Name: Waldegrave
Suburb, Palmerston North Central
This street is named for Mr John James Waldegrave, who owned the land. Mr JJ Waldegrave put through nine chains (chain = 66 feet/20.12 metres) from the Cuba Street end in 1875, D.P. 22, section 306. Twenty-seven years later, his son, Mr Charles Edward Waldegrave, extended the road through to Featherstone Street (later Featherston Street), D.P. 1441, section 297.
The image is a derivative of this Palmerston North Borough map from 1923 by HR Farquar, Civil Engineer and Licensed Surveyor.
Mr J Waldegrave was born in 1834 to Mr Daniel Burton and Mrs Susanna Waldegrave of Lincolnshire, England. Their second son, he emigrated to Sydney, Australia, in the 1850s.
There he met and married Sydney native, Miss Frances “Fanny” Eagar, who was born in 1826. While the date of their marriage is unknown, their eldest son was born in Sydney in 1853. In 1854 the couple arrived in Wellington, Aotearoa New Zealand, on the barque Koh-i-noor.
They had five children; Henry Richard b.1853, Charles Edward b.1855, Frank Geoffrey Burton b.1857, Arthur John b.1862, and Julia Mary b.1864.
Mr J Waldegrave first went into business in Wellington, as a sales agent importing foodstuffs and small goods. From the early 1860s he farmed dairy livestock on 200-acres at Pahautanui. In 1871 Mr Waldegrave sold the farm, and the family moved to Palmerston North.
In Palmerston North the Waldegrave’s settled on a farm in Fitzherbert east, and Mr Waldegrave established Waldegrave’s Royal Hotel c. 1871. It was situated on the corner of Te Marae o Hine the Square and Rangitikei Street. By 1875 Mr Waldegrave had built a residence near the hotel.
Mr Waldegrave also established the second enlarged and improved Royal Hotel, on the same site as the first. While Mr Waldegrave was originally the publican, he hired Mr John Octavius Batchelar as manager in the late 1870s, in order to pursue other professional interests. He sold the Royal Hotel in the early 1880’s to Mr H Fowler.
In 1877 he was a director of Manawatū Permanent Equitable Building and Investment Society, becoming the managing director by 1878. He served in that role until retiring in 1889.
By 1880 Mr Waldegrave was the Palmerston North agent of the New Zealand Company and New Zealand Fire Insurance Office. It is therefore of little surprise that he was included in a list of signatories, in 1883, of persons interested in the formation of a fire brigade. He was also a member of the licensing court and became Licensing Commissioner from December 1880.
Mr Waldegrave built a nine-room office building in Te Marae O Hine the Square in 1881, Mr William Charles Chatfield of Lambton Quay was the architect. It was also in 1881 that he was appointed a Justice of the Peace, remaining so until his death .
In recognition of his farming past, he was among the provisional directors of Manawatū Butter, Cheese and Bacon Manufacturing Co. Ltd., in 1883. Some years later he was also a provisional director of the Longburn Slaughtering and Freezing Company Ltd.
From 1886 to 1887 Mr Waldegrave was a borough councillor.
In November of 1887 Mrs Frances Waldegrave died suddenly at 61 years of age. In March 1891, after a long illness, Mr John James Waldegrave died, aged 57. The couple are interred at Terrace End Cemetery.
Mr Charles Edward Waldegrave was born in Wellington and was a teenager when the family moved to Palmerston North. He managed the farm at Fitzherbert east, until his mid-30s, when his father died. As a young man he also owned land in the township, and in December 1877, he and his father built a retail butchery and dwelling in Te Marae o Hine the Square. This was sold to Mr Joseph Beal in June 1878.
Mr CE Waldegrave married Miss Mary Louisa Budd in 1882. Miss ML Budd was born in 1857, in Devon, England, to Major Frederick Edward Budd (Royal Marines) and Mrs Charlotte Henrietta Budd, nee Walker.
