from quiet homes and first beginnings 1879-1979

From Quiet Homes and First Beginnings 1879-1979


"FROM QUIET HOMES AND

FIRST BEGINNING"*

1879-1979

A History of the Presbyterian and Methodist Churches in Upper Hutt who, in 1976, joined together to form

the Upper Hutt Co-operating Parish.

By

M. E. EVANS

Published by

THE UPPER HUTT CO-OPERATING PARISH Benzie Avenue, Upper Hutt, New Zealand

1979

*Title quotation from "Dedicatory Ode" by Hilaire Belloc.

Digitized by Alec Utting 2015


CONTENTS Acknowledgements

Introduction ...

THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH, 1879-1976

St David's

In the beginning, 1897-1904 ....

Church Extension, Mission Charge and Home Mission Station, 1904-23

Fully Sanctioned Charge. James Holmes and Wi Tako—1924-27

The Fruitful Years—1928-38 ....

Division of the Parish—1938-53

Second Division—The Movement North —1952-59 ....

"In My End is My Beginning"—1960-76

Iona

St Andrew's

THE METHODIST CHURCH, 1883-1976

Whitemans Valley—1883-1927 ....

Part of Hutt Circuit—1927-55 ....

Independent Circuit: The Years of Expansion—1955-68

Wesley Centre and the Rev. J. S. Olds ....

Circuit Stewards of the Upper Hutt Methodist Church—1927-76

OTHER FACETS OF PARISH LIFE

Women's Groups

Youth Work ....

THE CO-OPERATING PARISH, 1976-79

To the Present

And Towards the Future

SOURCE OF INFORMATION AND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

PHOTOS AROUND THE PARISH IN 1979

OUTREACH TO THE FUTURE BROWN OWL CENTRE


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

It is my pleasure to thank Mrs M. E. Evans, on behalf of the parish, for writing this

history. It is a work well done, and I am sure it will be appreciated by many readers.

Time was against her and records have not always been carefully kept and this made it

all the harder to achieve a balanced account. Be that as it may, Mrs Evans has brought

"minutes" and "resolutions" to life, so much so that readers will discern something of

the faithful witness of many people who lived and worked for their Lord in the past.

Thanks also to those who made photographs available and those who contributed in

other ways to the interest of this book. I. A. MILNER

Thy hand O God has guided they flock from age to age;

The wondrous tale is written, full clear, on every page;

Our fathers owned thy goodness, and we their deeds record;

And both of this bear witness, one Church, one faith, one Lord.

My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings and in quiet

resting places. Isaiah 32, 18

Today’s ministers with their support team.

From left: Mr Noel McCarthy, Rev. Ian Milner, Mrs Esme Baxter, Mrs Gwen Johnston, Rev.Dr.

Colin Sherriff, Rev. Graeme McIvor


INTRODUCTION

The Co-operating Parish

The Upper Hutt Co-operating Parish includes the three Presbyterian parishes of Iona,

St David's and St Andrew's together with the Upper Hutt Methodist Circuit. It extends

to the top of the Rimutaka Range down through Kaitoke, Akatarawa, Te Mania, the

Mangaroa and Wallaceville Valleys and the Upper Hutt Valley to the northern

boundary of St Margaret's Presbyterian Parish of Silverstream. So far as its Methodist

members are concerned, the Co-operating Parish includes Silverstream, Pinehaven and

Whitemans Valley.

In June 1979 the parish had 1,000 homes under pastoral care, 561 communicant

members, three main worship and Christian education centres, 260 Sunday School

pupils with 30 teachers, 94 Bible Class members with 12 leaders, 200 members of the

Girls' and Boys' Brigades with 27 leaders, as well as a Friday evening club attended by

some 150 young people for most of whom this is their only connection with the

church. There are five groups that cater specifically for the women of the parish and a

variety of study groups for adults are held from time to time. The parish has a team of

four ministers and works through a Parish Council with its Executive, Pastoral,

Christian Education, Life and Work and Property and Finance Committees. At each of

the three main centres there is a Domestic Affairs Committee.

. . . All this from quiet homes and first beginning.

Supporting Committee of the 17th Hutt Valley Company, Girls' Brigade, taken at the Silver Jubilee

of the Company, May 1977. Included in this photo are Tom Wright, (4th from left, front row) and

Hazel Wright, (3rd from left, second row) both of whom have been on this committee since its

inception and in the front row (far right) is their daughter, Mrs Ann Thomas. Mrs Ann Thomas led

the Company for 19 years and, among other positions in the movement, has held the positions of

District Commissioner and National Commissioner.


THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

IN UPPER HUTT 1879-1976

ST DAVID'S

In the Beginning—1879-1904

The first minister of the Hutt Valley Presbyterian Church, the Rev. William Dron, a

member of the Free Church of Scotland, arrived in New Zealand on 1 December 1852

to become minister of a separate Hutt congregation. A church was built in High Street,

Lower Hutt, in 1858 and the following year, at a meeting of the Kirk Session, it was

resolved that the parish should be divided into Upper and Lower districts. The Upper

district extended from Mangaroa in the north and Mr Andrew Yule, storekeeper, was

appointed elder "from Mangaroa to the second river bridge".1

Settlement in the Upper valley was slow but by 1878 there were enough Presbyterians

living in the Upper district to warrant the building of a church in Upper Hutt. On 25

September 1878 a "working committee" met "in connection with the erection of a

Presbyterian Church at the Upper Hutt".2 Mr Robert Burns was elected chairman and

members of the committee were Messrs Brown (Snr and Jnr), Sinclair and James

Grant. Collectors were appointed for various districts and Mr Grant was made

treasurer. Trustees appointed "to hold the ground and building" were Messrs Brown

(Jnr), Burns and Sinclair.3 The building site, section 117 of the Upper Hutt District,

was on the main road and was donated by Mr George Brown. It was in the middle of

farm land.

A church, St David's, was designed by Thomas Turnbull, whose two best known

churches are St John's and St Peter's, Willis Street, Wellington. St Peter's is also

celebrating its centennial this year. Turnbull designed St David's free of charge. It was

described at the time as a "handsome, plain, gothic structure".4 It was a plain little

church with none of the elegant features of its Wellington brothers, but the Upper Hutt

Presbyterians were not able to afford a more elaborate church. A building committee

was set up which decided to accept Turnbull's plan and advertise for tenders in the

"Evening Post". Mr McIntosh. A Lower Hutt builder, was consulted about building

materials and it was decided to order timber from Messrs Cruickshanks and Gorrie

Bros. "in proportion to their respective subscriptions".5 The successful tenderers,

Primrose and Scully,6 built the church for £350, but this price did not include linings.

1 Knox Presbyterian Centennial Booklet, page 5.

2 Minute Book of St David's Board of Managers, 1878-1907.

3 Minute Book of St David's Board of Managers.

4 "N.Z. Mail" (newspaper) 30 November 1878.

5 Minute Book of St David's Board of Managers, 1878-1907.

6 Minute Book of St David's Board of Managers, '1878-1907


In February 1879, the Rev. James Paterson of St John's preached the sermon at the

first service to "a large audience".7 James Grant, a divinity student who had worked

enthusiastically for the erection of St David's, left in 1881 to take up an appointment

with the Church of Otago8 and later became head-master of College Street School in

Palmerston North.9

Although the church was free of debt by 1881, it remained unlined for another two

years. In July 1883 the Management Committee decided that "when the good weather

should set in a hearty effort should be made to the lining of the Church"10

and Messrs

Brown and Roger were nominated to canvas the district "to solicit subscriptions". The

first timber ordered had to be returned because it was unsatisfactory. When the work

was finally finished, the outside of the church was painted "stone colour" and the

inside "French White".11

In 1884, Miss Annie Symonds, the fourteen-year-old organist, was presented with

"two handsome volumes", one being "Presbyterian Psalms and Hymn Book" in

appreciation of her services as harmonium player. Miss Symonds in reply said "that

the work she had done was a pleasure and a delight".12

She remained organist for

another five years, when she married Alfred Scholes. One son, Frank, had a long

association with St David's and the Wallaceville Church, and another, Ralph, was the

builder who erected the first St David's manse in 1913 and carried out the renovations

to the church in 1933.

The Upper Hutt Church often had divinity students looking after its members. One of

the most popular was Andrew Gray. In 1892 the Management Committee asked

Session to "permit Mr Gray, a student of Divinity, to remain in charge of the District

until he is ordained."13

He remained until 1899 and under his chairmanship, the

committee negotiated the purchase of two acres of land on the south side of the

Wallaceville Hill for £10, to be used as a cemetery.14

The Presbyterians who lived on the other side of the Wallaceville hill felt they would

like a church of their own and in 1893 plans were laid before Presbytery and

approved. By November the church was finished. It was designed by a Mr Hall of

Lower Hutt and built by "Mr Whitcher of Petone at a cost of £97".15

The church was

7 "N.Z. Mail", 26 April 1879.

8 Management Committee Book, 1881.

9 J. A. Kelleher, "History of Upper Hutt", page 80.

10 Management Committee Book, July 1883.



13 Management Committee Book, '1892.

14 Management Committee Book, '1899.

15 Photostat of history compiled by Mr L. Gorrie.


opened by the Rev. Ogg of St Andrew's Church, Wellington. Mr William Gorrie was

the first elder from Wallaceville to represent the church at Session.

Wallaceville Presbyterian Church. Built in 1894 for a cost of £97.

This church is still used for monthly services.

Part of the Wallaceville Cemetery for which 2 acres was purchased in 1899 at a cost of £10.


Church Extension, Mission Charge and Home Mission Station

1904-23

During the first twenty-five years, the Upper Hutt Church was always in financial

difficulties, so much so that in 1902 a concert was arranged to pay off the deficiency

in the previous year's balance sheet. Nevertheless, by March 1904, a congregational

meeting considered it time to sever their connection with Lower Hutt "and create this

district as a Church extension station".16

Each of the four areas in the Upper District—

Upper Hutt, Wallaceville, Akatarawa and Kaitoke set about raising a sustentation

fund. Presbytery agreed to the request and in April 1904 the Rev. J. S. Thomson was

welcomed to the charge. He remained for a year and was replaced by J. S. Webber.

