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The Cyclopedia of New Zealand [Wellington Provincial District]

General Government Institutions

General Government Institutions.

Telegraph Office.

Mr. Edward Packer Cowles, the Deputy-Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages, and also Telegraphist, at Foxton, was born at Nelson, where he was educated at the Richmond Boys' School. He entered the Government service as a messenger in the telegraphic department on the 1st of June, 1883, and on the 1st of July, 1886, was appointed assistant to the postmaster at Richmond. Three years later he was appointed to the position of telegraphist at Wanganui, which he held for six months, and was appointed to his present position in Foxton in the month of January, 1890. About 1893 he was appointed deputy-registrar of births, deaths, and marriages for the district. Mr. Cowles is secretary of the local rowing club, a position which he has occupied for three years. He is also a member of the local tennis and cricket clubs. [Since the above was in type Mr. Cowles has been transferred to an important position on the staff of the Wellington Telegraph Office.]

Customhouse.

Mr. Robert Evans, Locker of H.M. Customs at Queen's Bond, Wellington, was born at Limerick in 1846, and was educated at Kilkenny College. Arriving in the Empire City in 1862, he joined the Militia at Wanganui, subsequently becoming a member of the A Troop, Wellington Defence Force, in which he continued till its disbandment. He was superintendent of the local transport service during General Cameron's campaign on the West Coast, and of the River Transport Corps at the seige of Pipiriki. Mr. Evans afterwards accompanied the expeditionary force to Opotiki to avenge the Volkner murder, and subsequently saw active service under Captain Bryce in the Kai Iwi Cavalry. He is a recipient of the Imperial and New Zealand war medals. In 1870 Mr. Evans went to Ireland, remaining two years, and after eighteen months in America he returned to the Colony. In 1870 he was appointed to the office he has since filled. Mr. Evans was married in 1880 to a daughter of Mr E. G. Osgood, late sub-collector of Customs at Jamaica and Trinidad, and has one son and one daughter.

Lands Office.

Mr. J. H. Baker retired from the positions held by him, as noted on page 339, on the 24th of October, 1896.

Mr. J. W. A. Marchant was transferred from the charge of the Canterbury District, as successor to Mr. J. H. Baker in the Commissionership of Crown Lands at Wellington, on the 10th of November, 1896.

Captain Archibald Campbell Turner, Road Surveyor and Officer in charge of the Roads Branch of the District Survey Office, Wellington, is the third son of Colonel C. B. Turnor, K.H. (Knight of Hanover), one of the Duke of Wellington's old veterans. Born at St. John, New Brunswick, educated at Upper Canada College, and brought up as an engineer, Captain Turner was engaged in railway construction in America and on harbour surveys on the Canadian Lakes. After an experience as an ensign in the Brockville Rifles, he came to Auckland by way of England, in the ship “African” in 1862, commencing farming at Epsom. In the following year Captain Turner became sub-inspector in the Colonial Mounted Defence Force, under Colonel Nixon, and saw a great deal of service during the native troubles in various parts of New Zealand. He was on duty at Papatoitoi, and at Ngaruawahia, where he captured a spy disguised as a Maori postman. He had charge of the depôt at Papakura, was present at Tauranga immediately after the Gate Pah disaster, marched to the attack of Potoripi Pah, on the Wairoa River, which, however, was found to be deserted, and took part in the fight at Te Rangi, when a great many of the enemy were killed. Subsequently Captain Turner was page 1502 transferred to the First Waikato Regiment with which he served at a skirmish near Irihanga, and at the capture of Irihanga Pah. Immediately afterwards the natives occupied a piece of bush, from which they fired repeated volleys, and on Captain Turner's calling for volunteers to displace them, a number responded, and with bayonets fixed, under a heavy fire, they charged and captured the position; for this service he was specially mentioned in despatches, and highly complimented in orders. He was present subsequently at the attack on Whakamorama, at the action at Akiaki Pah, and afterwards during the Te Kooti scare. Captain Turner was frequently
Captain Turner.