Mrs and Mrs C Waldegrave had six children; John Frederick b.1883, Charles Norman b.1884, Margaret Adelisa b.1887, William Ernest b.1889, Dorothy Isabel b.1891, and Phyllis b.1892.
After the death of his father Mr C Waldegrave took over management of the estate. In the early 1890s he was appointed a Justice of the Peace, was the Palmerston North agent of New Zealand Insurance Company and was a member of the Manawatū Permanent Equitable Building and Investment Society.
Mr Waldegrave’s primary role was as an insurance, land and commission agent. He owned and sold land at Apiti. Mr Waldegrave constructed further streets, including Vivian, Edward, Sydney and Regent. He organised loans and mortgages, and owned town properties for let or sale. Mr Waldegrave also erected business buildings in and around Te Marae o Hine the Square.
It was likely late 1893 that the family moved to their two-storey home at 93 Broad Street (later Broadway Avenue). It was designed by architect Mr Ludolph Georg West.
In July of 1902 Messrs CE and HR Waldegrave created a stir when they offered to gift a freehold site to the borough council for a Municipal Building or Opera House. This was situated in Broad Street behind the Bank of Australasia. The Waldegrave’s stipulated that the offer was subject to their retention of a 58-feet frontage with a depth of 30-feet, on which they would build three ground level shops. Messrs C and H Waldegrave intended that this would be at their expense and suggested the design be included in the municipal buildings plan.
The alternate site was the old pound in Church Street. Members of the Baptist and Presbyterian Churches had protested this option as unwelcome opposite their places of worship.
Some councillors were uneasy about accepting Messrs Waldegrave’s offer, as it required the mixing of municipal with private and commercial. The brothers were eventually told that a site had already been selected, and they withdrew their offer in September 1902. The Municipal Opera House was opened in 1905 in Church Street.
In April of 1903, Mr Waldegrave was nominated for borough councillor, but was not elected to council chambers. In March of 1904 he was elected as an officer on the newly formed Beautifying and Scenery Preservation Society, initially to look at enhancing Te Marae o Hine the Square. Mr Waldegrave donated £25 to the cause.
In August of 1908 Mr and Mrs Waldegrave, accompanied by one of their daughters, made a trip to London. When they returned in September, they had a large Humber motor car with them. Mrs Waldegrave returned to London for an extended trip in 1911.
In October 1918, after a long illness, Mrs Mary Louisa Waldegrave died aged 61 years. In August of 1920, Mr Charles Edward Waldegrave, aged 65 years, died at the family’s Broad Street home. The couple are interred at Terrace End Cemetery.
In late 1932 the Waldegrave Building opened at 125-128 Te Marae O Hine the Square. It was built on land that Mr John James Waldegrave had purchased in 1873 and was commissioned by the Trustees of the Charles E Waldegrave Estate.
History
It was in 1876 that the Clausen brothers, Messrs Christian Nicolai and Johan Frederick, first laid eyes on Palmerston (later Palmerston North). Children at the time, these early Scandinavian settlers recalled the Bourke and Waldegrave Street blocks being great paddocks of oat crops.
Behind the crops lay Waldegrave’s paddock, an early racecourse venue. In July of 1878, having purchased the butchery in the Square from Messrs John James and Charles Edward Waldegrave, Mr Joseph Beale applied to the borough council for a license to establish a slaughter-yard on a section in the paddock. This was refused due to a former decision against new slaughterhouses within town boundaries.
The paddock was also the scene of up to two traditional Easter Encampments of the New Zealand Volunteer Force. An encampment was held in Palmerston North as early as 1891.
The Cuba Street end of Waldegrave Street was well-established within a few years of being formed. There were at least five dwellings by 1878 and most of the residents owned several allotments of land adjoining their home.
In August and September of 1900, Waldegrave Street was included in ratepayer meetings regarding a drainage scheme. In March of that year, advice was made of rates adjustment in order to proceed with the drainage loan.
In August of 1902 when Mr C Waldegrave advertised building sites in Waldegrave Street for sale, Mr Henry "Harry" Richard Waldegrave owned section 297. The street extension was under construction.