Difficulty was experienced in collecting the minister's salary and Mr Webber

remained only until the following March when he was moved "at short notice and

without consulting the Moderator or Committee" by the Rev. J. Paterson.17

Mr

Webber was followed by Mr Rumgay, who resigned in September 1907. In October

1907 the Management Committee recommended "the building of a Manse on the

Church site"18

and a manse fund was begun. F. Shaw, another student, arrived in

November 1907 for six months and it was he who first brought up the necessity of

having a bell. It was decided to "wait upon the General Manager of Railways asking if

the Department had a suitable bell for a church to dispose of".19

The Railways were

unable to help and the matter was left for the moment. The committee decided not to

extend Mr Shaw's term of office and the congregation asked that Mr Webber be

transferred back to Upper Hutt, and he returned for a time.

The committee was empowered in April 1909 to buy a bell and have it erected at the

back of the church. In June an order was placed for a bell "at a probable cost of

£10.3.4". 20

Later in the year the manse sub-committee began negotiating with the

Brown Estate for a site for a manse. Although the land "one eighth of an acre behind

the Church for £50"21

was bought in November 1909 it was not until 1913 that the

manse was built.

The Parish was in grave financial difficulties and one minister was rebuked by the

committee for raising the matter from the pulpit. When he left in 1911 Presbytery was

asked to tell the incoming minister of the difficulties experienced in finding his

16

Management Committee Book, 1904. 17



Management Committee Book, December 1907. 20

Management Committee Book, May 1909. 21

Management Committee Book, May 1909.


salary. Services were suspended at Kaitoke until that area found its quota of the

minister's salary.22

The Church bell at St David’s, purchased in 1909.

St David’s House. The original manse, built in 1913, was converted for youth work and other parish

activities on the completion of a new manse on the rear of the property in 1969.

The Rev. Buchanan, who came to the parish in 1911 and stayed for a year, was

blessed with a very energetic wife. Mrs Buchanan is given the credit for starting a

Ladies Guild for the purpose of building up the manse fund.23

A series of fund raising

activities, socials, concerts and sales of work, were organised. By August 1912 the

Board of Managers decided to apply to the centenary fund committee for a loan of

£200 "to erect a house at the rear of the Church".24

22

Management Committee Book, May 1911. 23

Minute Books of Ladies' Guild, 1915 (note on cover). 24

Managament Committee Book, 1912.


The Board of Managers at this time had members who were to give the church long

service. Messrs G. H. Guthrie and W. Greig were both appointed in 1901 and served

the committee for almost forty years, Mr Guthrie being secretary on several occasions.

In June 1913 Presbytery resolved that "it was expedient that a Kirk Session should be

formed at Upper Hutt".25

A meeting was called to elect three elders with the Rev.

James McCaw of Knox Church presiding. Due to "certain irregularities", the elections

were "declared void" and another election held after the conclusion of morning

worship on Sunday, 6 July.26

All the male communicants were nominated and on the

next Sunday it was declared that Messrs Gibbs, Matthews and Gorrie were elected. Mr

Gibbs was appointed Session Clerk, a position he held for ten years except for a break

of one year when he went to England. During the time when Mr Climie, a bachelor,

was minister. Session meetings were held at Mr Gibbs' home, "Mountain View". Mr

Gibbs was a firm believer in temperance and for some years was Superintendent of the

Sunday School. He died at Featherston in 1924.27

During these years the congregation of the church was steadily growing and with the

closure of the Methodist church in Whiteman's Valley, many Methodists came

regularly to services at St David's. As there was no Baptist church, the congregation

counted Baptists among its members. In 1924, Mr Purser, a Methodist, was on the

building committee.

The Rev. Francis Usher was ordained Home Missionary of St David's in June 1913

and he and his family were the first to occupy the manse. He remained in Upper Hutt

until 1918 and was known in the town by his sombre dress and the flat, black hat he

wore.28

He was minister during the First World War and helped the padre at Trentham

Camp run services at Trentham racecourse from September 1917. During his term of

office the first services were held at Silverstream in a private home.

When the Rev. Usher left to take up an appointment in St Andrew's, Wellington, he

was followed by Angus Climie, a Scot with bright red hair. During his term of office

the manse was let on condition that the tenants boarded the minister.

During these years the Wednesday night Bible Class was a welcome social event for

the young people in the district. Mrs Florence Scholes, then a teacher at Upper Hutt

School, remembers going with two other teachers to the Bible Class. It was so dark

that to light the way, each carried her own lantern.29

It was here, Mrs Scholes, a Baptist, met her future husband, Frank. Frank Scholes was

a manager and then an elder of St David's until his untimely death at the age of thirty-

25

Session Minute Book, 1913. 26



Mrs F. Scholes, Mangaroa. 29

Mrs F. Scholes, Mangaroa.


five in 1932. Mr Climie also met his future wife at the Bible Class. She was Miss

Rennie, daughter of one of the managers, and when he left in 1921 she became his

wife. Mr Climie was succeeded for a short period by an older minister, the Rev. John

McCaw, brother of the minister of Knox Church.

By 1918 the Board of Managers agreed that Upper Hutt should be made a fully

sanctioned charge. However, several years passed before this happened due to lack of

financial support. During that year the church was closed for two Sundays due to the

influenza epidemic. It was also in 1918 that Session decided to serve "a non-alcoholic

red wine for communion" due mainly to the influence of Mr Gibbs.30

Church union with the Methodists and Congregationalists was discussed favourably in

1919, and to show the "openness of the Presbyterian Church",31

session agreed to

other religious bodies conducting services at Wallaceville cemetery.

The move to make Upper Hutt a fully sanctioned charge was furthered in 1922 when

Session decided to seek the co-operation of Silverstream and Trentham residents in

making it possible. There were already thriving Sunday Schools in both places and the

war had brought an influx of people into the Trentham area. The camp's chaplain, the

Rev. Hardie, kept closely in contact with St David's. He held services at the Y.M.C.A.

rooms at the camp and visited the inmates of Wi Tako prison. When he left, the task of

visiting prisoners was taken over by the minister of St David's.

At the end of 1923, the Rev. John McCaw resigned and his place was taken by an

Englishman, the Rev. James Holmes. He was to "supply" for six months but stayed for

four years until his death from cancer in October 1927. His appointment was an end

and a new beginning.

Fully Sanctioned Charge

James Holmes and Wi Tako—1924-27

On 10 January 1924 the commission on Upper Hutt met with the St David's

congregation and agreed:

1. That St David's should be made a sanctioned charge;

2. A grant should be made available from the sustentation committee;

3. Rev. G. A. MacKenzie be appointed as Interim Moderator.

St David's was at last able to "call" its own minister and the name of James Holmes

was inserted in the call. On 29 April 1924 he was inducted into the ministry of St

David's.

James Holmes was one of the most interesting of St David's ministers. He was English

and had been a Congregational minister before deciding to emigrate to New Zealand

30

Session Minute Book, December 1918. 31

Session Minute Book, May 1919.


to give his four sons "a chance in life". He lived in Havelock North for some years

before entering the Presbyterian ministry. His short stay in Upper Hutt was full of

meaning and energy.

St David's Church in the mid 1920s.

The parish bicycle, referred to in the text, can just be seen in the bottom left of the illustration.

Rear view — St David's from the back paddocks in the mid 1920s.

The board of managers often recorded its thanks to him for keeping the grounds and

lawns so tidy. While Francis Usher had hired a gig to drive around the parish, James

Holmes pedalled many miles on the old church bicycle. He urged his congregation to

upgrade the church, which had fallen into disrepair. He told the managers that he held

"a church should be equipped in such a manner as to make it the very best place and a

building worthy of our faith".32

An inspection was made to test the soundness of the

piles and in spite of objections from the new Session Clerk, J. O. Duff, extensions

were built on the back of the church to assist in accommodating the youth work. In

32

Board of Managers' Minute Book, 1924.


addition the church was equipped with electric light. In 1924, the Wallaceville church

was also renovated, and at the re-opening service in July, the church was full.

Rev. James Holmes and Mrs. Clara Holmes, 1924-27.

At the annual meeting of the congregation in 1924, Rev. Holmes said that Upper Hutt

was the only church in the Wellington Presbytery which had two churches, and four

preaching stations—Trentham, Silverstream, Mangaroa and Wi Tako prison. It was at

Wi Tako prison that James Holmes put in some of his hardest work. "The work at Wi

Tako is of a special character," he told his congregation. He conducted services there

on Sundays at 9 a.m., initially going by bicycle. After the service he gave personal

advice to the prisoners and corresponded with their relatives. When he received

replies, he would read them to the prisoners. Mr Blyth accompanied him to the

services as organist and transport was provided by Mr Oliver Robinson.

Once the Rev. Holmes conducted a marriage service at the prison for one of the

inmates and some of the church ladies served a wedding breakfast.33

33

Mrs F. Scholes, Mangaroa.


Mr Holmes was very interested in prison reform and contributed articles about his

experiences to various newspapers. When he died in 1927, his passing was deeply felt

by his prison congregation and a cairn was erected at the prison to his memory. His

body is buried in the Wallaceville cemetery.

The cairn erected by Wi Tako Prison inmates in memory of Mr. Holmes.

During his time as minister he was ably supported by his wife, Clara. She put new

spirit into the Ladies Guild and, as a gifted needlewoman, contributed many fine

articles to the sales of work.

The Fruitful Years—1928-38

In March 1928 the Rev. George Hunt was inducted at St David's and remained for a

period of ten years. The Rev. Hunt came from Maheno, having been a grocer before

he entered the ministry later in life. He was married with three children, two boys, Ian

and George, and a daughter, Inez. He is remembered as a kindly man who in his later

years took pleasure from making little animals from driftwood.34

Mrs Marsh of Trentham remembers waiting for him on Sunday mornings with her

mother, Mrs Hines, who was organist, for the services held at the Y.M.C.A. rooms.

Mr Hunt would pick them up in his car and take them to the camp. In March 1928, the

managers had been authorised to borrow £200 to purchase a car for the minister.

By 1928 there had been a steady growth of population in the Upper Valley,

particularly at Trentham and Silverstream. In 1928 another elder, Mr R. McKenzie,

was appointed to help Mr McDougall in Silverstream. Meanwhile, due to a decline in

population, services were discontinued at Mangaroa and bi-monthly services instituted

at the Wallaceville church.

34

Mrs P. McNab, Mangaroa.


St David's Combined Bible Class, 1928.

Back row: T. Wright, G. Mummy, E. Butler, A. Cheshire, H. Humprey, E. Mellville, G. Croft, E.

Milligan.

Second row: R. Milligan, B. Humprey, M. Ross, M. White, D. Youngman, E. Crofts, M. Watson, N.

Castle, C. Ellender (Secretary).

