New Zealand Pioneers

Tauranga means ‘safe anchorage’ in Maori and is an apt name for this harbour city in the Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. It was named this long before the Pakeha 1 arrived with their tall ships, missionaries and soldiers.

Our tale begins well after The Treaty had been signed, and the land was becoming divvied up. Daring and optimistic pioneers from England arrived to claim allotments, intent to eke out an existence from the new and favoured land, and one such group were Irish settlers.

It was 1879 when ex-Lieutenant Hugh Stewart, his wife Adela and 7yr old son Mervyn first saw Tauranga harbour, its sparkling blue waters and strong current keeping the channel clear. So strong was the current when they arrived that 'The Jocelyn' had to wait the day out till an incoming tide would assist the ship's entry to the harbour. Passengers waited impatiently to get to land, queuing to take a turn on the looking glass, eager to see their new home. They had been at sea for months.

Once ashore the Stewarts did not dally long in the tiny settlement of Tauranga, before taking a craft across the way towards Katikati. They were getting close to finally arriving at the finishing point.
Bright eyes looked at the mangroves and, beyond them, the ferns and scrub trees, trying to make out the lay of the land. There was little clue as to what was yet in store for them, strange birdsong was in the air, bright and colourful sounds mixed with those of the common seagull. Walking knee-deep in the shallows a striking blue-backed bird stopped to silently watch them pass, his beak a vibrant orange. A little fan-tailed bird darted near the Pukekeo, peeping happily as it caught the sandflies it disturbed.
Thankfully they found a sandy beach to pull their craft up upon, unloading all their supplies. Exploring fully had to wait until after they had carted their valuables to a makeshift camp. For the first few months of their New Zealand life, the lived like natives in a Raupo hut.
The couple named their 300-acre farm Athenree, as a tribute to their previous home in Ireland. However, the similarities between their old and new lives ended there. They spent a lot of time planning and preparing the land by clearing scrub and breaking through the root-tangled soil. Although they realized that the soil was poor, they persisted in their efforts and were eventually rewarded for their hard work.
Each night they would fall to sleep exhausted, while listening to the Morepork 2 and Pukekos 3 night-cries.
Life was tough for them as they had to do everything on their own, from farming to constructing houses, making butter, and feeding the workers. They didn't have the luxury of buying things from the market, so they had to produce everything from scratch. It was a small pleasure, however, to enjoy sailing their small boat to Tauranga to trade goods with others or to receive shipments from Auckland and other places.
“You would not believe the price she’s asking for one lemon.” The door to the kitchen was open to air the place out, while there was a dozen bottles of freshly made vinegar waiting to be stowed in the cellar. A years supply, and some to sell. “…just because hers is the only lemon tree in the region, she demands a king's ransom. I tell you, Hugh, it’s just not Christian. When my lemon tree arrives from England, and it must be getting closer by the minute, I am going to let anyone who asks to have a cutting.”4

Some years later, in 1889, the couples’ horticultural efforts received an unexpected windfall, literally. The distant and supposedly dormant volcano Mount Ruapehu flared into life, spewing ash up high into the air. Prevailing winds carried that ash as far as The Bay. Hugh and his men scraped ash up in heaps then used the ash as a fertiliser around plantings, including their new gorse cuttings. Full of minerals it enriched their soil. 5 Adela’s prized lemon tree also got its share.

It was hard work on the farm, and the couple toughed it out for 30 years, they were among the few that made a success. Hugh and Adela established reputations for kindness and hospitality, and for sharing the wealth of knowledge that their hard graft had taught them.

Perhaps her fine education in France was behind her diligent keeping of journals, where their efforts were well documented right down to the recipes she used. After they retired back to England, Adela's memories were transcribed into a book 6 of pioneering memoirs that were later published. Like the woman herself, her book is no-nonsense and to the point, while good at the core.

Adela, by that time a woman of 64, returned from England to attend a celebration of her book with the local community, the town hall decorated with streamers that she never got to see. For, unfortunately, she passed away the very night she arrived back to Tauranga harbour; her safe anchorage evermore.

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Footnotes
1  Pakeha: the indigenous peoples' term for European settlers.
2  Morepork: A native owl that has a distinctive cry that sounds like more-pork.
3  Pukeko: A good-looking bird that doesn't fly much, calls at night as it walks about, causes damage to crops and not very good eating.
4  Dramatised conversation drawn from information in her book
5  Gorse was introduced to NZ to be used as hedging, but quickly got out of control and is now targeted (futilely!) for removal.
6  Her book is available through this website https://www.athenreehomestead.org.nz/