In April 1903, the council received correspondence from Mr Waldegrave asking permission to lay off Waldegrave Street, for takeover by council. The Public Works Committee agreed on the proviso that footpaths be laid. Tarring and sanding of said footpaths was carried out late 1903. In January of 1904 the borough inspector reported that Mr Waldegrave has constructed Waldegrave street to his satisfaction. As a result, the council resolved that it could be taken over as a public street.
Like all streets surrounding the Manawatū and West Coast Agricultural and Pastoral (A&P) Association showgrounds, heavy foot traffic necessitated regular upkeep of walkways. Loan monies were often sought for footpaths and kerbing, and homeowners on Waldegrave Street were required to pay accordingly. The Waldegrave roadway received more attention after the introduction of motor vehicles, most particularly in 1914 and then again in the late 1920s and early 1930s.
In August of 1904, an application was made to the borough council for water services in Waldegrave Street. It was referred to the committee reporting on a water scheme for the town. Late in the month a motion was carried to lay a 4-inch water main in the street. In December of 1907 a storm water culvert was constructed.
It was also in 1907 that tenders were sought for construction of an 8-inch sewer in Waldegrave Street. The sewer was completed in July and by October 1908, all houses in the street were connected.
In July and August of 1907 letters to the editor appeared in the Manawatū Standard, complaining about the street numbering system. Waldegrave Street was given as an example. Houses were numbered consecutively, despite several vacant sections in-between. The writers were concerned that once houses were built on vacant lots, they’d have to utilise a fair portion of the alphabet to distinguish addresses – 42a, 42b, 42c, 42d, 42e, 42f and so on. In January 1908, The Public Works Committee recommended renumbering Waldegrave Street to allow for vacant sections.
A unique feature on the corner of Waldegrave and Featherston Street was the Victorian style Post Office telephone booth. It was installed around 1920.
In July 1930 gas mains with a greater width were extended into Waldegrave Street by 26 chains. This increased capacity improved the operation of cookers and heating units.
Early residents included
D.P. 22 Section 306, Cuba Street End formed 1875
From c. 1878 Mr and Mrs Jens Christensen lived on Waldegrave Street. They owned allotments 39, 40, 41 (with house) and 44.
Mr Jens Christensen was born in 1840 and worked as a dairyman. His wife’s name was Mrs Maren Christensen and they emigrated to Aotearoa New Zealand as a married couple.
Mr Jens Christensen died September 1898 and was 57 or 58 years old. He was interred at Terrace End Cemetery. The rate books show that Mrs Mary (Maren) Christensen owned the property after Mr J Christensen’s death. By 1900 Mrs Christensen had sold all her holdings on Waldegrave Street.
Mr Anders Larsen purchased allotments 45, 48 (with house) and 49, from Henry Carlson in 1879. He and his brother Mr Jens Larsen are recalled, by other early settlers, as living in Waldegrave Street and later Kimbolton.
The Larsen brothers were born in Sweden to Mr Ola and Mrs Inger Lassen. Mr J Larsen was born in 1855 and Mr A Larsen in 1861. The Lassen family were immigrants to Aotearoa New Zealand, leaving Hamburg, Germany, in November 1875 aboard the ship Terpsichore, and arriving in Wellington in March 1876. Messrs J and A Lassen were aged 21 and 16 years respectively, their sister Miss Anna Lassen was 14.
During the voyage the family changed their name from Lassen to Larsen.
Sadly, Mr O Larsen died on the journey, January 1876, from typhoid fever. He was committed to the deep. Miss A Larsen also succumbed in April of 1876, and is buried on Sommes Island, Wellington.
The three remaining Larsen’s travelled to Foxton via coastal steamer and moved on to Palmerston North a month later. While the Waldegrave Street property was in Mr A Larsen’s name, it is likely that the whole family resided there.
Mr J Larsen worked forming roads from Bunnythorpe to Palmerston North and worked on the railway for several years. He then purchased a bush farm in Beaconsfield and felled much of the bush himself.