Third row: K. Ross, A. Jones, E. Taylor (Treasurer), C. Dalton (Leader) M. Mountier (Assistant

Leader), C. Hathaway, R. Duff, B. Rennie.

Front row: W. Gellen, F. Castle, J. Jones.

In June 1930 a congregational meeting was called at Mr McDougall's home,

Silverstream, "to consider the question of building a Church or hall".35

Three and a

half months later the foundation stone of St Margaret's was laid by the Hon. Downie

Stewart, M.P. The church which was built of brick was designed and erected by

Fletcher Construction, Andrew Fletcher being a member of the parish. On 23

November 1930, "the door of the Church was opened by Mrs F. Castle",36

president of

the Ladies' Guild. The moderator of the General Assembly, the Rev. G. Budd, gave a

short address. The first Sunday service was conducted the next evening by members

of St Stephen's Bible Class, Lower Hutt. The building of St Margaret's was a

milestone in the life of the parish and an achievement of which the members were

35

Session Minute Book, June 1930. 36

Board of Managers' Minute Book, 1930.


proud. The annual report of 1930-31 described "the building of a beautiful brick

church at Silverstream" as "the outstanding event of the year".37

A wedding party at St Margaret’s , Silverstream, in 1936

A separate church was built for the Trentham congregation in 1933. St Andrew's was

built on a small section in Tawai Street, next to the corner shop, on land belonging to

Mr J. Purvis, who was a stalwart of the church. Mr Purvis gave the congregation an

interest-free loan for five years and the building was erected with voluntary labour.

Although it was a more modest church than St Margaret's it came to be greatly

cherished over the years by its members. One of the most interesting features was the

communion table, made specially for the congregation by prisoners at Wi Tako.

Both St Margaret's and St Andrew's remained part of St David's for the next two

decades. Mr Hunt carried the burden of preaching with the help of Mr J. O. Duff and a

divinity student, Mr W. H. S. Warin, who in 1934, was appointed to help in St David's

during the long vacation. He took two services at Silverstream and Trentham each

month.

The years prior to World War II were fruitful in another way. The ten years of Mr

Hunt's ministry were years of great activity for the youth of St David's. Miss Emma

37

Annual Report, 1930-31.


Mr. Frank Scholes, a St David’s manager and elder in the late 1920s and early 1930s.

Taylor re-members the social evenings and anniversary parties held in the guild room

at the back of St David's. A photo of the 1928 Bible Class has many well known faces

in it. Mr Croft and his future wife; Miss Taylor; two members of the Castle family;

and C. Dalton, who was leader of the group. In the back row stands George Nummy,

Iona's first minister. Miss Rose Duff, daughter of the Session Clerk, is also there

having asked her father if she and Miss Taylor could leave Sunday School early to

have the photo taken. It was reported that Mr Duff was irate that the photo was being

taken on a Sunday.38

Church picnic in the Paddocks behind St David’s n the early 1930’s. Rev. George Hunt minister from

1928-38, is in the back row, (4th from right) and Mr. J. O. Duff, Session Clerk and Sunday School

Superintendent, is also in the back row on the far right.

Among present church members are some who camped at Kaitoke and Akatarawa

with the Bible Class in early days. Some of the boys bought a model "T" for 10/- as

38

Miss Emma Taylor, Trentham.


part of a fleet of transport to carry their members to take the Sunday School at

Kaitoke39

and some were members of Fred Chappell's gymnastic team.

It was not a coincidence that so much activity was centred around the young people

during these years as the Rev. Hunt was particularly interested in youth work. He had

two teenage sons who were actively involved with the Bible Class and for some years

one son, George (who was killed in the war), led the Bible Class at Silverstream. In

addition, there was an "enthusiast" in the congregation, Fred Chappell, secretary of the

Y.M.C.A. at Trentham Camp. In 1936, when Fred Chappell retired for the first time as

leader of the Bible Class it was noted that "he has seen his class grow until it has

become one of the largest classes in the Dominion".

During the time Trentham members were building their church, the members of St

David's were busily renovating theirs for the second time. A special meeting decided

to call tenders for renovation and "the addition of a vestry" and to employ "where

practicable, unemployed Presbyterians". During the time of renovation, services were

held in the Druid's Hall, which had been built on the main road in 1928. All groups in

the church contributed in some way to the new appointments and the Chappell family

gave a new communion table.

St David's Bible Class Gymnastic Display Group at St David's Garden Party held at Balquidda,

Martin Street in the late 1930s.

Back row: Mr Fred Chappell (Leader), Clywd Scholes, Arthur James, Dave McKenzie, John Hedley

Brown, Keith Hercock, Rod McKenzie, "Binks" Stainton, Jim Scholes, Ian Hunt, Captain (later

Brigadier) Queree.

Middle row: "Ginger" England, Tom Leckie, Tom Clyma, Kevin Cropp, Jack Anderson, Clif Oram,

Don Streeter, —, —,

Front row: Ian Watson, — Brown, Sam Stuart, Peter Stevens.

It was during these years that Mr J. O. Duff was Session Clerk at St David's. Mr Duff

was a strong character. He was the brother of Oliver Duff ("Sundowner") and worked

in the Railways Department. When he came to live in Upper Hutt in the 1920s he

39

Mr Clif Oram, Upper Hutt.


became a member of the Borough Council and the local school committee. He was

Session Clerk for nineteen years and as Sunday School Superintendent kept a stern

eye on the scholars. He often voiced his opposition to various projects, believing in

the principle of "all things being lawful but not expedient".40

Mr Duff was an

energetic lay preacher and conducted the evening services at Trentham Camp. When

he died in July 1941 it was the end of an era.

In June 1938 Mr Hunt's only daughter, Inez, died at the age of sixteen and in

September of the same year Mr Hunt accepted a transfer to Miramar. When he left,

Session recorded that "his pulpit ministrations were of the highest order. His visitation

of the sick and the consolation he brought to the bereaved have endeared him to all".41

His daughter, Inez, is buried in the Wallaceville cemetery and the headstone also

commemorates the death of George Hunt Jnr on active service.

Division of the Parish—1938-53

In 1938 St David's congregation decided to call the Rev. J. Badcock to the parish.

However, before the call could be sent, Mr Badcock accepted another call. In March

1939 a call was extended to the Rev. James Crawfurd McCaw, son of the celebrated

minister of Knox Church. The Rev. McCaw was to become the longest serving

minister of St David's, remaining until 1956. J. C. McCaw was an energetic man who

had to cope with a variety of problems produced by the war. He enjoyed the company

of other people and was at home in a variety of social situations. During the war he

kept in contact with the families of servicemen overseas and in addition to his other

duties, was for many years Superintendent of St David's Sunday School and leader of

the young women's Bible Class. His wife, Lorna, was a capable, lively woman who

ran a private kindergarten for some years in the guild room. The McCaws had two

daughters, both of whom took an active part in the Bible Class.

Rev. John McCaw, 1921-23.

40

Session Book, July 1941. 41

Session Book, 1938.


Even during the war the parish was expanding. In 1944, an arrangement was made

with Knox Church to supply Silverstream on the second Sunday of each month so that

Mr McCaw could conduct some evening services during the week at Haywards. The

Rev. Lopdell from St Stephen's and a chaplain from Silver-stream Hospital took the

Silverstream services.42

After the war there was a shortage of adult leaders in the church. The population in the

Trentham area continued to grow and to assist with the work in the southern part of

the parish help was obtained over the long university vacations from Messrs McLeay

and Battersby, who were divinity students. In 1948, the Home Missionary Committee

approved the appointment of a full-time home missionary assistant with duties at

Silverstream Hospital.

Mr A. F. Taylor, who had been elected Session Clerk in 1941 on the death of Mr Duff,

died in June 1948. He had had a long association with St David's, as Secretary of the

Board of Managers and then as an elder and Session Clerk,

Rev. James Crawfurd McCaw 1939-56 with members of the Wallaceville Church Committee.

Back row: Mr George Keyes, Mr Harold Clifford, Mr Keith Lyndsay, Mr Les Lyndsay, Mr Len

Gorrie.

Front row: Mr Henrv Gorrie. Rev. James McCaw, Mr Bill Lyndsay.

His place as Session Clerk was taken by Mr Clif Oram. Mr Oram had led two Bible

Classes, one at St David's and one at St Andrew's prior to 1940. On his return from

overseas, he resumed leadership of the St David's Bible Class, resigning to become

Session Clerk. He retained this position until the Co-operating Parish came into being

in March 1976.

42

Session Book, March 1944.


In 1949 Mr McCaw was granted four months' leave of absence to act as chaplain on

the immigrant ship "Atlantis" and during his absence the Rev. Gladstone Hughes was

Interim Moderator.

Sister Christabel Waddell began her duties in July 1950. Her salary was paid mainly

by St Margaret's and St Andrew's members with a contribution of one quarter from St

David's. She worked in the area south of Cottle Street (Moonshine Road), where a

new housing development was to be opened up. However, she stayed only eleven

weeks and was replaced by Sister Leila Burns, an Australian, in November 1950.

Sister Leila accomplished a great deal during the eighteen months she was in the

parish. She established a Women's Club at St Andrew's, held a weekly prayer meeting

at Silverstream and acted as Superintendent of St Margaret's Sunday School.

There was a great deal of pressure from Silverstream and Trentham to have a separate

parish. The Stokes Valley church indicated that it was prepared to build a manse at

Stokes Valley but Trentham and Silverstream members felt that a separate community

of interest lay north of the Taita Gorge. In February 1950 Presbytery indicated that

loan assistance would be avail-able to provide a manse at Silverstream. On 1 July

1952 the area south of Moonshine Road and Beth Street was separated from St

David's and incorporated, with Stokes Valley, into the separate parish of Heretaunga.

In one sense it was a new beginning. However, the effects of separation would be felt

later and would be a factor in whether St David's could continue as a parish.

Second Division—The Movement North—1952-59

Population distribution has always had an effect on institutions like the Church. In

1950 there were 12,700 people in the Upper Hutt area. In 1953, with Heretaunga cut

off, 7,000 were left in the area serviced by St David's.43

The land between Moon-shine

Road and Golders Road, which had been predominantly farm land, was cut up for

housing development. The area around St David's, which included Pursers' dairy farm,

was subdivided and the area stretching from Redwood Street back to the river became

sections for housing. In 1956 a school was opened in Fraser Crescent.