Captain Turner.

engaged in surveys, the confiscated boundary at Tauranga being laid off by him, under cover of H.M. 12th Regiment. In 1866, on the disbandment of his regiment, he was appointed to the Survey Department, and two years later became District Surveyor at Tauranga. Under cover of armed friendly natives, Captain Turner carried on the survey through the Mangarewa forest, and commenced the construction of the road between Rotorua and Tauranga by 200 men of his armed native contingent. He was subsequently Resident Engineer under the Public Works Department in the Bay of Plenty, and District Surveyor, but had to retire owing to his health failing. On recovery he was appointed Engineer to the Tauranga County Council, which office he held till 1888. A year later he joined the Survey Department in Hawkes Bay, and two years afterwards he removed to Taranaki, receiving the appointment he now holds in 1892.

Mr. George Richard Harbord Ibbetson, C.E., Draughtsman in the Wellington District Survey Office, and assistant to the officer in charge of the Roads Department of Lands and Survey, is the third son of the late Mr. F. H. Ibbetson, Deputy Commissary-General for the Colony. Born in 1851 at Corfu, in the Ionian Islands, he was educated in Auckland, where he arrived in 1864. Entering the Public Works Department in 1872, he worked his way to the position of chief draughtsman, and was transferred to Wellington in 1889. Mr. Ibbetson was married in 1873 to a daughter of Captain Bradley, of the merchant service, and has had eleven children, of whom four daughters survive.

Mr. Charles Thomas Harold Brown, Draughtsman in the Wellington District Survey Office, who is a son of the late Captain C. T. Brown, of the Royal Engineers, was born in 1858 at Woolwich, and educated at Chatham. Arriving in the Colony in 1872 per ship “Halcione,” he entered the Public Works Department, where he continued till 1879, when he joined the District Survey Office as draughtsman. As a Volunteer Mr. Brown served many years, being appointed sub-lieutenant in the Makara Rifles in 1880, and lieutenant two years later. He served till the corps was disbanded, and received land-grant-scrip for his services. In 1886 Mr. Brown was married to a daughter of Mr. S. C. G. Vickers, of Khandallah, and has two sons and two daughters.

Land Transfer and Deeds Registry.

Mr. T. Hall (vide page 341) was transferred to Napier as District Land Registrar on the 1st of February, 1896.

Mr. James Meacham Batham, J.P., District Land Registrar and Registrar of Deeds for the Wellington District, and Examiner of Titles for Wellington and Marlborough, who is the son of a solicitor, is an old Government officer. Born in Kidderminster, Worcestershire, and educated at the local grammar school and privately, he was brought up to the law. Arriving in Wellington in 1864, after a few years' colonial experience Mr Batham became Examiner of Titles for Westland, and subsequently Registrar of the Supreme Court and District Land Registrar, besides other offices. He was transferred to Auckland in 1875, and the following year to Napier, as District Land Registrar and Deputy Commissioner of Stamps. In 1881 he was appointed to Christchurch, and on the 1st of February, 1896, to the position he now holds. In 1878 Mr. Batham was married to a daughter of the late Captain J. J. Symonds, of Onehunga, and has two sons and two daughters.

Railway Officers.

Mr. Frederick Sidney Pope, Traffic Clerk at Wellington Railway Station, is a son of Mr. J. H. Pope, Inspector of Native Schools. Born in 1869 in Dunedin, and educated at the local high school and at Ballarat and Wellington colleges, Mr. Pope entered the Traffic Department as cadet in Wellington in 1885. Five years after he was transferred to the commissioner's office as clerk, becoming traffic clerk at Napier in 1893, and the following year at Wellington. In January, 1895, Mr. Pope was married to a daughter of Mr. J. MacNeil, of the firm of Briscoe, MacNeil, and Co., and has one daughter.