In 1896 Mr J Larsen married Miss Josephine Emily (Bochnig) Bocking of Kimbolton. The couple had five children; Orlando Edward b.1899, Herbert Bennett b.1901, Walter Archie b.1903, Mortie “Maude” Josephine b.1905, and Percy Bertie b.1913.
After living in Beaconsfield for many years the family moved to Cheltenham and purchased a 300-acre farm, part of the Bruce Estate. Mr and Mrs J Larsen later acquired the neighbouring property. Mrs Larsen was fully involved in farm operations and often advertised stock for sale.
Mr A Larsen lived in Waldegrave Street until about 1897, when he took up farming on Cemetery Road in Bunnythorpe. Mother, Mrs Inger Larsen, made the move with him and died at her son’s residence in May of 1898, aged 76 years.
In May of 1900, Mr A Larsen sold the farm. Meanwhile the Waldegrave property had been rented out and was in the care of Mrs Marie O’Connor, who also let property on Waldegrave Street. By 1908 Mr A Larsen appears to have resided in Bourke Street, and then Main Street from 1914. He also owned a property in Church Street. In 1923, and again in 1928, there were fires in the Boniface Bros. bakehouse on Waldegrave Street, it was Mr A Larsen's property.
At some stage in the 1930s he joined his brother, Mr J Larsen, in Feilding.
Mr Jens Larsen died May 1941, aged 86 years, at Cheltenham. Mr Anders Larsen died in September of 1947 also at the age of 86 years. The brothers are interred at the Feilding Cemetery. Mrs Josephine Emily Larsen died March 1951, aged 78 years, and is interred with her husband.
In his Will, Mr A Larsen left the Waldegrave property to his three nephews; Messrs Herbert, Walter and Percy Larsen.
Allotment 52 (with house) was owned by a Mikkelsen, also spelt Micklesen, from 1881 to 1893. Rate books show the property under the name of Mr Jorgen Mikkelsen until 1887, when the listing is changed to Mitelene Micklesen. By the 1890s the owner’s name is recorded as Natalena or Matalena P Micklesen in the rate books.
Mr and Mrs Albert Howes lived on allotment 42, Waldegrave Street from 1891.
Mrs Margaret Howes was born 1844, the daughter of Mr John and Mrs Anne McMillan of Iverness, Scotland. The family emigrated to Aotearoa New Zealand in 1859 on the ship Regina when Miss Margaret McMillan was 17 years old.
The McMillan family settled in the Hinds District, Canterbury. Miss M McMillan met Mr Albert Howes and they were married in Hokitika around the mid-1860s. The couple had six children; Margaret Jane b. c. 1867, Annie b. c.1870, Helen McMillan b.1872, Alfred William b.1877, Lucy Howes b.1879, and Norman George b. 1881.
Mr and Mrs A Howes lived for a time on the West Coast, and in Wellington and Marton, before coming to reside in Palmerston North. In 1886 and 1887, local newspapers show that Mr Howes worked at the woolshed of Messrs Macmillan and Hunt in a supervisory capacity. Messrs Macmillan and Hunt owned a store at Awahuri with the woolshed attached and were importers, general merchants and commission agents.
Mrs Howe was a suffragist and signed the 1893 petition to gain women the vote.
Mr Alfred Howes died in July 1832, at 63 years of age. Mrs Margaret Howes continued to live at 6 Waldegrave Street until her death in October of 1921. She was 77 years old. The couple are interred at Terrace End Cemetery.
Mr Mads Peter Sorensen retired to 28 Waldegrave Street in 1900 and lived there the rest of his life.
Mr MP Sorensen came to Aotearoa New Zealand from Denmark in 1883. He arrived in Wellington and travelled to Foxton with six months of supplies. From Foxton, Mr M Sorensen travelled by dray to Palmerston North and worked as a contractor cutting sleepers for the Palmerston North to Foxton tramline.
Mr Sorensen later purchased land in Bunnythorpe and farmed there until his retirement.