Meanwhile, housing sections were being opened up in the northern part of the parish,

around the Oxford Crescent area, where a new school had been opened in 1953. The

effect of the new housing was felt in the increasing numbers of children attending

Sunday School both at St David's and at Mrs Taylor's branch. To ease the strain on the

limited accommodation at St David's, it was decided to build a new hall while in the

north it was decided to move classes to the new Oxford Crescent School.

In 1946, a quarter-acre section on the main road next to the church had been

purchased from a Mr Ulman for £230. In April 1954 St David's celebrated its seventy-

fifth anniversary and the fiftieth anniversary of its separation from Knox Church.

43

Annual Report, 1953-54.


Celebrations were held in the church and at the Druid's Hall. The lack of space for the

anniversary highlighted the need for more accommodation. Instead of building a new

church, a congregational meeting decided in April 1954 to endorse "the proposal to

build a hall as an immediate objective".44

Plans and specifications for the building

were drawn up by Mr W. Pearson, and the congregation set about raising money for

the project. It was decided to build the foundations, framework, external walls and

roof initially. A hall committee, consisting of the Van der Velde brothers (one of

whom left St David's to study for the ministry), W. W. Jensen and P. Sharpin was set

up. Meanwhile, the church was inspected and it was decided the belfry should be

removed and the rotting boards on the south side replaced by fibrolite sheets. Work

proceeded on the hall site and on 3 December 1955 the foundation stone was laid by

the Hon J. R. Marshall. Afternoon tea was served to the official party by members of

the Ladies Guild.4845

Mr McCaw had left St David's soon after the foundation stone was laid and on 15

December 1955 he was inducted into the new parish of Raumati South. The Rev. A. J.

Wardlaw of St John's Union, Taita, acted as Interim Moderator for six months. The

manse was found to be in such a bad condition that at one stage the Management

Committee talked of moving it to another site for sale. However, it was decided that it

was cheaper to renovate it, and the work was carried out by the Van der Velde

brothers. In June 1956 the Rev. Peiter De Bres was inducted as minister of St David's.

The De Bres family. Rev. Peiter De Bres 1956-61,

Conducted an active ministry at St. David’s and during this period there was a large increase in

Church Membership and in Sunday School rolls.

44

Board of Managers' Minutes, April 1954. 45

Board of Managers' Minutes, 1955.


The Rev. De Bres had been assistant at St Stephen's, Lower Hutt. He was Dutch, a

mature man with a strong sense of leadership and a conscientious attitude towards his

work. Because English was his second language, he would prepare his sermons early

in the week and take them along to Denis McEldowney, whose father was on the

Session, to edit his English. He was a family man and there were now seven children

at the manse. Mr De Bres' mature and flexible approach to his work attracted new

adult members to St David's. During the first year of his ministry the number of

communicant members increased by 85 to 332.46

It was decided to conduct a

stewardship campaign in 1957, culminating in October of that year with a "visitation".

It was felt that the campaign stimulated "a fresh interest in the church. Many of our

congregation pledged time, talents and money for the work of our Lord", said the

annual report of Session for 1957-58.

From the beginning of 1958 teams of seven or eight men were available each Saturday

morning to help with the hall construction. There were eleven teams and gradually the

hall advanced towards completion. A loan of £4,000 from the South British Insurance

Company was used to complete the work. It was finally completed and dedicated at a

service in February 1959. The church was repaired (some piles were replaced),

repainted and the belfry taken down. An inspection by a civil engineer, Mr Tocker,

showed the building to have a ten-year life.

During this period the northern part of the parish had also been developing. In

September 1955 Mrs Taylor's Sunday School celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary

with a concert at St David's. There were 112 children and a staff of nine. In 1956, the

General Assembly had stressed the need for smaller, more efficient parishes. In

November 1956 the Board of Management decided to release a section in Oxford

Crescent purchased in 1950 for the church and buy one on the corner of Exchange

Street and the Main Road.

During the long vacation in 1956 a divinity student, Graham Drummond, worked in

the parish in the area between Gibbons Road and Henry Street. As a result of his

survey, Session applied in April 1957 for a deaconess for a period of two years and

Sister Marjory Bent began work late in July 1957. It was anticipated that within the

next three years a new parish would be formed.

In July 1958 the Management Committee agreed to place before the annual

congregational meeting the "purchase of a section in Ebdentown Road owned by Mr

F. A. Spiers"47

on which a manse for the new parish would eventually be built.

Meanwhile it was decided to proceed with the building of a hall on the Exchange

Street comer site, to be completed by mid-1959. The original architect for the project

was Mr Van Melle, and it was decided to give £1,500 to the new parish towards the

cost of its buildings.

46

Annual Report, 1956-57. 47

Minutes of Board of Managers.


Events moved quickly and Presbytery approved the establishment of a new parish to

be bounded on the south west by a line along Gibbons Street and including the

Mangaroa-Wallaceville Valley. The new parish therefore included some of the oldest

as well as some of the newest settlements in the district. It would also be responsible

for the Wallaceville cemetery.

The name Iona was chosen by parish members within the boundaries of the new

parish. Until a hall was built, services were to continue in the W.D.F.F. Hall in King

Street. When the Iona parish began its life on 1 July 1959, 137 communicant members

of St David's were transferred to its roll. St David's was left with 284 communicant

members and the two parishes combined in a stewardship campaign in 1960.

"In My End is My Beginning"—1960-76

The parish of St David's was in good heart after the separation of Iona. An extra

service at 9 a.m., "Morning Praise", was introduced in September 1959 and proved

popular. P. C. Van der Velde, who had left the parish in 1957 to study for the ministry,

was inducted into his first parish in Porirua East.

In November 1961 the Rev. De Bres resigned to take up a position with the Maori

Mission and the Rev. George Nummy of Iona served as Interim Moderator. On 5

April 1962, the Rev. E. K. Orange, M.A., was inducted into the parish. He was the son

of the Rev. Orange of St Giles, Kilbimie, whose Bible Class had shared many

experiences with the St David's pre-war Bible Class. Ken Orange was a scholarly man

who combined his scholarship with an effective pastoral ministry. He was ably

assisted by his wife. Jenny, who took a leading role in the women's groups and was

leader of the Girls' Brigade for some years. The Oranges had a family of three

daughters.

Rev Ken Orange and Mrs Jenny Orange, 1962-73.


By 1964 the Board of Managers considered that "a new St David's is of great

urgency"48

and £837 had been collected for this purpose. From 1960 to 1967 the

population in the parish grew steadily from 7,500 to 10,000. The influx of new

residents could be seen in the steady increase in the numbers of children attending

Sunday School. By 1966 a record number of 425 children were enrolled and the Bible

Class, which had been considered large in the 1930s with more than thirty members,

was twice that number. And yet the number of adult communicant members began to

fall away. The increase in adults which had occurred under Mr De Bres' ministry

slowed and after 1962 a steady decline became evident, reflecting an overall change in

attitudes towards church going which is still apparent today.

It was unfortunate for St David's that this situation developed at a time when members

realised that the old church appeared to have passed beyond the stage of renovation

and a new church should be built. A fair was held in 1966 and the proceeds put

towards the building fund. Meanwhile there were increasing discussions between St

David's and the Methodist Circuit regarding church union and it was decided that there

should be pulpit exchanges and opportunities for combined worship.

It was about this time that the Rev. Orange exchanged pulpits for three months with

the Rev. R. K. Heriott from Melbourne, with the Rev. W. G. Clark from Iona acting as

Interim Moderator during this exchange.

Negotiations continued between St David's and the Methodist Circuit over the

possibility of church union but St David's considered that any proposal to build should

be left until negotiations were finalised. However, early in 1968, the Methodists

withdrew from negotiations having taken a decision to build a new church on their

Benzie Avenue site.49

By 1968 the St David's building fund had reached $9,700, and after a reassessment of

priorities a decision was taken to proceed with the erection of a new manse. An

architect was asked to draw up plans and the women's organisations in the church

were consulted. At the annual meeting the congregation was advised that sketch plans

prepared by the architect had been approved by Presbytery.50

While some members

wished the manse to be built of brick, wood was finally chosen and the original

estimated cost of $14,500 escalated to $18,000 by the time the building commenced.

The new manse was sited on a section at the rear of the church property and the laying

out of the grounds was carried out by voluntary labour. The Board of Managers was

authorised to raise a loan of $8,000 to finance the building, which was dedicated on 25

May 1969 with the Orange family moving in a month later.

48

Board of Managers' Annual Report. 49


Board of Managers' Annual Report, 1968-69.


St David’s Hall, completed in 1959,

is still used by Parish organisations and other groups within the community.

The decision to build a new manse meant that the old one could be used for a variety

of parish activities, including youth work. Repainted and renamed St David's House, it

became a useful asset to the parish. However, the building of the new manse meant an

end to the prospect of a new St David's Church in the immediate future.

The pioneers had built a church first, knowing that a manse could follow as the parish

grew. In more recent times the declining membership (down to 302 by 1969) could

see difficulties in supporting the extra expense of a modem church building. The old

church was again inspected, passed as safe for use and in 1970 the interior was

renovated with the estimated life of St David's Church then set at a further ten years.

Meanwhile, discussions took place between St Andrew's, St David's and Iona as to

possibly amalgamating the three parishes. At Assembly in 1969, parishes were asked

to try the type of parish committee organisation envisaged in the Union Church. In

February 1970 St David's Session agreed to establish a Parish Council comprising four

committees: Pastoral, Christian Education, Finance and Administration, and Building

and Works. The Parish Council would meet quarterly with the committees meeting

monthly. The new organisation, under the able guidance of the Session Clerk, Mr

Oram, and the Rev. Orange, functioned smoothly.

Over the next three years the number of communicant members at St David's

continued to drop, as did the number of children enrolled in Sunday School. There

was little new building in the area served by St David's and church members who left

the district were not necessarily replaced by other Presbyterians. Support for St

David's fell away.

In May 1973 the Rev. Orange left to take up a position in a Union parish in

Cambridge and the Rev. D. C. Boyd from Naenae acted as Interim Moderator. During

the vacancy, a committee was set up comprising representatives of St David's and Iona

Sessions to consider the feasibility of merging the two parishes51

and Messrs Elliott,

Oram and Stevens were appointed from St David's. At the annual meeting the Rev.

51

Session Minute Book, 1971-73.


Boyd spoke to the congregation about the role of the church in a period of rapid

change, high mobility, insecurity and challenging of standards, at a time when St

David's was approaching its centennial. At the meeting it was decided to extend a call

to the Rev. Neville Creighton of Redcliffs, Christchurch. Services were conducted by

the Very Rev. S. C. Read and lay preachers from Naenae during the period the parish

was vacant.

