Brickworks Lane in Huntsbury – Named after the brick makers who operated in Centaurus Road. Wigram Bros., maltsters & brickyards, operated there from 1886. Their business was taken over by the Murphy Bros. (Chch) Ltd, brick and drain pipe manufacturers in 1924. Their premises were on the intersection of Port Hills Road (later Centaurus Road) and Whakakake Road (later Whaka Terrace). In 1928 Charles Thomas Trebilcock (d.1974), journeyman bricklayer, operated on the site where Brickworks Lane was later developed. Brightling’s Brick Works were near the intersection of Port Hills Road and St Martins Road. First appears in street directories in 1991.

A reasonable amount of information from the library website and I was slightly confused at first as I thought that Henry Bland Kirk was on this site. A quick check on Papers Past and T N Horsley had taken over Henry’s business and then in 1903 T N Horsley and Wigram Brothers amalgamated. The new company name was The Christchurch Brick Company. I am not sure what Charles Trebilcock has to do with it as he was just an employee.

The houses here date from 1980 onwards and I liked a couple of them but well above my budget. The footpath was on only one side of the street and we all know how much I dislike this.

Austin Kirk Lane in Huntsbury – Named after Austin, Kirk and Co., owners of the Farnley Brick and Tile Works. John Austen (1824- 1903), William Austen (1835-1910), Thomas Austen (1844-1918) and Henry Bland Kirk (1842-1927) owned the first of the local brickworks to produce domestic wares. They operated from a site in Port Hills Road (later re-named Centaurus Road) 1875-1888. First appears in street directories in 1987.

A small amount of information from the library website and there are mistakes in it. I don’t know why they spelt the brothers surname as Austen as it was Austin. It was John Austin who died in 1910.

The history of the business got very complicated and involves at least one bankrupt person, a possible falling out amongst brothers and a failed bank. The business was named Farnley after Farnley Iron Company near Leeds in the UK where Henry Bland Kirk had worked. The Christchurch company was mostly producing clay drainage pipes then the government offered a bonus for producing pottery household goods. In 1881 the company started producing crockery and other items. In 1888 when the Colonial Bank failed the partnership between Henry B Kirk and the Austin brothers was dissolved. In 1890 the Farnley Brick and Tile Works was reopened by Mr H B Kirk under his sole ownership.

In 1906 there were complaints about the smoke from the brickworks because of the consumption sanatorium being so close. The company had at least two more owners before they stopped using this site. This street is where the business used to be situated and the property website say that there are 6 houses here. I was so sure when I walked it yesterday that there were more houses than that. Real estate ads promote it as being close to schools but one ad was promoting an over 60s unit.

It was a steep wee street that runs off Centaurus Rd.

Sepia Lane in Huntsbury and nothing on the library website. This is a steep wee street that runs off Centaurus Rd. Most houses were built in 1990s and 2000s. At least one house was advertised as an over 60s unit but the rest promoted being convenient to the nearest school.

Bowenvale Ave in Cashmere – Named because it runs through Bowenvale which in turn, is named after Charles Bowen (1804-1871). Bowen, an original land purchaser in 1850, bought Rural Section 82, 50 acres on the “south bank River Heathcote, foot of hills”. He was the first Speaker of the Canterbury Provincial Council but eventually returned to England. First mentioned in The Press in 1923 when it is reported that the Bowenvale Residents and Ratepayers Association had asked the Heathcote County Council to install drainage facilities along Bowenvale Avenue. First appears in street directories in 1923.

A reasonable amount of information from the library website and I suspect that they have managed to muddle up the father and son as it was the son who was the first Speaker of the Canterbury Provincial Council. Who actually purchased the land is also a bit confusing going by the information in the book Place Names of Banks Peninsula and the Port Hills by Gordon Ogilvie. The first section was purchased by C Bowen and the title deed has Reverend Christopher Bowen on it. Charles Bowen senior the same year purchased a large block of land in Fendalltown. The son was Sir Charles Bowen of Middleton Grange.