In December of 1907 Mr Sorensen married Mrs Karoline Emilie Andersen, also of Waldegrave Street. She had purchased two of the Waldegrave extension allotments in 1903. Mrs KE Andersen was the widow of Mr Fred Andersen and among the earliest Norwegian settlers.
Mrs Karoline Emilie Sorensen died in March 1920 at the age of 76 years.
In 1921 Mr Sorensen married Miss Peterine Semiane Stordahl.
Mr Mads Peter Sorensen died in December of 1928 at 80 years of age. Mrs Peterine Semiane Sorensen lived on until July of 1961, when she was 86 years old. The couple are interred at Terrace End Cemetery.
D.P. 1441 Section 297, Featherston Street end formed 1902
Mr and Mrs William Inkpen purchased an allotment (later addressed 36) on the new Waldegrave Street extension in 1903.
Mr W Inkpen was born 1861 in Kent, England, to Mr James and Mrs Ellen Inkpen. He left Kent as a teenager and emigrated to Aotearoa New Zealand. On arriving in Wellington in the late 1870s, he became a bootmaker and shoe repairer.
He met Miss Charlotte Shaddick, a Wellington native, born 1869, whose parents were Mr Henry and Mrs Mary Shaddick. Mr Inkpen and Miss C Shaddick married in 1888. The couple had five children; William James b.1892, Roy Frederick b.1894, Charlotte Millicent b.1897, Albert Thomas b.1899, and Leonard Henry b.1909.
The Inkpen family came to Palmerston North about 1900. Mr Inkpen started out as the foreman at Payne’s Acme Boot Factory on Main Street. He stayed with them approximately five years before going into trade on his own on Broad Street (later Broadway Avenue). In October of 1905, he took over Messrs Miller & Sons on Main Street.
By July 1906 he’d left self-employment, managing the clicking and repairing department for Messrs F. Johansen and Co., Boot and Shoe Manufacturers. In time he once again went into trade on his own as William Inkpen, Boot Dealer, and was based in the State Theatre Building on Broadway Avenue.
He and Mrs C Inkpen were faithful and involved members of the Methodist congregation of the Cuba Street Church. He also took an interest in his children’s’ schooling and was elected to the Campbell Street School Committee in June of 1907. Mr Inkpen was a notable bird fancier who bred canaries, a bird he had loved since boyhood. He was very active on the feathered show scene, both exhibiting and running fancier shows.
Mr Inkpen was a delegate to the North Island Poultry Association, vice president of the New Zealand Canary Specialists’ Club from 1915, and an elected a life member of the Palmerston North Canary and Budgerigar Club from 1935. He continued to show canaries throughout his life, winning multiple prizes and awards at each show. Mr Inkpen was named Palmerston North’s oldest living bird fancier in 1937.
In May of 1936 Mrs Charlotte Inkpen died after a short illness. She was 66 years old and is interred at Terrace End Cemetery. Within a couple of months Mr Inkpen wound up his business estate, inviting tenders for the stock, plant and shop fittings.
Mr Inkpen remarried in 1937 to Mrs Emma Jane Meller, who lived at 22 Waldegrave Street. By 1937 Mr Inkpen’s address had been renumbered to 47 Waldegrave Street.
Mrs Emma Jane Inkpen died in August of 1952, aged 88 years, and was interred at Kelvin Grove Cemetery. Mr William “Bill” Inkpen died almost five years later in April of 1957. He was 95 years old and is interred with his first wife at Terrace End Cemetery.
Mr George Falla purchased allotment 6 in 1903 and the Falla family lived in Waldegrave Street until 1907. Their stay was of short duration due to the transient nature of Mr G Falla’s position with the Railway Department.
Mr Falla was born in Sydney in 1860 to Mr George and Mrs Mary Falla. He was nine years old when the family moved to Aotearoa New Zealand, arriving in Nelson. The Falla family settled in Westport and it was there that Mr George Falla Jr. entered the employ of the Railway Department in 1879.