In November 1973 the Rev. N. T. Creighton was inducted. Mr Creighton was married

with four young children. He was keen to try innovations, both in worship and parish

organisation. He expanded the number of committees on the Parish Council to eight

and increased its membership to provide for forty members. This was modified later

and the number of committees reduced. The Rev. Creighton placed strong emphasis

on Christian education and emphasised this aspect of his ministry in his services. He

was ready to experiment in different styles of worship, not always well received by all

in the congregation, but his services brought a new interest into the life of the parish.

He restarted the Bible Class, which had closed down through lack of numbers, and

with a small team of leaders and young people meeting on Sunday evenings laid the

foundations for the development of the present evening youth group.

A building committee was established in 1974 to investigate the possibilities of

building a new church with the hope that a suitable building could be erected in time

for St David's centennial celebrations. The committee reported to Parish Council that

after viewing the amount of capital already invested in new worship centres on

Fergusson Drive the investment required to establish a new worship building for St

David's could not, in its opinion, be justified while there was any possibility of union

between the Presbyterians and Methodists in Upper Hutt. After consideration Parish

Council decided in May 1974 that "negotiations should be reopened with the

Methodist Circuit and that a union parish be formed" and that St Andrew's and Iona be

included in any negotiations.52

A congregational meeting authorised further discussions with the churches concerned.

Subsequently, it was decided that a "Co-operating" parish should be formed between

Iona, St Andrew's, St David's and the Methodist Circuit with Iona and St Andrew's

retaining their identities and St David's and the Methodist congregations

amalgamating with the Benzie Avenue site being used as the worshipping centre. A

vote was taken in December 1975 after the draft constitution for the Upper Hutt Co-

operating Parish had been circulated to members with 74.74% of the congregation

voting in favour of the formation of a co-operating parish.

The Rev. Creighton resigned from the Ministry in December 1975 to return to

teaching at a community college in Auckland. Early in 1976 Presbytery approved the

52

Session Minute Book, 1974.


formation of a co-operating parish "which would begin with an inaugural service in

the Upper Hutt Civic Hall on Sunday, 14 March".53

In July 1976, four months after the Co-operating Parish's inaugural service, St David's

Church which had stood on the main road for almost one hundred years was

demolished, an act which took but a few short hours to complete.

An interior view of St David’s Church shortly before its demolition.

St David's Presbyterian Church as it will be remembered by many in the congregation.

Standing in attractive grounds and sited on Fergusson Drive, the main traffic route, it

provided an effective witness from the time of its erection in 1879. The church building was

demolished in July 1976 but the Hall, St David's House (the old manse) and the new manse at

the rear of the property, still stand and are well utilised by the Co-operating Parish.

53

Session Minute Book, 1976.


IONA

All the Presbyterian churches in Upper Hutt started with the establishment of a

Sunday School. It is thought that one was being run in the Rose of Sharon Lodge Hall

for about eighteen months before St David's Church was built. However, Iona is

perhaps the best example of this.

Mrs A. F. Taylor, wife of the Session Clerk of St David's from 1941-1948, began a

small branch of St David's Sunday School at her home in Exchange Street in

September 1934. She established it to cater for the needs of five children who lived in

the northern part of the borough. From these small beginnings the Sunday School

grew until, in 1948, larger premises were found at the Red Cross rooms in Logan

Street. The number of children attending continued to grow as the northern part of

Upper Hutt developed and when the Oxford Crescent School was opened in 1953 the

Sunday School moved there. In 1955, to celebrate its "twenty-first" birthday, the

children gave a special concert at St David's.

As the Sunday School numbers grew so did the number of St David's members living

in the northern part of the parish. To cater for their needs, services were held for a

time in the Oxford Crescent School. However, some members of, the school

committee were not happy with the school being used for religious purposes and from

August 1957 a 10 a.m. service was held each Sunday at the W.D.F.F. Hall in King

Street. In addition to her Sunday School work, Mrs Taylor had established a Ladies'

Friendly Society for the women of the area and this group held sales of work, the

proceeds of which were to provide the basis for a building fund.

In 1950 St David's had purchased a section in Oxford Crescent and in 1956 the Board

of Managers decided to release this section and buy a larger one on the comer of

Exchange Street and the Main Road. The Rev. De Bres took an active interest in the

development of the northern part of the parish and from October 1956 to February

1957 a divinity student, Graham Drummond, worked in the parish between Henry and

Gibbons Streets. He reported the need for more attention to be paid to this part of St

David's and in July 1957, Session's application for a deaconess saw Sister Margery

Bent appointed for two years in anticipation of a new parish being formed. She

remained with the parish until November 1959.

In July 1958 the Board of Managers decided to place before the annual congregational

meeting "the purchase of a section in Ebdentown Road, owned by Mr F. A. Spiers".

The section was to be used to build a manse for the new parish. Presbytery approved

the establishment of a new parish to come into effect from 1 July 1959 in the northern

part of St David's parish from a line north of Gibbons Street and including the

Mangaroa and Wallaceville Valleys. The area administered by the new parish

included the Wallaceville cemetery.


Plans were made to have a hall completed by the middle of 1959 with the manse

completed by the end of that year. The name "Iona" was chosen by the members who

would be part of the new parish.

Although Iona became a separate parish on 1 July 1959, the building programme had

not proceeded as planned despite a donation of £1,500 from the St David's members.

The St David's Management Committee had engaged Mr Van Melle to act as architect

for the new hall but his plans did not meet the Upper Hutt Borough Council's bylaws

requirements. Moreover, prices tendered for the building were far in excess of that

which had been expected and so the new parish was without buildings when it came

into being and services had to be continued in the W.D.F.F. building in King Street.

The first meeting of the Iona Session was held in the St David's guild room on 7 July

1959 with the Rev. De Bres as Interim Moderator. Mr J. A. Dangerfield was elected

Session Clerk and the Interim Moderator told Session that the Rev. George Nummy

from Eltham "was taking steps to be appointed minister of Iona parish" but, due to

family commitments he could not take up an appointment until the end of the year.

Session decided that steps must be taken to have a manse built.

A congregational meeting was called for 9 August and at this it was decided to accept

a tender for the manse and to secure the nomination of the Rev. George Nummy. The

manse was not ready when the new minister was inducted on 3 December 1959 and he

and his family took up temporary residence at 13 Elm Street. It was fitting that George

Nummy should be the first minister of Iona. He had come from Ireland to work in

Upper Hutt in the 1920s, first on Mr Purser's farm, next to St David's, and later for Mr

Scholes in the Mangaroa Valley. He was an active member of St David's Bible Class

for some years and it was after he left Upper Hutt that he entered the ministry.

One of his first tasks was to help with the completion work on the new manse which

was finally dedicated on 30 April 1960. The Rev. Nummy is specially remembered by

members of the Iona Session for the introduction of a short period of Bible study at

the beginning of each meeting.

The new parish was still having difficulties with its building programme. In January

1960 Session had decided to continue to hold services in King or Logan Streets rather

"than commit the Iona congregation to an unsatisfactory building" and it was decided

to "pay off" the architect and to "start again from scratch". A new architect, Mr R.

Henderson, was appointed to design a more practical building. Meantime Session

decided to keep the Exchange Street section as it did not want its new church "hidden

away in a side street". A congregational meeting urged that the building be finished

before Christmas and it was decided to canvass for funds.

However, by November 1960, it had been realised that the Exchange Street site was

too small and Session therefore decided that it should be sold with the proceeds

applied to the purchase of a property at 11 Ebdentown Road belonging to the estate of

Mrs Benge. In October 1961 a hall was opened on this site. In 1965 a building was


placed on the site which was divided into two rooms known subsequently as the Bible

Class rooms. While the original site plan provided for a church to be built later on to

the hall, this has never eventuated.

The Iona Centre in Ebdentown Road, opened in October 1961.

The first Session Clerk, Mr Dangerfield, resigned in May 1960 when he was

transferred to Dunedin and his place was filled by Mr T. L. McNab, who retained this

position until his untimely death in 1967. When the number of Session members was

in-creased in 1961, Mrs Florence Scholes became the first woman member of the Iona

Session.

The Rev. Nummy resigned in November 1964 and the Rev. Orange from St David's

acted as Interim Moderator. In 1965 a call was made to the Rev. W. G. B. (George)

dark, who had just returned to New Zealand from North America, and he was inducted

into the parish in September 1965. He remained for nine years.

It soon became obvious that housing development in the northern area of Upper Hutt

was going to extend several miles north of Iona and that the church would be on the

edge rather than in the middle of the development. When St Joseph's Orphanage cut

up its farm at Akatarawa for sale in 1965, Mr McNab accompanied the convener of

the Home Missionary Committee to look at the sections. Session recommended to the

Committee that certain sections be purchased for future expansion and it is on one of

these sections that the new Brown Owl centre is at present being built.

In 1967, not long after Mr McNab's death, Mr W. A. Lindsay, one of the foundation

members of the Iona Session, died. Like the Scholes and Gorrie families, the Lindsay

family had had a long association with the Upper Hutt Church, first through St

David's, then the Wallaceville Church and Iona. Session placed on record its

appreciation of this long service.


During 1966 Session discussed with St Hilda's and the Methodists the ways in which

maximum co-operation could be achieved between the churches in the Upper Valley.

When St Hilda's lost its hall, the two churches discussed the joint use of Iona's

buildings. The friendly relationship built up over the years between Iona and St

Hilda's was reflected in 1974 when Iona supported St Hilda's objections to the city

district scheme of that year which made no provision for the establishment of

churches.

However, it was among the other Presbyterian Churches that Iona discussed the

question of amalgamation.

In 1973 discussions had taken place between St David's and Iona Session

representatives on the possible amalgamation of the churches. In 1974 Iona decided to

be officially represented at a meeting to discuss possible union between Iona, St

David's, St Andrew's and the Methodist Circuit. At this stage the Rev. Clark decided

to accept a call to Fairfield, Dunedin, and he left Iona in June 1974. Session put on

record its appreciation of his services to the parish over the previous nine years.

The Rev. I. McCallum became Interim Moderator and at the annual meeting chaired

by him in August 1974 the members voted "to view favourably the present draft

proposals for an Upper Hutt union parish and encourages negotiations to continue".

In 1975 a call was extended to the Rev. Dr C. B. Sherriff, of Blenheim, and he was

inducted into the parish on 5 June 1975.

Rev. Dr. C. B. Sherriff and Mrs Wanda Sherriff.