Mr. Peter Charles Smith, Inspector of Cars and Wagons on the Wellington-Eketahuna Section of the New Zealand Government Railways, was born in Gloncester in 1854. Educated at the British School in his native city, and apprenticed for five years at the local car and wagon works, Mr. Smith afterwards worked at his trade in a similar establishment at Birmingham for over two years. In 1874 he came to Wellington per ship “Strath-Navor,” settling in Wanganui, where he put together the first car and built the first wagon under the Public Works Department. Two years later Mr. Smith entered the service of Messrs. Campbell Bros., railway contractors, Dunedin, for whom he worked in Wellington, Wanganui, Foxton, Christchurch, and again in Wellington. Mr. Smith entered the Government service as a carriage builder at the Petone Workshops in 1878, since which year he has continued in the service, receiving promotion in October, 1895, to the position he now holds.

Mr. Arthur Colclough Barlow, Chief Goods Clerk at the Wellington Railway Station, is the eldest son of Sergeant John Francis Barlow, of Ashburton, and was born in Christchurch in 1866. Educated at the public schools at Leeston, Southbridge, and Rangiora, and at the Normal School, Christchurch, he entered the Railway Department as a cadet in the goods office in his native city in 1881. Three years later he was transferred to Timaru, where he remained for six years, during which time he was promoted to the status of clerk, and in 1890 was advanced to the rank of stationmaster at Templeton. In 1891 Mr. Barlow was removed to Invercargill as chief goods clerk, and three years afterwards he took up his duties in the Empire City. During his residence in Timaru he was prominent as a cyclist, gaining three cups, one of which was for the ten mile championship of South Canterbury. As a Volunteer he was for five years a member of the C Battery of Artillery, page 1503 in which he rose from the rank of gunner to that of sergeant. Whilst in Invercargill he was a member of the Railway Fire Brigade, in which he held the office of secretary. In matters musical Mr. Barlow takes great interest. He has been associated with the Anglican Church choirs, also the choral societies in the various places in which he has been located, and at present is a member of St. Peter's Church Choir, and also of Mr. Manghan Barnett's Choral Society.

Mr. A. C. Barlow.

Mr. A. C. Barlow.

Mr. Charles George Edwards, Clerk in the Locomotive Foreman's Office at Wellington, was born in 1875 at Leeston, and was educated at Canterbury public schools. Becoming a cadet in 1890 in the Locomotive Engineer's Office at Addington, he was transferred to the Locomotive Superintendent's Office in Wellington in 1891, and four years later to the Locomotive Engineer's Office at Petone. Mr. Edwards was promoted to the position of clerk in September, 1895, and three months later took up the duties of the office he now holds.

Mr. William Kemp, Engine-Driver on the Wellington Section of Government Railways, is the oldest driver on the line, having been continuously engaged in his important duties for over twenty years. A Yorkshireman, born in 1844 at Hull, where he was educated, Mr. Kemp entered the service of the North Eastern Railway as cleaner in 1858, and until leaving for the colonies in 1874, he gained considerable experience on British lines. After three years he became a fireman, and such was his success in the service that he was promoted to the position of driver before he was twenty. At the time of the strike (1867) Mr. Kemp left the company, and joined the London and South Western Railway Company, in whose employ he continued for two years as fireman and three as driver. Landing in Wellington from the ship “Golden Sea,” he entered the public service as driver during the construction of the line, on which he has since been so well known. Mr. Kemp was married in England in 1866 to a daughter of Mr. Thomas Nowell, of Dewsbury, York, and has one son.

Mr. W. Kemp.

Mr. W. Kemp.

Mr. William Patterson, Engine-Driver on the Wellington-Eketahuna Railway, was born in 1850 in Belfast, Ireland, where he was educated. From the age of fifteen till 1878 he followed a sea-faring life, which he left to settle in Wellington. Joining the public service as cleaner, he became fireman for four years, and was promoted to the position of driver in 1883. Mr. Patterson was married in 1878 to Miss Tierman, of Roscommon, Ireland, and has three sons and three daughters.

