Halcombe's Diamond Jubilee

Manawatu Times, Volume 62, Issue 57, 9 March 1937, Page 3

Halcombe's Diamond Jubilee

Celebration This Month EABLY‘ DAYS RECALLED. This month the Halcombe Public School attains its 60th year of existence and to mark the occasion the school and district interests have combined to celebrate by way of a diamond jubilee gathering. The history of Halcombe is largely that of the history of Feilding which in turn finds a paramount place in the history of the purchase and settlement of tho Manchester Block in 1874. Halcombe was an off-shoot of the principal settlement of the Block— Feilding—and under tho original scheme !of settling the vast area of laud purchased by the Colonists’ and Emigrants’ Aid Corporation, the township of llaicombo was planned to como into being simultaneously with the settlement of Feilding, but many difficulties cropped up to prevent Mr A. W. F. Halcombe, after whom the township is named and who was tho Corporation’s agent, from putting into execution his idea of settling the land .from three different centres. These centres were to be Feilding, as the principal, then Halcombe and tho third Ashhurst.

Tho background of Halcombe’s history, therefore, was traced out before tho first immigrants actually arrived in Feilding but the scheme i?fiich seemed to offer many practical advantages turned out to bo impracticable mainly for the reason that the original settlers were completely ignorant of the conditions and generally incapable of applying themselves to the tasks that confronted them. Despite the encouraging efforts of the Corporation officials to inspire confidence in the immigrants and to illustrate to them the possibilities of striking out and develox>ing the land in accordance with tho scheme of Air Halcombe, it w r as found impossible to proceed and the birth of the township of Halcombe was accordingly delayed while the settlement of Feilding was concentrated upon. The Corporation was called upon to face up to many problems and had not only to contend with the settling of the immigrants in Feilding as well as the multitudinous other duties which the great task involved, but were also engaged in disputes with the Government of the day over the major question of immigration, it was not until almost two years after the original settlement of Feilding that the question of the creation of another township, that of Halcombe, was taken up and then the development of the general settlement scheme was to a largo degree influenced by the progress of the railway work.” “It was the aim of the Corporation to make every provision for this settlement so that tho immigrants to be placed there would not have to experience the same difficulties as were encountered at Feilding,” states Air T. A. Gibson in his history of the ‘ * Purchase and Settlement of the Alanchcster Blpck.” The site was favoured by a better natural setting than Feilding, more picturesque, less rough, better soil conditions, an absence of swamp grounds and insect pests such as afflicted the earlier arrivals and Air Halcombe contemplated tho new township becoming the principal one of the Block. Elaborate preparations were made to receive the first settlers who arrived in the township from Wanganui travelling through the Kangitikei district. They arrived at Wellington in the ship Waipa and travelled to Wanganui in the old coastal steamer Stormbird. Under charter to the Colonists’ and Emigrants’ Aid Corporation tho Waipa actually brought out 13 families, aggregating 68 souls, or as the ship’s manifest recorded, ‘‘s2 statute adults.” Tho families-were Air and Mrs Thomas Nichols and five children; Mr and Mrs Alex Dowden and eight children; Air and Airs Win. Havord and two children; Mr and Airs Joseph Heappey; Mr and Mrs Wm. Heappey and three children; Mr and Mrs Joseph Samuel Fowles; Air and Mrs Thomas Milton Frampton and four children; Air and Mrs James Alfred Page and two children; Mr and Mrs James Wise and four children; Mr and Mrs Thomas Broad and one child; Mr and • Airs Noah Spicer and six children; Mr [ and Mrs Edward Child and seven children; and Mr and Mrs John Graves.

j Wanganui in those days was covered with scrub and the immigrants who stepped off the Stormbird found themselves facing manuka scrub ten feet high. They then set out on their journey to the ‘‘land of promise”—Halcombe. In heavy wagons they made what paee the road conditions provided and the first stop was at Turakina. Thereafter tho journey became rougher until they were faced with fording tho ltangitikei river and wending their way along tho track to tho settlement and its cottages. As was the experience of the original settlers at Feilding, the newcomers found Halcombe far from what they had conceived it to bo and many became depressed. However the pioneers of the township went about the .work of developing the district and a I party of Germans who came out in tho ship Fritz .Reuter opened up the land by purchasing a block of 1400 acres. , Among the German residents were: 'Johann Horne, August Wisclmowsky, Carl Wischnowsky, August Natzke, Otto /ischuowsky, Hermann Koho, Charles /app, Behrendt, Rudolph Noffke, arl Wapp, Ferdinand Jonskie, Wilhelm .reegher and others. Halcombe also had its Danish settlers, tome of the well known names being; J. P. Andersen, A. P. Andersen, P. Rasmussen, J. Rasmussen, H, P. P.etergen, H.

Hansen, H. C. Madsen, H. C. Jensen, J. I*. Hagaard, C. Nielsen and H. P. Sorensen. The iirst store to be opened was owned by Mr Hash who, at iirst, conducted his business in a tent. Before long other businesses wero opened, among these being: Mr C. London (butcher), Mr W. Williams (blacksmith and wheelwright), Mrs Hastie (hotel-koeper), Mr It. I. C. Birch (carpenter) and Mr Foster (cooper). Tho iirst child born in lialcombe was Fauny Haleombe Heappey, now Mrs A. Clark of Marton. By the end of 1876, the settlement boasted its iirst church, erected by the Methodists. Previous to this ovent, religious worship had been conducted in the open air.

Tho members'of the Lutheran church, who had at first conducted their services in the residence of Mr Carl Wapp, built their church in 1878. lu 1877 the first school was erected, the first teacher being Mrs Estall. An important event in the history of the village was the advent of the railway, the line to Wanganui being through on April 4th, 1878. Mr Marcus was the original stationmastef, the porter being Mr Holmes. There were, at that time, quite a few sawmills in the district, Mr Lash owning one on the property now occupied by Mr August .Kreegher, while Mr Alec Bell ran mills on Stanway road and Mangaone road. The late Air C. Managh had tho contract for carting timber from the AJangaonc road mill, largo drays being used for the work. These drays were frequently bogged and extra horses had to be employed to pull them out. Another sawmill was that conducted by Bartholomews, of Feilding. In commemoration of the approaching jubilee the committee in charge of the arrangements have published au interesting booklet giving the history of the settlement and from which some of the foregoing account of Halcombe’s history, has been extracted. The preparation of this booklet was undertaken by Mr M. C. Amadio who has compiled an interesting permanent record of the township’s development and progress. The chairman ot' the jubilee celebration committee is Mr E. W. Cowdrey and the secretary Miss Violet Wilson, while Mr Robert Fergussou is the patrou of the organisation. Proceedings are to commence on Alarch 19th when a jubilee luncheon will be held and to which all ex-pupils of the school and their wives, as well as ex-settlers are invited.