Dr. Sherriff was inducted as minister of Iona in June 1975.

Proposals for the formation of a co-operating parish comprising Iona, St David's, St

Andrew's and the Upper Hutt Methodist Circuit were put into draft form and the Iona

congregation voted on the proposals in December. The number of votes cast in favour

of a co-operating parish indicated members' favourable acceptance of the proposal.

At a Session meeting on 17 February 1976 five members of Session were nominated

to represent Iona on the Parish Council of the Co-operating Parish.


Margaret Satoreli, Judy Lyndsay and Milton Lyndsay,

preparing the preserves for the Iona Fair in 1975.

Another view of the Iona property shows the old cottage, in the front, used for Sunday School classes

with the more recent building behind, known as the Bible Class rooms, used for youth work today.

Session Clerks of Iona 1959-1976

1959-5/1960—J. A. Dangerfield

1960-1967—T. L. McNab

1967-1968—P. Maxwell

1968-1970— J. G. Russell

1970-1976—Mr Cotter


ST ANDREW'S

A church named St Andrew's was opened in Tawai Street on 11 February 1933.

However, it was not until 1 July 1966 that St Andrew's became a separate parish.

Following the church opening, the St Andrew's congregation met on 14 February 1933

and the following were appointed members of the St Andrew's Church Committee: Mr

and Mrs Groves, Mr and Mrs Pierard, Mrs Gray, Mrs Kitchen, Miss Chapman and

Messrs Harrington, Williams and Dow. Mr Dow was appointed secretary and treasurer

and when he died in October 1933 his place was taken by Mr Pierard.

The first St Andrews Church, Tawai Street, Trentham, was opened in 1933.

The new committee placed on record its appreciation of Mr Hunt's services and for the

zeal "which has inspired others in creating and dedicating this church to the glory of

God". A vote of thanks was also given to Mr Campbell, who supplied the timber.

Many people were associated with St Andrew's over the years before it became a

separate parish. Perhaps because youth work was so dear to the hearts of St Andrew's

members, it would be appropriate to mention the junior choir under the leadership of

Mrs Hines, Mrs Withell's foundation and leadership of the junior girls' Bible Class and

the leadership of the Brigade movement given by the Shakespeare family. St Andrew's

still takes pride in its Boys' and Girls' Brigades.

When the Heretaunga parish was separated from St David's in July 1952 it comprised

St Andrew's, St Margaret's and Stokes Valley. The new parish shared one minister

who was stationed at Silverstream. The Tawai Street section was small and there was

little room for expansion, but St Andrew's people still have fond memories of their

first church and there was a strong community of feeling among them. It soon became

obvious that their interests differed from those of the members of St Margaret's. They

felt they had special obligations towards the people in Trentham Camp and the

prisoners at Wi Tako. Moreover, it was considered that the Trentham area was large

enough in size to support a separate parish.


In March 1956 a congregational meeting discussed the question of buying a larger

section on the main road. The site chosen was "the Salvation Army section next to

Kent's Nursery on the main road. The section was quarter of an acre . . . the price

asked was £1,250". It was decided at the meeting that as the old church was too small,

a new one would be built in the future and the Tawai Street property sold.

The Boys’ Brigade parade outside St Andrews, Tawai Street, in 1962.

An active building committee led by Messrs F. Aipe and T. Clyma, was, set up and

funds raised for the project. In 1963 an architect, Mr R. Henderson, from Stokes

Valley, who had also designed Iona, agreed to draw up plans for a new hall on the

Main Road site and the hall was completed with voluntary labour. The Tawai Street

section was put up for sale and was sold to the Moonshine Playcentre who had the old

church moved to Ward Street, where it is still in use as a playcentre.

Morning tea break for one of the many working parties during the construction of St Andrews.


At the annual meeting of the congregation in 1965 it was decided to apply to

Presbytery to become a separate parish. The suggested date was 1 July 1966.

Presbytery recommended to the Heretaunga Parish that a new parish, "named St

Andrew's Presbyterian, Trentham" be formed. It was established as an "aided charge"

and was to consist of "that part of Upper Hutt Borough (north) between a line along

Moonshine Road and John Street" and south to Bathurst Street.

With a five-year loan approved by Presbytery, a manse had already been started in

March 1966 and by the time St Andrew's Parish came into existence was well on the

way to completion.

St. Andrews Centre, Trentham. Built by voluntary labour, the building was dedicated in March 1965.

The first service of the new parish was conducted on 3 July by the Rev. Alan Quigley,

of Stokes Valley (which had already become independent from Heretaunga). Mr

Quigley, as Interim Moderator, "preached the parish vacant". When he took up an

appointment in Fiji his place as Interim Moderator was taken by the Rev. George

Clarke, of Iona. The Rev. G. A. D. Spence, a recently retired minister, was appointed

"part-time temporary minister" and ably undertook the duties of preaching and visiting

until the first minister was appointed.

Ten elders had been elected by the congregation. They were Messrs Aipe, Bilby,

Borrows, Faulkner, McLachlan, Murray, Park, N. Shakespeare, Shields and Snyders.

At the first Session meeting on 26 July 1966 Noel Shakespeare was elected Session

Clerk, an appointment he held until January 1974. Mr J. Kemp replaced him and was

Session Clerk when St Andrew's entered the Co-operating Parish in 1976.

The Rev. Cyril Viggars, from Hamilton, was St Andrew's first full-time minister. The

new manse was dedicated on 7 May 1967 by the Rev. J. K. Fairbairn, minister of St

John's, Wellington, and eighteen days later, the Rev. Viggars was inducted as minister

of St Andrew's.


By 1972, St Andrew's faced a major financial crisis and there were serious doubts as

to whether it could continue as a separate parish. The Methodists had already found

that because the expected increase in population had not occurred in the Trentham

area, St Stephen's had to be closed in 1968. Much the same position beset St Andrew's

four years later. The total area of the parish was substantial but much of it was taken

up by the racecourse, Trentham Camp, and the Memorial Park, and where once it was

expected houses would be built, a large secondary school stood. The expected

subdivision at Craig's Flat across the river did not take place and the population of

Trentham had become static. By 1971 St Andrew's had only 93 members.

A visitation committee in 1972 suggested that St Andrew's consider a merger with St

Margaret's and while discussions took place, the merger did not eventuate. Meanwhile

the Rev. Viggars had become ill and tendered, his resignation. It was decided not to

replace him meantime and instead plans went ahead for extending the hall to provide

much needed space for the Sunday School.

In the long vacation of 1972 a student, Mr Jack Foster, and his family, lived in the

manse. Mr Foster became involved in the pastoral work of the parish with such

enthusiasm that he put new heart into St Andrew's. The extensions to the hall took

shape and in March Session decided to call a new minister. The Rev. Winston Baker,

M.A., was selected. He had been working as an industrial chaplain prior to a two-year

period with the Presbyterian Church of Ceylon. St Andrew's was his first New

Zealand parish. He was married with two young children and was inducted on 5 July

1973. He came at a time when there was a small but significant increase in church

membership. The Rev. Baker kept up his industrial interests by working among the

employees at Dunlops and he was St Andrew's minister when the parish entered the

Co-operating Parish in 1976.

Although a "parish council" type of organisation was tried in St Andrew's in 1972, as

a result of the General Assembly suggestion, it was decided in 1974 to revert to a

simpler form of church organisation. Financial troubles continued to be a worry to the

members and it was decided that a continuation of its ministry to the area could be

better assured by entering into some form of union with Iona, St David's and the

Methodist Circuit. Discussions were begun in 1974 and a vote on the draft constitution

of the co-operating parish was taken in December 1975. A large majority voted for

joining the co-operating parish.

St Andrew's brought with it a closely knit body of worship-pers. A feature of St

Andrew's has been the positive part taken by members in church affairs, including

visiting, active participation in services and a continuing interest in Wi Tako Prison.


THE METHODIST CHURCH IN UPPER HUTT

1883-1976

Whitemans Valley—1883-1927

The history of the Methodist Church in Upper Hutt began in the early 1880s in

Whitemans Valley, which is a valley running almost parallel with the Upper Hutt

Valley. There were several Methodist families among the farmers and sawmillers who

came to work and settle in the valley. The enthusiasm of lay people in the Methodist

Church has always been important and it was two lay people, Richard and James

Prouse, who offered their home for the first services held in Whitemans Valley. In

March 1883 Whitemans Valley was placed o,n the Hutt preaching plan and Richard

Prouse elected society steward.54

The Quarterly Meeting in March 1885 sanctioned the

building of a church.

The land for the church was given by another dedicated layman, James Swanson, a

farmer. The church, to seat one hundred people, was designed by the Rev. Samuel

Garlick, of Lower Hutt, who was also the builder and he was helped by local settlers

with the timber being donated by the Prouse brothers from their mill. When the church

opened in 1885 it was debt free. The original Trustees were James, Richard and

Charles Prouse, Walter Smithson, James Devine, James and Joshua Knight and

Charles Hollard.

Services were held regularly on Sunday afternoons and "Old" Mr Clements from

Stokes Valley, one of the best preachers in the district, used to walk from Stokes

Valley to preach.55

Within a decade changes were taking place in Whitemans Valley. The timber having

been worked out, the Prouse brothers' sawmill closed in 1891 and the Prouse families

moved to Levin. By 1900 there were only six members of the church left in

Whitemans Valley and that number had dwindled to two by 1905. The population had

moved over the hill to Upper Hutt.

An attempt was made in 1909 to start fortnightly services at Upper Hutt and it was

hoped that a section could be found. However response to the services was

disappointing and nothing was done. Fortnightly services were continued in

Whitemans Valley until 1913, when they were reduced to a monthly basis, and in

1917 the church was leased to the Anglicans.

From the early years of the century, until 1927, Methodists in Upper Hutt worshipped

with Presbyterians and Baptists at St David's. Some of the best known Methodist

families in Upper Hutt, like the Pursers, were active in the St David's Bible Class.

54

"Flickers The Flame", by William Greenwood, 1946. 55

Quoted in the above.


In 1927, the Methodist Conference decided that "a Home Missionary be established at

Upper Hutt for the purpose of working Upper Hutt, Trentham, Haywards,

Silverstream, Wallaceville and Stokes Valley".56

The mission was to be under the

supervision of the Hutt Circuit. As no church was available, services were held in "the

old picture house and drill hall".57

After three months, a decision was taken to move the White-mans Valley church over

the hill to a section purchased for £125 in Benzie Avenue. It was shifted in the pouring

rain by Messrs Hall Brothers of Lower Hutt. Voluntary labour was used to renovate

the building and it was ready for the first service on 1 July 1927.

