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Policing in Malvern
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TitlePolicing in Malvern
DescriptionA police presence in the Malvern district was originally established in the mid- 1860s, to support the safe transit of gold on Cobb and Co coaches from the West Coast to Christchurch. Police were stationed at Bealey, Cass, Annat and Courtenay on the coach route.
The construction of the Midland railway required the ongoing police presence at these stations due to the large numbers of transient workers engaged to carry out the work through the difficult terrain.
There was a police presence in Coalgate from 1872 to 1957 to support the South Malvern area. The construction of the Lake Coleridge power station meant that in the early 1900s there were significant numbers of workers in this area from this time.
The first court sessions were held in Darfield from 1895 in the Courthouse in Currie Street. The Court house was opposite the Malvern County Council Chambers building, which was constructed in 1912. This building remains today, but has a tenuous future.
The courthouse, possibly constructed 10 years before the first court sessions, was removed to be used as a farm storage shed on the property of Gordon Dennis at Glenroy in 1964.
The first non-commissioned police officer in New Zealand, Sergeant John Nash, was appointed to be stationed at Westport in 1886. Prior to this commissioned soldiers were engaged to perform the role of police as a part of the New Zealand constabulary force.
Six Constables were known to be responsible for the Malvern district from 1870 to 1909. They were stationed at Annat which was the railhead at the time. The constables were proficient horsemen and were fully kitted as mounted police.
In 1909 the police renamed the Annat station as Sheffield and proposed an extension to the station, which was never actioned.
The Darfield police house, stable and jail were constructed in 1915, and the closure of the Sheffield / Annat police station marked the establishment of a regular police presence in Darfield instead.
In the late 1960s a schoolhouse was constructed on the Darfield courthouse site, to house a secondary school teacher.
In Darfield, a small brick police station was constructed in 1964 on the front of the police section and a new house built in 1978 . In 1990 the jail building was relocated to the east end of the police section behind the police garage at 14 North Terrace to allow the construction of the current larger station, which opened in 1991.
Growing up in Darfield in the 1960s my memory of Paddy Larmer (the local constable from 1950 to 1971) was that he was a big fellow, rarely attired in a police uniform. He wore a knitted jersey and sports jacket, with a felt brimmed hat firmly tilted on his head, rather than a police issue helmet.
His preferred mode of transport was his bicycle with his Humber Snipe motorcar only being deployed when he was required to travel further afield to perform his duties.
Paddy, as his predecessors had done and those that followed have emulated, integrated into the community and contributed to the district in many ways, outside of their police brief.
In the 1960s I believe the jail may have housed a few local drunks for an overnight stay. But it served more as a threat to wayward children: Paddy would be called in to accommodate them if they did not comply with their parent’s wishes.
The Darfield jail building or lockup as police called these, was relocated to its current position on South Tce as a community project in 2011.
DateJuly 2025PhotographerMatt WilliamsLocationDarfield
DescriptionA police presence in the Malvern district was originally established in the mid- 1860s, to support the safe transit of gold on Cobb and Co coaches from the West Coast to Christchurch. Police were stationed at Bealey, Cass, Annat and Courtenay on the coach route.The construction of the Midland railway required the ongoing police presence at these stations due to the large numbers of transient workers engaged to carry out the work through the difficult terrain.
There was a police presence in Coalgate from 1872 to 1957 to support the South Malvern area. The construction of the Lake Coleridge power station meant that in the early 1900s there were significant numbers of workers in this area from this time.
The first court sessions were held in Darfield from 1895 in the Courthouse in Currie Street. The Court house was opposite the Malvern County Council Chambers building, which was constructed in 1912. This building remains today, but has a tenuous future.
The courthouse, possibly constructed 10 years before the first court sessions, was removed to be used as a farm storage shed on the property of Gordon Dennis at Glenroy in 1964.
The first non-commissioned police officer in New Zealand, Sergeant John Nash, was appointed to be stationed at Westport in 1886. Prior to this commissioned soldiers were engaged to perform the role of police as a part of the New Zealand constabulary force.
Six Constables were known to be responsible for the Malvern district from 1870 to 1909. They were stationed at Annat which was the railhead at the time. The constables were proficient horsemen and were fully kitted as mounted police.
In 1909 the police renamed the Annat station as Sheffield and proposed an extension to the station, which was never actioned.
The Darfield police house, stable and jail were constructed in 1915, and the closure of the Sheffield / Annat police station marked the establishment of a regular police presence in Darfield instead.
In the late 1960s a schoolhouse was constructed on the Darfield courthouse site, to house a secondary school teacher.
In Darfield, a small brick police station was constructed in 1964 on the front of the police section and a new house built in 1978 . In 1990 the jail building was relocated to the east end of the police section behind the police garage at 14 North Terrace to allow the construction of the current larger station, which opened in 1991.
Growing up in Darfield in the 1960s my memory of Paddy Larmer (the local constable from 1950 to 1971) was that he was a big fellow, rarely attired in a police uniform. He wore a knitted jersey and sports jacket, with a felt brimmed hat firmly tilted on his head, rather than a police issue helmet.
His preferred mode of transport was his bicycle with his Humber Snipe motorcar only being deployed when he was required to travel further afield to perform his duties.
Paddy, as his predecessors had done and those that followed have emulated, integrated into the community and contributed to the district in many ways, outside of their police brief.
In the 1960s I believe the jail may have housed a few local drunks for an overnight stay. But it served more as a threat to wayward children: Paddy would be called in to accommodate them if they did not comply with their parent’s wishes.
The Darfield jail building or lockup as police called these, was relocated to its current position on South Tce as a community project in 2011.
DateJuly 2025PhotographerMatt WilliamsLocationDarfieldConnections
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Policing in Malvern (July 2025). Selwyn Stories, accessed 27/05/2026, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/6943