Papers Past was no help in this situation and neither was the ancestry website. In the 1920s there were many entries referring to it as Bowen’s Valley. In 1925 the Mildren brothers had purchased the Bowenvale quarries but couldn’t find out more about the quarry. There were sections for sale in the 1920s and one ad confused me as it said corner of Bowenvale Ave and Port Hills Rd. I went checking maps and Centaurus Rd used to be Port Hills Rd. Most entries on Papers Past related to the many market gardens on this street. There must have also been a sheep farm here as well because in 1929 there were complaints about mobs of sheep being driven down the road.

The market gardens are now all gone and have been replaced by houses. There was a recent article only a few weeks ago where there are apparently plans to build another 50 plus houses at the end of this street. I don’t know how it will affect the walking track but I believe that the mountain bike track has already been closed.

The houses here date from every decade from 1920s with a big increase in houses from 1990s onwards when the various market gardens were sold off. So many different styles of houses and the ones from the 1920s weren’t obvious. As usual some of the modern ones were fairly ugly.

Matthams Lane in Cashmere and this lane doesn’t seem to actually exist. There are 6 houses here but the addresses for them are 44 Bowenvale Ave. They are B, C, D, E, F and G. There is a sign post for this lane and it is on google maps. There is even street view for the lane. There is a map on the council agenda for 2004 showing the lane but it isn’t on any other official websites. Real Estate agents have the Bowenvale Ave address with Matthams Lane in brackets. I am assuming that it is named after a person because of the s at the end of the name.

Wedgewood Ave in Cashmere – formerly Wedgwood Avenue.Named because the developer was very fond of Wedgwood china. First appears in street directories in 1972 where it is spelt correctly. From 1981 it is mis-spelt as Wedgewood Avenue.

A small amount of information from the library website. Most entries on Papers Past in 1970s were ads for either sections or ownership flats. Both spellings for the street were used and in April 1977 under Council Special Order the street known as Wedgewood Ave was renamed Wedgwood Ave. The renaming obviously didn’t work as maps, signposts and official websites still use Wedgewood Ave. There was a problem with flooding in 1976 caused by Sibleys drain. Most houses here were built in 1970s and 1980s and for some reason many are in pairs. I quite liked the street but Sibleys drain does put me off. The drain seems to start at the top end of Bowenvale Ave and follows Bowenvale Ave for a while and then cuts through the back of some properties. It eventually ends up at the river.

Sunvale Tce in Cashmere and nothing on the library website. Papers Past mostly had ads for sections in the 1970s and as they were all described as sunny elevated sections this is possibly the reason for the name. Most houses were built in the 1970s and 1980s but there are two houses from 1940 and one from 1950s. I did like the house from the 1950s and it looked more like a lovely 1920s wooden villa. There was another house that I assumed was very modern which I couldn’t decide if I liked or not. From the front it looked very ordinary but from the side it had a strange angle that I quite liked. When I checked it out I realised that it was probably from the 1980s and had been empty for 7 years after the earthquakes. It was sold as a ‘As is where is’ property. This was a very common thing after the earthquakes. At the start of the street there is a reserve and a playground. It is also a steep wee street to walk up and there is a footpath on only one side of the street. I did still quite like the street.

Rockcrest Lane in Cashmere – Named to reflect the topography of its site.A right-of-way which rises steeply off Bowenvale Avenue. Named in 2000

A tiny amount of information from the library website. Only three houses here built in 2000 and I didn’t walk this street. There wasn’t a footpath and it definitely felt like someone’s driveway.

Plumwood Lane in Cashmere and there wasn’t any information on the library website. Because of how close it is to Fineran Lane I suspect that it was part of the property that belonged to the Fineran family. Where I searched Papers Past about Charles Fineran there were several mentions of the plum trees on their property. I didn’t actually walk this street as there wasn’t a footpath and it looked like a driveway to just a couple of houses. I was surprised to find out that there were 12 houses here that were mostly built in the 1990s.

Oakview Lane in Cashmere and nothing on the library website. This street would have been named because of a view of an oak tree or there was a market garden here with that name. The houses here were mostly built in the 1990s.