An early photo of the Church sited in Benzie Avenue.

Originally built in Whitemans Valley in 1885, it was moved to its present site in 1927.

Part of Hutt Circuit—1927-55

The opening of the church was conducted by the Rev. Charles Olds, who "introduced

the home missionary, Erick Alexander, to the congregation".58

Mr James Swanson,

who had given the section in Whitemans Valley for the church, addressed the

congregation on "the history of the old building".59

The "old building" still stands on

its site in Benzie Avenue and is used for church purposes.

The first business meeting was held on 9 August 1927 when Messrs Purser and W. O.

Thomas were elected Circuit Stewards with the Rev. C. Olds, of Lower Hutt, chairing

the meeting.

Mr Alexander remained until 1928. In 1929 the congregation had three home

missionaries, Messrs Greenslade, Harding and Brady. Messrs Strand and Haigh also

supplied, as did two students, Messrs Payne and Jenkin, over the long vacation. In

56

Upper Hutt Quarterly Minute Book, article on cover. 57

"Flickers The Flame". 58

Minute Book, article on cover. 59

Minute Book, article on cover.


1930 Mr B. Kirkland supplied for two months and he was followed by Messrs

Harding and I. Thomas.

Mr. W. O. Thomas elected Circuit Steward in 1927.

Later in 1930, Mr G. S. B. White was home missionary and he stayed until 1932. Mr

White was a Canadian who had previously "been to sea".60

He became a cub master

and enjoyed living in Upper Hutt. However, after eighteen months, a meeting was

called because it was felt the quality of Mr White's preaching was falling off and he

was delivering his sermons "in a monotone". The meeting decided that Mr White

should "move on". "On account of his age he should concentrate on his studies . . . and

if he moved on he would be able to do more studying by preaching his old sermons".61

From 1932-35 Mr H. A. Cochrane was at Upper Hutt. It was Depression time and

often the small congregation was hard put to find the home missionary's salary. He

was paid at the end of each quarter with the collection of the previous three months.62

Mr Richards, a retired minister, replaced Mr Cochrane but he lived in Lower Hutt.

The first home missionary to remain any length of time in Upper Hutt was Sister Edith

Beer, who stayed from 1936 until 1940. Sister Edith is still remembered with

affection. She lived in the back of the Plunket rooms and was a great visitor with a

delightful personality and perhaps best of all, was an excellent preacher. Sister Edith

took up all sorts of causes during her stay, in particular she promoted Bible in Schools

and took a special interest in the Railway63

workers at Kaitoke. She took a strong

stand on "Sabbath desecration" in relation to the letting of Maidstone Park "for picnics

and organised games on a Sunday",64

and organised a meeting with the Presbyterians

and Anglicans to protest to the Council on the matter.

60

Mr Noel MCarthy, Upper Hutt. 61

Minute Book of Quarterly Meetings. 62

Mr Noel McCarthy. 63


Minute Book of Quarterly Meetings.


During the war the congregation undertook special work in relation to Trentham

Camp, organising services and functions for the soldiers stationed there. Sister Edith

left in 1940 and Mr A. H. Ivory was welcomed to the church on 10 April 1940 to

replace her. Mr Ivory was a very tall man who had decided to enter the ministry later

in life after being an accountant. The church members decided they would like to

retain Mr Ivory's services permanently but felt they "were unable to provide adequate

remuneration for a man of his status and ability". The Home Missionary Board was

therefore asked for a grant. Stokes Valley was a part of the Upper Hutt preaching plan,

but services there were not satisfactory and there was a very small attendance at the

monthly meetings. The congregation decided to recommend Mr Ivory as a candidate

for the ministry. He was accepted and farewelled at a function in July 1942.

Over the years a number of Upper Hutt Methodists have been licensed as lay

preachers. Mr Keall, a retired minister who lived in Lower Hutt, "filled in" for the next

four years and during the time he was home missionary Mr McKay was licensed as a

lay preacher.

In 1946 Mr Colin Clark was appointed home missionary. He remained for a year and

during this time presented a plan for church extension and co-operation in Upper Hutt.

When he left to enter theological college in 1947 he said, "there was no chance of

wealth but an unlimited chance for joyous service".65

In 1947 the "Upper Hutt Methodist News" was started. A stalwart of the church, Mr H.

W. Heyhoe, was editor. Mr Heyhoe, who died last year, was a Circuit Steward from

1938 to 1941. He was actively involved in all aspects of the church's work. He left the

Upper Hutt district in 1948 and his place as editor was taken by Mr Divers.

Church membership in 1947 was between 45 and 55. In addition to the services at

Stokes Valley there were preaching places at Pinehaven and Akatarawa. The

Methodists had two sections at Stokes Valley but services were held in the

Presbytrerian Hall. At Akatarawa, services were held at the Anglican Hall. The

Sunday School at Pinehaven was very strong with a roll of twenty children in 1947.

The Rev. W. L. Divers, who came to Upper Hutt in 1947, was a young man who was

finishing his term as a probationary minister. He was married and it was recognised

that there was a need for a parsonage. In April 1950 the Trustees decided that a

parsonage should be built and the congregation was asked for subscriptions to put a

deposit on a section, but sufficient funds were not available to begin building. Mr

Divers left in 1950 and he died at a comparatively early age while on a scholarship to

the United States.

65



Rev. W. L. Divers, Mrs Joyce Divers and their first son, Leslie.

Mr Divers was minister to the Upper Hutt Methodist Circuit 1947-55.

Methodist Bible Class Camp, 1948

Back row: Alf Chote, Valda Doske, Joyce Divers, Rev. Lloyd Divers, Edith ---,Trevor Nixon.

Front row: Iris Colclough, -----, Lois Duske, Ann Wright (now Thomas), Jean Colclough (now

Taylor), Gwenda Laird.

Alf Chote and Valda Doske married and are now missionaries in India.

In November 1950 the Rev. Len Schroeder came to Upper Hutt. He was the

congregation's first ordained minister and Upper Hutt was his first charge. He was a

good preacher with a fine academic record. As he was unmarried, it was decided to

postpone the building of the parsonage until more funds could be accumulated.

During the next two years Upper Hutt bmccarthyegan to expand. In the Trentham

area, the Cottle block was cut up into sections for housing development and it was


decided that a preaching station should be established in Moonshine Road to serve

houses in this new subdivision. A site was selected by the Rev. McDowell from

Lower Hutt, the Circuit Chairman, and the Rev. Schroeder in consultation with the

Rev. J. C. McCaw of St David's. The section cost £450. It was also decided that a site

should be purchased at Pinehaven.

Alan and Dora Pursers’ wedding, held in the original church with the Rev. L. P. Schroeder presiding.

In 1952 a parsonage was purchased at 13 Fraser Crescent with funds from the peace

thanksgiving appeal and it was dedicated on 11 May 1952. Mr Fletcher Thomas,

whose father had a long association with the church, was licensed as a lay preacher in

1952. It was during this eventful year that Girls' and Boys' Brigades were established

at Wesley Church. They were the first Brigades to be founded in Upper Hutt.

When the Rev. Schroeder left in 1953 he was replaced by the Rev. Harry Shaw, who

was to be the first minister of the independent Upper Hutt Circuit.

The addition in 1954 of extra accommodation for Sunday School and other use gave welcome relief.


Independent Circuit: The Years of Expansion—1955-68

The Rev. Harry Shaw was one of the most colourful of the Upper Hutt ministers. He

was young and "as strong as a horse".66

He was also very energetic and absolutely

committed to the Methodist Conference's policy of expansion. In this commitment he

was supported by a strong group of fully accredited lay preachers including Mrs A.

Purser and Mr Noel McCarthy, who were licensed in April 1954.

In October 1954 a special meeting was called to discuss proposed extensions to the

church, and this much needed accommodation was built on the back of the church in

the following months. In February 1955 the members of the Quarterly Meeting

congratulated Mr Shaw on his ordination at Conference to the Upper Hutt Circuit. At

the same Conference, the Rev. Mc-Dowell, of Lower Hutt, had been named as

President Elect.

The new circuit began with a membership of 108 and a bank overdraft of £50. Mr

Noel McCarthy and Mr Keith Russell were the first Circuit Trustees.

A church extension fund had been set up by Conference for "a vision of the need in

many parts of New Zealand".67

The circuit decided to open a cause in the Cottle Block

"on the agreed understanding that local Presbyterian families would be encouraged to

attend the Sunday School and church services".68

A preaching place at Te Marua was considered to be an urgent priority and it was

decided to hold regular services "in Miss Rockel's bach" until a church could be built.

A section was purchased at Pinehaven in 1955 and this was followed in 1956 with the

purchase of a section at Te Marua for £500.

Meanwhile, the Cottle Street Church was well under way. An old building was

available from the Ministry of Works' plant at the Rimutaka tunnel construction

settlement. It was the single men's quarters and was eighty feet long. As only forty-

two feet were required for Cottle Street the rest was cut up and disposed of in various

ways. Mr Parry transported the required forty-two feet to Cottle Street (now

Moonshine Road) site and a team of volunteers led by Mr Eric Andrews, a builder, set

about renovating the building.

In the centre of all the activity was the Rev. Harry Shaw. Noel McCarthy remembers

him working on the roof when, requiring something in a hurry, he jumped down

instead of waiting for a ladder. His second attempt at jumping ended in a broken ankle

and he limped into church on crutches for the next few weeks.69

66




Mr Noel McCarthy.


Despite such "accidents" the hall was ready for use as a Sunday School in March

1956. Mr J. L. Tobin was the Superintendent and Presbyterian children were also to

attend. The first church service at the completed St Stephen's was conducted by the

Rev. Shaw on 8 April 1956.

Mr Shaw was greatly interested in young people and took part in many of their

activities. In addition to increasing the number of preaching places in the circuit he

approached General Motors for permission to speak to the workers during the lunch

break. This period of great activity ended in 1957 when he left to take up a new

charge. By this time there were seven preach-ing places in the circuit—Benzie

Avenue, Te Marua, Cloustonville, Akatarawa, St Stephen's, Trentham Camp and

Pinehaven.

He was followed by the Rev. F. Parker, of Feilding, who was appointed to the circuit

in February 1957. The Rev. Parker was quieter than his predecessor but he was a good

preacher who was interested in pastoral work.

Rev. F. W. Parker, 1957-64, greets Mrs Colclough and Mr John Purser.

