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Early Section Buyers in Town of Selwyn
Description
TitleEarly Section Buyers in Town of Selwyn
DescriptionIn September 1862, Burnell, Bennett & Sprot, a Christchurch auctioneering firm, first advertised sections in the Town of Selwyn.
The advertisement claimed that Selwyn’s “position is high and commanding, with an abundant supply of water, making it healthy and agreeable.
This with its ready access to the coal districts, its fertile soil, its facility by the railway and telegraph for communication of every kind with the main cities of New Zealand……”
In September 1864, a further advertisement claimed that the town was “in the heart of the finest agricultural land in Canterbury…. The auctioneers confidently recommend it as one of the best investments now in the market.”
They went on to say that that the streets have been accepted by the Provincial Government and reserves made for municipal purposes and a railway station.
“A large number of sections are applied for by men of business, who are prepared to erect stores as soon as the railway works are commenced.
The auctioneers claimed that 85 sections had been sold and 34 sections applied for, of the 167 sections of the first subdivision.
Data from the Deeds Books affirms that 57 sections had been officially transacted by the end of 1864.
A report was published that the first buyers were speculators and bought large numbers of sections.
In fact the vast majority of buyers up to 1867 bought either single sections or a pair together.
The early buyers were not going to make a “quick buck” however as of the 9 people who bought sections in 1862, and the 15 in 1863, all retained their sections in 1866, according to the Rates Book data and a comparison of the 1866 and 1868 Rates Books showed very little change of ownership.
It would seem that many of the 1862-3 buyers were wanting somewhere in the country for a retreat as there were 9 who described themselves as esquire/gentleman, 8 merchants, and 1 of the following: architect, blacksmith, carpenter, chief surveyor, gardener, hotel keeper, labourer, post master, solicitor. Of the 62 people involved in land transactions in the 1864-9 period, only 7 were esquire/gentleman, 6 merchants, 5 farmers, 3 booksellers, 2 innkeepers, 2 commission agents, 2 labourers, 2 store keepers, 2 spinsters and one of each of the following: adjutant of militia, architect, barman, blacksmith, brewer, carpenter, draper, ironmonger, livery stable keeper, master marina, saddler, solicitor, veterinary surgeon, widow and writing clerk.
Among the people who bought sections were well known names such as Thomas Cass (chief surveyor) and Benjamin Woolfield Mountford (the architect of many famous Canterbury buildings) who had his surname listed as Woolfield.
Of 95 who gave their place of residence in the period 1862-69 only 3 were from overseas, 3 from Wellington, 3 from Selwyn and the rest from Christchurch/Lyttelton/Kaiapoi.
There was no rush to build on the sections as the Rates Book of 1868 states that all the sections were “waste” i.e. had not been cultivated and only two buildings, a stone bakery and a blacksmith were recorded, but no houses.
Mike Noonan
Dunsandel Historic Society
Date19 January 2023SourceThe Ellesmere EchoLocationSelwyn Village
DescriptionIn September 1862, Burnell, Bennett & Sprot, a Christchurch auctioneering firm, first advertised sections in the Town of Selwyn. The advertisement claimed that Selwyn’s “position is high and commanding, with an abundant supply of water, making it healthy and agreeable.
This with its ready access to the coal districts, its fertile soil, its facility by the railway and telegraph for communication of every kind with the main cities of New Zealand……”
In September 1864, a further advertisement claimed that the town was “in the heart of the finest agricultural land in Canterbury…. The auctioneers confidently recommend it as one of the best investments now in the market.”
They went on to say that that the streets have been accepted by the Provincial Government and reserves made for municipal purposes and a railway station.
“A large number of sections are applied for by men of business, who are prepared to erect stores as soon as the railway works are commenced.
The auctioneers claimed that 85 sections had been sold and 34 sections applied for, of the 167 sections of the first subdivision.
Data from the Deeds Books affirms that 57 sections had been officially transacted by the end of 1864.
A report was published that the first buyers were speculators and bought large numbers of sections.
In fact the vast majority of buyers up to 1867 bought either single sections or a pair together.
The early buyers were not going to make a “quick buck” however as of the 9 people who bought sections in 1862, and the 15 in 1863, all retained their sections in 1866, according to the Rates Book data and a comparison of the 1866 and 1868 Rates Books showed very little change of ownership.
It would seem that many of the 1862-3 buyers were wanting somewhere in the country for a retreat as there were 9 who described themselves as esquire/gentleman, 8 merchants, and 1 of the following: architect, blacksmith, carpenter, chief surveyor, gardener, hotel keeper, labourer, post master, solicitor. Of the 62 people involved in land transactions in the 1864-9 period, only 7 were esquire/gentleman, 6 merchants, 5 farmers, 3 booksellers, 2 innkeepers, 2 commission agents, 2 labourers, 2 store keepers, 2 spinsters and one of each of the following: adjutant of militia, architect, barman, blacksmith, brewer, carpenter, draper, ironmonger, livery stable keeper, master marina, saddler, solicitor, veterinary surgeon, widow and writing clerk.
Among the people who bought sections were well known names such as Thomas Cass (chief surveyor) and Benjamin Woolfield Mountford (the architect of many famous Canterbury buildings) who had his surname listed as Woolfield.
Of 95 who gave their place of residence in the period 1862-69 only 3 were from overseas, 3 from Wellington, 3 from Selwyn and the rest from Christchurch/Lyttelton/Kaiapoi.
There was no rush to build on the sections as the Rates Book of 1868 states that all the sections were “waste” i.e. had not been cultivated and only two buildings, a stone bakery and a blacksmith were recorded, but no houses.
Mike Noonan
Dunsandel Historic Society
Date19 January 2023SourceThe Ellesmere EchoLocationSelwyn VillageConnections
CollectionHistory of Town of SelwynOrganisationDunsandel Historic Society
OrganisationDunsandel Historic SocietyAttribution
Researched ByMike NoonanWritten ByMike Noonan
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Early Section Buyers in Town of Selwyn (19 January 2023). Selwyn Stories, accessed 10/11/2025, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/5373