After being stationed in Greymouth, he went on to open the station in Hokitika c. 1893. It was in Hokitika that Mr G Falla met Miss Elizabeth Kirk. Miss E Kirk was born in 1872 to Mr Alexander and Mrs Elizabeth Kirk, West Coast, Aotearoa New Zealand. Having since been transferred to Lyttleton, he returned to Hokitika for their wedding in 1900.
The couple had four children; Robert Alexander b.1901, Dorothy Jean b.1903, Helen May b.1906, and John Douglas, b.1910.
In 1903 Mr Falla was transferred to Palmerston North and made chief clerk at the railway station’s goods shed. During their time in Palmerston North Mr Falla was an active member of St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church. The couple’s two daughters were born in Palmerston North.
From Palmerston North Mr Falla was promoted to stationmaster, serving at Hawera, Masterton, Invercargill, and finally Auckland, over the next thirteen years.
He retired after 41 years of service in December of 1920. Mr and Mrs Falla lived in Devonport, where he was active figure in public life and the Devonport Presbytarian Church.
Mr George Falla died in April of 1933, aged 72 years. Mrs Elizabeth Falla died July 1952, she was 80 years old. The couple are interred at O’Neill’s Point Cemetery, Auckland.
Mr Arthur Pickering purchased allotments 22 and 23 from Mr George McCarty in 1904. He was retiring to 37 Waldegrave Street after careers in the police force and as a hotelier. Mr and Mrs A Pickering resided in Waldegrave Street for the rest of their lives.
Mr Pickering was born in 1857 to Mr William and Mrs Susanna Pickering in Nelson, Aotearoa New Zealand.
In 1877 Mr Pickering joined the Armed Constabulary in Wellington. This was a military unit purposed to defend early colonists during the New Zealand Wars. He was originally stationed in the Taupo District, then called to Napier in preparation to travel to Taranaki during the Parihaka resistance campaign. However, on reporting to Napier, he was informed the incident had been settled. The inspector of police instead offered him a job with the Napier police force, which he accepted.
Later Mr Pickering was transferred to Kōpua, Ormondville, and then on to Woodville. He married Miss Clara Louisa Ball in 1879 and they resided in the police station at Woodville for about a year.
Miss Clara Louisa Ball was born in 1857 in Leicestershire, England, to Mr William and Mrs Catherine Ball. The following year Ball family emigrated to Nelson, Aotearoa New Zealand, on the ship Palmyra.
The couple had seven children; Emily Susan b.1881, Arthur Montague b.1883, William Henry b.1884, Ada Beatrice Louisa b.1885, Ernest Alfred b.1886, Constance Maud b.1888, and Eva May b.1895.
Police work at the time required travel by horse over a large area. Where streams couldn’t be forded or bridged, they were ferried with the horse swimming behind. Mr Pickering ended his service with the police, as a sergeant in Hastings. He was stationed there for ten years.
He then went into the hotel business in Te Aute, in 1893, holding the publican’s license for Te Aute Hotel and Refreshment Rooms for six years.
In 1899 the Pickering family moved to Woodville and Mr Pickering took over the newly built Commercial Hotel. During his time in Woodville he was a member of the Woodville Bowling Club, taking on roles of both secretary and president. In 1903 Mr Pickering gave notice that he would be transferring the publican’s license for the Commercial Hotel to Mr Owen McWilliams.
On retiring to Palmerston North, Mr Pickering joined the Palmerston North Bowling Club, becoming a long-time member. He was also a member of the Manawatū and West Coast Agricultural and Pastoral (A&P) Association, and a member of the Cosmopolitan Club. Part of the All Saints Church congregation, he served as a churchwarden for a time; and sat on the Central School Committee for a short duration.
Mrs Clara Louisa Pickering died suddenly in July 1919, aged 62 years. Mr Arthur Pickering died in October of 1933 after a long illness. He was 76 years old. The couple are interred at Terrace End Cemetery with two of their daughters who predeceased them.
