Shadowlands and Tellynott

Started by Mark Dalrymple, July 04, 2019, 05:24:25 PM

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Mark Dalrymple

Shadowlands and Tellynott

"From the sea for as far inland as the eye can reach, nothing is to be seen but the summits of these rocky mountains which seem to lay so near to one another as to not admit any valleys between them."  Captain James Cook describing Fiordland on his voyage of discovery in 1770.

Jacksons Bay was as far south as one could go along the West Coast of New Zealand before these sheer fjords made the terrain impassible.  It was beautifully located, with the steep slopes of bush clad mountains falling to the coast and enclosed by the southern heads and northern bluffs falling right to the Tasman Sea.  The brave men who attempted to make a life in these stunning but harsh lands were known as 'the far downers'.

As the gold rush of the 1860's gained momentum, the potential of Jacksons Bay as a future hub of the West coast grew.  It was seen as the only real port on the west coast of the South Island and the nearest to Australia, as well as being close to Haast Pass, the lowest pass across the Southern Alps.  The site was surveyed in 1874 and a report sent to the minister of immigration singing its praises, but also stressing that the wise choice of settlers and the construction of a jetty running into deep water were paramount to the settlements success.

Photo 1 - map showing the surveyed plan of Jacksons Bay (Arawata).  A note was added to the map stating that roads may have to be altered slightly to accommodate changes in grade! https://polishhistorynewzealand.org/jacksons-bay/   

More soon, cheers, Mark.

Mark Dalrymple

Investigations were undertaken into the surrounding area to ascertain the bounties available.  From the sea blue cod, kingfish, tuna and crayfish were all found in abundance while the local rivers and streams produced beautiful trout and salmon along with a plentiful supply of whitebait.  the native timber supply was diverse with matai, rimu, totora and kaihikatea all growing in the general area of Jacksons Bay.  In the headlands to the south limestone was discovered while coal deposits were found between Smoothwater Bay and Homing Cove.  South of Arawata clay of extremely high quality and suitable for brick-making was discovered and, with the abundant rainfall and rich loamy clay soil, there was potential for farming.

The government of the day circulated pamphlets describing a land of milk and honey, of chocolate brown soil and beaches littered with gold nuggets.  Free passage was offered to any man who dared to be rich and land was offered at very reasonable rates.  In 1875 the first settlers began to arrive, and the number quickly grew to 600 including 46 children.  The beautiful picture painted by the government was in stark contrast to reality and the first settlers to Jacksons Bay found "a swamp infested with sandflies and mosquitoes, lashed by biblical rains and bordered by a sea of uncommon severity".

Despite the caution of the Superintendent of Westland and the Chief Surveyor, many of the settlers sent to Jacksons Bay had no experience in agriculture or fishing but were instead men unable to find work elsewhere.  A timber mill was built under the assurance that a deep-water jetty would be built, but while the jetty was partially constructed, the pin was pulled and it was never completed.  In fact, a jetty at Jacksons Bay was not built until the late 1930's.  Through governmental neglect the settlement was destined for failure from its very beginnings and by 1927 only nine families and four single men remained in the area - the hardest of the hard - who toiled the land in harsh conditions until slowly, over the years, it relented.

Shadowlands and Tellynott is my story of what might have happened if the jetty at Jacksons Bay had been built when originally intended.  Taking the surveyors plan as a rough guide, over the next 50 years a haphazard town was constructed clinging to the side of the steep hills surrounding the bay.  A rail line was put in to tap into the local resources and bring their spoils to the wharf.  Industries sprung up to process the raw materials when possible.  The gold, of course, did not last, but while it did the town saw vast wealth and boomed.  When it was gone there were enough natural resources in the area to keep things ticking over.  By 1932, when our scene is set, Tellynott is in the midst of a deep depression.

More soon, cheers, Mark.


PaulS

Simply wonderful back story Mark....   And so looking forward to following along as you bring life to your version of the Shadowlands and Tellynott...


--Paul
Modeling the Atlantic & White Mtn Railway

S&S RR

Mark


Fantastic start.  I can't wait to see where you go with this.
John Siekirk
Superior & Seattle Railroad

cuse

I like a good theme. Nice work.


John

ReadingBob

This will be fun to follow along.  Thanks for sharing!   :)
Bob Butts
robertbutts1@att.net

There's a fine line between Hobby and Mental Illness.

Mark Dalrymple

Hi guys.

Thanks for the comments Paul, John, John and Bob - very much appreciated.

I've been meaning to start a fresh layout thread here for ages - I even thought I had!  I hope to get things going in a bit of a sensible order before I start uploading photos of the various projects ongoing at the moment.

Reading up about the history of Jacksons Bay has been very interesting.  There were some fantastic historical accounts...

...women carrying 25kg (55 pound) bags of flour 10 miles through the bush from the closest store in order to be able to make bread, a visiting dentist removing 96 teeth in a single day, a musterer taking a bottle of whisky and a knife into the bush to remove his own tooth, appendectomies taking place on kitchen tables

...any women who had a barrel to catch rain water from the roof was said by her neighbours to be living in luxury!

It sure makes you think we've got it easy!

Anyway - hoping to get a bit more on the progress of S&T (Shadowlands and Tellynott) uploaded over the weekend.

More soon, cheers, Mark.

ACL1504

Mark,

This has really been fun to follow. I'm still reading the Polish History part and looking forward to your future updates.

Tom ;D
"If we are to guard against ignorance and remain free, it is the responsibility of every American to be informed."
Thomas Jefferson

Tom Langford
telsr1@aol.com

GPdemayo

What a grand story and concept Mark.....I'll be looking in on this on.  :)
Gregory P. DeMayo
General Construction Superintendent Emeritus
St. Louis & Denver Railroad
Longwood, FL

Mark Dalrymple

Thanks very much Tom and Greg!

Tom - I put the link in mainly to reverence where the map came from - but if you are finding the history enjoyable...I have pasted my favourite link below.

https://www.nzgeo.com/stories/spring-in-haast/

The information on the Jacksons Bay history is told by an account of fourth generation 'Far Downer' Neroli Nolan and starts part way down the page with the words 'I wake up' in bold.  It is a colourful account filled with great stories and cold hard truth.  Enjoy!

More - hopefully later today, cheers, Mark.