Whaka Tce in Huntsbury – formerly Whakakake or Whakakaka Road. Hancock’s Road was an early informal name. Named by Hannah Hancock (1854?- 1950) who said “whakekake” means superior”. Whakekake Road was named in 1923 at a meeting of the Heathcote County Council. Whakakake or Whakakaka Road appears in street directories 1938-1955. Hannah Hancock is the only resident in 1938. From 1957 it is Whaka Terrace.

A small amount of information from the library website. In Papers Past the only Hancock’s Rd I found was a street running off Normans Rd and nothing under that name for this street. There wasn’t anything under the Whakakake Rd. Under the name Whakakaka Rd in 1952 and 1953 there were several ads for the sale of fruit from the Plum Orchard. It was described as being between the sanatorium and the brickworks. Hannah died in 1950 and before her death was living in Canon St in St Albans so I don’t know who was running the orchard. In 1952 a contractor was required to lift and repile two rooms in the old house and apply to the new bungalow on Whakakaka Rd.

Between 1907 and 1922 Hannah Hancock was frequently fined for allowing horses to graze on a public road or for cattle to wander. In 1929 there was a fire in the shed behind the house and the neighbours were concerned for the safety of Mrs Hancock an elderly widow who lived by herself.

In 1975 there was an article by Gordon Ogilvie and the street is described as a narrow strip of housing between Murphy Bros and the old sanatorium. The subdivision dates from 1950s and is on the site of the Hancock’s Estate. The original homestead was burnt down. In 1969 residents objected to the use of coal at Coronation Hospital and in 1977 residents complained about the dog dosing strip. Main objection was the yapping dogs. In 1977 there was another subdivision of 45 sections with possible drainage issues.

I have spent all afternoon trying to figure out Hannah Hancock and her husband. The ancestry website wasn’t any help. In the electoral rolls between 1896 and 1841 she is at the property which is now Whaka Tce but by herself and no husband. She is described as married. In 1946 and 1949 she is living at 133 Canon St which was her address when she died. She is buried by herself. The only time her husband is mentioned is in 1903 when they allowed the Canterbury Highland Rifles camp on their property. Her death notice in 1950 says that she was 96 and the widow of Arthur Hancock. The various family trees on Ancestry say that Arthur Hancock died in Wellington in 1944 yet Hannah was described as a widow in 1929 by her neighbours.

This was another steep street that I walked today and it has a mixture of house styles and still a few empty sections where houses have been demolished. A few houses left from the 1950s subdivision but many houses were built in the 1980s and 1990s. A large number of houses were built after the earthquakes and they are mostly likely rebuilds. None really stood for me. The Whaka walkway goes from the top of the street but I believe that it is just a short one that leads to another street. A big section of the road is one way controlled by lights. The reason for this is a big slip and I believe that it has been like this for several months. The traffic lights amused me as they obviously turn green when they sense a car coming towards them. Walking back down the hill the motion of me walking made the lights turn green.

Mamaku Lane in Huntsbury. It is too new to be on the library website or google maps but weirdly it showed up on apple maps. I didn’t walk the street as it honestly just looked like a driveway to one house. There are apparently 6 houses here all built in 2020. It runs off Woodlau Rise. Mamaku means tree fern.

Woodlau Rise in Huntsbury – First appears in street directories in 1987.

A tiny amount of information from the library website. Nothing about the name of the street on the library website. In Papers Past there was several mentions of a property called Woodlau in Prebbleton. Most entries were from early 1900s and I did wonder if the developer of this street had a connection to the Prebbleton property.

This street runs from Centaurus Rd and once you get to the top there are fantastic views. Most houses were built in the 1980s and 1990s with another burst of building houses between 2015 and 2018. I don’t normally say this when I walk a street which has modern houses on it but I liked this street. There were a few houses that appealed to me and one had a fantastic garden with interesting garden ornaments. I suspect that most houses would be beyond my budget. I would get plenty of exercise walking up and down this street everyday.

Sunhaven Place in Huntsbury and nothing on the library website. I assume that the name is because it is a sunny spot. A tiny street with no footpaths. Only 10 houses here and most were built in 1990s and 2000s. Not really a lot that I can say about it.

Lookaway Lane and Lookaway Place in Huntsbury – First appears in street directories in 1991.

A tiny amount of information from the library website and it only refers to Lookaway Lane as Lookaway Place wasn’t on the library website.

I am assuming that the name comes from the views across Christchurch towards the mountains. Most houses were built in the 1990s and many are huge. I almost missed Lookaway Lane as it looks like a driveway but there are 5 houses there. It wasn’t easy to walk on Lookaway Place and I was frequently forced to walk on the road. Between cars parked on the footpath and low hanging branches it made walking difficult. Still I did have a lovely chat with one of the residents. She had fantastic views from her place. I introduced myself and explained my hobby and that I had walked up from Centaurus Rd. She said that I had a lot more energy than her and she was then shocked to realise that I was older than her.

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.