Early business, organisations and clubs included
In the early years, trade in poultry and livestock was common on Waldegrave Street. Residents also ran businesses from their homes.
Other residents made their home their business. In the early 1900s Mr R Workman ran Workman’s boarding house on the corner of Cuba and Waldegrave Streets (1905); Mr E Jenson ran a boarding house for working men called Avon House (1906); and Mrs McLean ran a private boarding house for gentleman boarders, at 7 Waldegrave Street (1908). She left the district for a time and reopened the boarding house in 1913.
The street was home to at least four bakers in the first quarter of the 20th century.
Mr Daniel and Mrs Emma Charker moved to new premises on Waldegrave Street in September 1906. Mr D Charker was a baker and confectioner and this ensured his bakehouse and store were in a single location. Previously he’d operated a bakehouse on Andrew Young Street, with a shop on Main Street.
Mr Charker ran his baker’s shop in Waldegrave Street until retirement. Mr and Mrs Charker celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in August 1923. The couple moved to Taonui Street in the late 1920s, celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary there in 1933.
In April 1908 Mr D Watson and Son, master bakers of 15 Waldegrave Street, advertised themselves as open for engagement.
In 1918 the Royal Bakery was opened by Mr WJ Reid, at 11 Waldegrave Street (formerly occupied by Mr and Mrs Charker). He operated there for a couple of years before selling up and leaving for England.
From 1923 Boniface Bros. had two large ovens in a Waldegrave Street bakehouse for bread baking. They used the ovens in their Cuba Street store for small goods. In October 1923 a furnace fire broke out and was fortunately controlled by the fire brigade. In November 1928 the bakehouse had light fire damage and was once again saved by the prompt response of fire fighters. In 1929 operations moved to their purpose-built bakery on the corner of Cuba and Bourke Streets.
In 1905 the Manawatū and West Coast Agricultural and Pastoral (A&P) Association purchased a section of land to obtain access to the grounds from Waldegrave Street. As horse boxes and stalls were situated along the Waldegrave Street boundary, that became the entrance for everything horse related.
Fence hoppers looking for free entertainment proved an ongoing problem on the Waldegrave Street side of the showgrounds. Barbed wire had been placed on the other three sides, but wasn't possible on Waldegrave Street. It was closely watched instead. In 1924 a brick wall was built, accompanied by new horse boxes and stalls.
In 1916 a section was purchased in Waldegrave Street for the Defence Department, for later lease or transfer to the A&P Association. In January of 1945 there was huge fire at showgrounds along the Waldegrave Street boundary. Army ordnance stores filled with over £1,000,000 worth of army equipment were destroyed. The fire brigade was able to save the six dwellings on Waldegrave Street, backing on to the showgrounds.
The parsonage of the Cuba Street Methodist Church was based in Waldegrave Street from 1913.
In March of 1917 a Police Station was established at 5 Waldegrave Street, in the charge of Constable Dunphy. This was the third station in Palmerston North, the others being at Terrace End and Palmerston North Central. It was short-lived however, closing the following year.
Late in 1924 a boy scouts troop was formed in Waldegrave Street.
In August of 1934 The Manawatū and District Radio Listener’s Association announced the formation of the 2ZO Radio Club in Waldegrave Street. From 1931, the 2ZO Radio Station association had operated out of CM Ross Co.; with concerts, children’s programming from ‘aunts’ and ‘uncles’, and Sunday services.
Despite payments to the Listeners’ Federation, the station had not received government recognition for extended broadcasting hours and there had been difficulties in obtaining co-operation from broadcasting authorities. It was decided that the balance of association funds would be given to the more informal club, with the view of keeping radio 2ZO on the air. The chairman of the club was Mr EA Shackleton.
In October of 1937, 2ZO, which was privately owned and operated by Mr JV Kyle from community donations, had its final transmission. He had been forced to sell the station and plant to the government.
Renumbering
The addresses on Waldegrave Street were renumbered in 1937. See p.275 and p.276 of the Rates Register of Street Numbers - Old and New.
