Sergeant's Hill was originally a gold mining district, from the terraces of which a large amount of gold was taken in years gone by and a small amount of gold mining is still carried on. The name, however, is now known chiefly as that of a tablet signal station on the Westport-Mokihinui line of railway, and the Westport racecourse is but a few hundred yards from the siding. The district is in the Wareatea North riding of the county of Buller, in the electorate of Buller, and in the provincial district of Nelson. There are a few small farms in the settlement, but the population of the district was not separately tabulated at the census of 1901. Sergeant's Hill is four miles in a north-easterly direction from Westport.

Buller Gorge.

Mr. John Shannon , Officer in charge of the Railway Tablet Signal Station, at Sergeant's Hill, was born in Christchurch, in the year 1878. He was educated at Kaiapoi, and entered the railway service in the Addington workshops, where he remained page 190 for eleven years. Mr. Shannon, owing to ill-health, was transferred to the traffic department of the railways, as officer in charge at Sergeant's Hill. As a volunteer he was for two years a member of the Christchurch Engineer Corps, and was a member of the Christchurch Football Club. Mr. Shannon married, in the year 1901, and has one son and one daughter.

Railway Hotel (J. T. Monigatti, proprietor), Sergeant's Hill. This hotel was acquired by Mr. Monigatti in the year 1886. It is situated near the Sergeant's Hill railway siding, and the Westport racecourse. The accommodation is good, and the best liquors are kept. There is also a stable in connection with the establishment.

Mr. John Thomas Monigatti , the proprietor of the Railway Hotel, is also a dairy farmer and sawmiller, and has a sawmill at Giles' Creek. He was born in Switzerland in the year 1846, and went, in 1860, to Australia, where he successfully followed the gold diggings at Bendigo, North Gippsland. Mr. Monigatti subsequently came to New Zealand in 1864, and was engaged in goldmining for some years. He afterwards worked at pit-sawing, and took contracts for road, bridge, and timber supply work. Mr. Monigatti became the proprietor of the Railway Hotel in 1886, and supplies a large amount of mine timber from his sawmill at Giles' Creek. He is a member of the local school committee. As a Freemason, he is a member of Lodge Aorangi, Denniston, No. 89, New Zealand Constitution, and is a steward of the Westport Jockey Club. Mr. Monigatti married a daughter of the late Mr. C. Moore, contractor, Onehunga, in the year 1880, and has five sons and three daughters.