QUAINT PLACE NAMES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 140, 16 June 1930, Page 6

QUAINT PLACE NAMES.

Many quaint and peculiar place names arc written across the maps of Westlau'd and .those of the adjacent West Coast territories, all sturdy survivals of the "stirring 'sixties." In those spacious days a digger's rightful surname was soon obscured by a carelessly bestowed sobriquet, hence Dirty Mary's Creek, Pretty Woman's Gully, Jimmy-Come-Lately Flat, Gentle Annie, The Fiery Cross, Iledjacks, and many others —good outstanding names that nowadays invariably intrigue the imagination of the visitor. Alas, they are sometimes misleading as to the personalities of the pioneers whose memories they perpetuate, for Dirty Mary was a scrupulously clean woman whose constant admonitions not to dirty the clean floors and spotless linen of her immaculate boardinghouse led to the nickname. Pretty Woman's Creek and gully are situated near Hokitika. The lady was well known on many goldfiekls. In 1858 at Kangaroo Creek, then later at The Dunstan, at Pelorus Sound, at the Grey and Hokitika and at Charleston. When the coal was first opened out on the Grey River "The Pretty Woman" kept a shanty a short distance from the scene of Dobson's murder by the Burgess Sullivan ' gang of bushrangers. Jimmy-Come-Lately, when just plain Jim, obtained a job in a Canterbury woolshed. Already a Long Jim, a Short Jim and several other Jims were there and so for distinction he was called Jimmy-Come-Lately, a name that followed him to the Coast and now is on the map of Westland. Gentle Annie was the name given to a packer who used to steady his pack marc with the oftrepeated "Gentle, now gentle, Annie." The name Fiery Cross might conjure up visions of the oldtime Highlanders' call to arms—"While clamorous war pipes yelled the gathering sound, and while the Fiery Cross glanced, like a.meteor, round" — but its origin is le'Ss romantic. Donald Cross, the prospector, earned the nickname from his red hair and, brightly rufus beard.

In the early 'sixties when the rush at Redjacks broke out the country surrounding was soon all under eager exploration and a rich find of gold in the Ongionui Creek' was made in June, 1804. Shortly afterwards a surveyor (Mr. Blackctt) and his assistants made a visit of inspection to the newly-opened field. While- tho party was passing along a short ierrace that overlooked the gold-bearing creek one of the surveyors, suddenly espying a few tents below, exclaimed. "There is the township!" Mr. Blackett, on beholding such a sparse display of canvas, said, "Oh, there is no town!" and afterwards reference was made to this "No Town Creek." However, shops and hotels quickly replaced the tents and quite naturally the place became known as No Town. In course of time the Midland Railway came through the district and the nearest station was called Notawn Road. Two adjacent creeks that yielded much gold—Sunday Creek and CandlelighttCreek—crystallise in their names the'story of their discovery, one on the Sabbath Day and the other at night, when a long line of diggers, their tortuous journey through the dark bush slightly aided by the faint light of candles in cut-off bottles, made their way to the latest rush. Besides No Town other names of a negative nature recur to the writer. Several streamlets flowing into Antonio's Creek near Reefton were all more or less auriferous with the exception of one babbling brook that enters the larger stream near Flower Creek, and in consequence named .No Gold Creek. No blossoming banks suggested the name of Flower Creek; it was called after one George Flower, an early digger. The surname Flower has a peculiar origin, dating back to tlw days of archery, for "flo" at one time was p, familiar term for an arrow, and the "floer," or "flower," was principally engaged in feathering the arrows. Antonio's Creek perpetuates the name of Antonio Lardi, a pioneer prospector. Down near the Franz Joseph Glacier there is a Streamlet known as No Go Creek, reminiscent of some vain attempt to penetrate the mysteries so carefully guarded by its rugged banks! Then there is No Name Creek. The inevitable mushroom township sprang up but the surveyor was pf.uck for a name. Happily by anagram, "No Name" made into Nemona and' the word remained on the map to puzzle Maon scholars.■ —W. P. PAYNE. I