 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 in 1908.A small amount of information from the library website. As usual there were many death notices in Papers Past. In 1885 the residents objected to the widening the street. In 1887 it was the 50th wedding anniversary for Mr and Mrs Wakefield. In 1890 there was a death notice for William Wakefield late of Kelso, Scotland. A shop and attached house on the corner of Rogers St and Huxley St had a minor fire in 1913. The road was tar sealed in 1941 but in 1957 water from stormwater drain started eroding the earth and gravel under the tar sealing on the corner of Rogers St and Waltham Road. Another article said that there were four big holes and a truck when turning the corner sunk into the road. A bus also sunk into the hole. I walked this street on Monday and walked it today as well as I had parked my car nearby on Waltham Rd. This street runs from Huxley St to Waltham Rd and there are some lovely houses here. They cover most decades from 1905 to 1990 plus a couple of more recent houses. There is still a shop at the corner of Huxley St and Rogers St plus a fish and chip shop. Technically the Early Learning Centre is on Hume St but the colourful fence is also on Rogers St. The fish and chip shop also had a bit of street art. I feel that I should know this street from when I was a child and it is possible that we drove down it to get to my uncle’s house on Humboldt St. I liked most of this street.