Mr. James Hosie, Engine-Driver on the Wellington-Eketahuna Section of the New Zealand Government Railways, who hails from Wishart, Lanarkshire, Scotland, where he was born in 1855, came to Auckland by the ship “Hydasper” (Captain Babot), at the age of nineteen. In 1878 he joined the railways in Christchurch as a cleaner, and six weeks later became a fireman. After six years' service in this capacity, Mr. Hosie was promoted to the position of engine-driver, and since that time he has done duty on the Wellington Section. Mr. Hosie was married in Wellington in 1879 to a daughter of Mr. W. G. Eldershaw, and has five surviving children—one son and four daughters.

Mr. Henry Thomas, Engine-Driver on the New Zealand Government Railways, Wellington-Eketahuna Section, is a native of St. Arvans, near Chepstow, Monmouthshire, where he was born in 1852. He learned his business in Messrs. Brogden and Son's ironworks, Glamorganshire, South Wales, spending some years in the fitting shop, and as driver of stationary engines on the works. In 1877 Mr. Thomas came to New Zealand per ship “Fernglen,” landing in Napier, and entered the public service almost immediately as engine-cleaner. He was promoted in 1880 to the position of fireman; after five years' service in this capacity Mr. Thomas was advanced to the responsible position of engine-driver. He remained a further period of seven years on the Hawkes Bay Section, being transferred in 1892 to the Wellington Section. Mr. Thomas was married in 1876 to a daughter of Mr. T. Davidson, of Aberdeen, Scotland, and has four sons and four daughters.

page 1504
Mr. H. Thomas.

Mr. H. Thomas.

Mr. George Smith, Engine-Driver on the line between Wellington and Eketahuna, hails from Leicestershire, having been born at Lutterworth in 1844. Mr. Smith had a considerable experience on British railways before leaving the Old Country. He entered the employ of the London and North Western Railway Company at Rugby as cleaner, afterwards successively becoming fireman and acting-driver, continuing altogether five-and-a-half years in that company's service. After a similar term under the South Western Railway Company, Mr. Smith came to Lyttelton in the ship “Appeles” in 1873. He spent a short time as driver of a threshing machine in Canterbury, and was also engaged in farm-work, and afterwards for about five years he was engine-driver to the Springfield Coal Company. In 1879 Mr. Smith was appointed cleaner at Christchurch, where he afterwards became fireman, and was at a later date driver of a ballast engine, and later on became night foreman. He was subsequently transferred to Oamaru, where he was appointed spare-driver. In July, 1889, Mr. Smith became driver at Wellington. He was married in England in 1870 to a daughter of Mr. J. Townsend, of Yelvertoft, Northamptonshire, and has a son and three daughters.

Mr. Thomas Broad, Engine-Driver on the Wellington-Eketahuna Section of the Government Railways, was born at Silverstream in 1859, and was educated at private schools. In March, 1879, he joined the Railway Department at Invercargill, and two years later became fireman, being promoted to the position of driver in 1894. Mr. Broad served two years at Invercargill, four years at Riverton, five years at Orepuke, three-and-a-half years at Masterton, and a few months at Wanganui, before taking up his duties at Wellington. In 1883 he was married to a daughter of Mr. Thomas Richards, of Invercargill, bricklayer, and has two sons and two daughters.

Mr. William Makin, Acting Engine-Driver on the Wellington-Eketahuna Section of Government Railways, was born in 1852 at Bolton, Lancashire, England. He reached New Zealand in 1879 per ship “Ben Nevis,” landing in Auckland. In the following year Mr. Makin joined the service in Wellington as cleaner, and after serving as fireman he was promoted to the position of acting-driver in 1886. Mr. Makin was married to Miss Cooper, of Bolton, and has three sons and four daughters.