The parsonage in Fraser Crescent was too small and it was decided to sell it and build

a new one. A section was purchased in Redwood Street, plans prepared and a loan of

£1,000 applied for. The new parsonage was opened on Saturday, 26 July 1958 by the

Rev. E. S. Hoddinott, chairman of the Wellington district. It was of brick veneer with

four bedrooms and a study and was built by B. C. Appleton Ltd.

When Mr Noel McCarthy resigned in 1957 to take up an appointment in Australia his

place as Circuit Steward was taken by Mr Matthews. During the long vacation of the

same year a student from Trinity College, Miss Thea James, came to help in the

circuit. She concentrated on the southern part of the district. During this period the

Stokes Valley station was struggling and was unable to contribute financially towards

circuit expenses.


Mr Noel McCarthy addressing the Stewardship Dinner held in Upper Hutt School Hall, 1957.

The old Druid’s Hall in Fergusson Drive, built in 1928, was purchased in 1959 and renamed Wesley

Hall. It is now linked to the other buildings at the Wesley Centre.

In 1959 there were 125 members in Upper Hutt and twenty-eight in Cottle Street. A

hard look was taken at the financial position of the circuit and it was decided that "for

the next year or two we are faced with a policy of retrenchment and consolidation in

order to accumulate funds for further work". A request was made for a deaconess to


assist Mr Parker, and Sister Gladys Thomas was appointed in 1961. She came to be

known as "the deaconess on a scooter" because of her method of transport.70

For many years the Upper Hutt Circuit had argued that Stokes Valley should be part of

the Hutt Circuit and not Upper Hutt. In March 1959 when the Stokes Valley Church

was opened it was officially handed over to the Lower Hutt Circuit.

During 1958, to increase the finances of the church, the "pledge" system had been

introduced. In October 1959 the circuit learned that the Druid's Hall next to the

church, which had been leased to the Labour Party, would be available for sale and the

trustees decided to buy the property. Members were canvassed for their financial

support and a circuit dinner was held. A loan of £3,000 was arranged and the Druid's

Hall, which had been built in 1928, became part of the church property. It gave the

church a frontage on the main road and provided much-needed accommodation for

youth work. Nevertheless, conditions on Sunday mornings were so cramped that in

1962 the church accepted an offer from Mr Springay to use his funeral parlour "for

Sunday morning meetings and church groups".71

Even though church membership had risen to 217 in 1961 the circuit was in debt and

there was a need for a second parsonage in the Cottle Block. It was planned to have St

Stephen's as heart of a second circuit, catering for the area south of Moonshine Road

and including Pinehaven, but financially it was not possible to support a second

minister at this stage. When Sister Gladys exchanged to Australia in 1963, she was

replaced by Sister Janet Evans. Sister Gladys had been captain of the Girls' Brigade

and leader of the girls' Bible Class at St Stephen's.

St. Stephen’s, sited in Cottle Street (now Moonshine Road) was opened in 1956. Closed in 1968, it was

sold to the Upper Hutt Boxing Club.

70

"N.Z. Methodist Times", February 1963. 71



Her motor scooter soon became uneconomic and the circuit provided a new car for

Sister Janet.

It was decided that a section should be purchased for a second parsonage and in

February 1963 a section in a right-of-way off Hikurangi Street was purchased with a

grant of £1,000. Tenders for a church at Te Mama were let in 1964.

In December 1963 Mr Parker told the Quarterly Meeting that he would be leaving

Upper Hutt. The meeting placed on record his "care and concern for people". Early in

1964 the Rev. Trevor Bennett was inducted. Mr Bennett came to Upper Hutt from a

rural district in Mid-Canterbury and there was a family of four young children. The

church took a good look at its financial situation and found itself deeply in debt. The

areas in which the church had invested money had not lived up to the expected growth

in population and the Cottle Street church was on the edge of a housing development,

not in the centre as envisaged. Much the same thing had happened at Te Marua, but

building of a church had already begun. At a meeting held at Upper Hutt on 9 June

1964, in consultation with the Rev. B. M. Chrystall, it was decided "that in view of the

debt structure and the size of the circuit" two things had to be done. The Benzie

Avenue buildings had to be replaced and the question of "a second agent" to be

stationed in the Cottle Street area had to be settled.72

The meeting decided that

February 1966 would be a good date for a new minister to start on the basis that

Craigs Flat, across the river, would be developed for housing. It was also decided to

have some discussion with the Presbyterians on church union.

The Te Marua church was opened on Sunday, 11 October 1966 and it was decided to

share this facility with the Anglicans. The building of a second parsonage was begun

on the Hikurangi Street section and it was ready for dedication on 27 March 1966 by

the Rev. W. F. Ford, of Wellington. The second minister appointed to the circuit, the

Rev. Robert Te Whare, was inducted in February 1966, and as he was single, the new

parsonage was leased to a couple who boarded the new minister.

St Stephen's struggled on for a further two years but in July 1968 the leaders of St

Stephen's recommended that "the cause should be closed as soon as suitable

arrangements could be made".73

The church was eventually sold to the Upper Hutt

Boxing Club. The members of the Upper Hutt Circuit decided that the mission of the

church would be more effectively served at one centre in the district and henceforth all

efforts would be geared towards upgrading Wesley Church.

Wesley Centre and the Rev. J. S. Olds

The Rev. J. S. Olds, his wife Viti, and family, took up their appointment at Upper Hutt

in February 1969. In April of that year the Trust resolved to commission an .architect

72




to design a new building at Upper Hutt and Messrs Girdlestone and Milchell were

appointed.

Rev. J. S. Olds, Chaplain of the 17th Hutt Galley Company, Girls' Brigade, with two Queens' award

girls, Yvonne Middlebeek and Rowena Gibbons, May, 1977.

Soon after her arrival Mrs Olds formed a children's choir to sing at the morning

service and this choir is still in existence. The Rev. Olds, meantime, began to put new

vigour and heart into the circuit.

To gather together funds for the new building it was decided that the Te Marua

property should be sold, with church members at Te Marua agreeing to use the local

library for services. Although discussions were still continuing with the local

Presbyterians on the question of church union it was decided at a congregational

meeting that the development of the Benzie Avenue site "has much to offer the

community and City of Upper Hutt". Further, that the development of the Benzie

Avenue site should be considered "as part of the development of the church within the

possible Union Parish".74

It was on this point that discussions with St David's foundered. The Presbyterians

wanted to delay any building until after union and while discussions between the two

groups continued the Methodist representatives reported that the meetings "did not

seem to have much real enthusiasm".75

A major fund-raising effort was begun by the circuit in 1970, the main event being a

queen carnival which raised $2,520. The architects' plans were approved subject to the

results of discussions with St David's, but the congregation felt that in view of the

effort made by them in raising funds, St David's be advised that Wesley could not

further delay its building proposals.

In July 1971 the Quarterly Meeting authorised the trust to apply to the Home Mission

Fund for a loan. The new building began to take shape. In May 1973 it was decided to

74




open a thrift shop "which has the aim of providing funds for the church and charitable

organisations".76

The revenue from the shop helped to bolster the new church building

fund and it proved to be a useful venture which is well patronised still by a wide

spectrum of the community.

In October 1973 the new building at Wesley Centre was completed and it was opened

on Saturday, 6 October by the President of the Methodist Conference, the Rev. W. S.

Dawson. It was called a place for people, "building upon the past and for the future". 77

At the first Sunday morning service the sermon was preached by the Rev. L.

Schroeder, who had begun his work as a minister in Upper Hutt in 1950.

The building of the new church owed a great deal to the enthusiasm and perseverance

of the Rev. J. S. Olds. At its Quarterly Meeting on 24 April 1974 the circuit expressed

"its grateful appreciation to Stan and Viti Olds. In particular it expresses its gratitude

to Stan for his caring ministry, and preaching gifts and for his vision, leadership and

drive, which have played such a major part in the establishment of Wesley Centre".78

In June 1974 St David's made a further approach to Wesley on the question of church

union. A team of negotiators comprising the Rev J. S. Olds, Mesdames Whitton,

Girven and Miss Middlebeek, and Messrs McCarthy, Bolitho, Park, Mason, Russell

and Thomas was elected to negotiate on behalf of the circuit. By October 1974 the

team had the first draft of a proposal to forward to the higher church court for

comment and approval and negotiations continued throughout 1975 on the basis of a

co-operating rather than a union parish.

In August 1975 the opportunity arose for the circuit to purchase a property on one of

its boundaries and the quarterly meeting in August gave approval to the purchase of

64 Martin Street in anticipation of further expansion, with the property being let

meantime.

Two months later, in October, copies of the draft constitution for the co-operating

parish were available. After some discussion it was agreed "that we proceed to vote as

scheduled".79

On 14 March 1976 the Upper Hutt Methodist Circuit joined St David's,

Iona and St Andrew's Presbyterian Churches in the formation of the Upper Hutt Co-

operating Parish.

76



Minute Book of Quarterly Meetings, April 24 1974. 79

Minute Book of Quarterly Meetings, October 1975.


Circuit Stewards of the Upper Hutt Methodist Church—1927-76

1927-1937; 1943-1950—W.O. Thomas

1927-1929—J. Purser

1929-1934—D. L. Lewis

1934-1941—O. B. Sims

1938-1941—H. Heyhoe

1941-1944—H. Reynolds

1943-1950—H. C. Christian

1948-1953—A. Purser

1952—Mr Andrews

1953-1955—Mr Ackroyd

1955—Mrs Wright

1955-1957; 1962; 1969-1976—H. N. McCarthy

1955-1957; 1963-1966—K. Russell

1957-1964—T. Matthews

1958-1961—J. Munro

1965-1968—R. Baxter

1969-1972—F. Thomas

1973-1976—J. Bolitho


OTHER FACETS OF PARISH LIFE

WOMEN'S GROUPS

Presbyterian and Methodist women have always played an active role in church

affairs. They were organists or choir members, Sunday. School teachers or Bible Class

secretaries. Organisations founded specifically for women had a dual role, to provide

fellowship and to raise funds for the church.

The early records of St David's refer to the P.W.M.U., which was founded mainly to

aid missionaries in their work but which often contributed to St David's uncertain

budget. It was the need for a new manse which galvanised the St David's ladies into

organising themselves into a special group. The wife of a home missionary, Mrs

Buchanan, is given the credit of being the Guild's founder, in March 1911, to raise

funds for the building of a manse. In September 1912 the Board of Managers allowed

the newly formed group to have its own secretary and treasurer.

The Guild proved to be an excellent money-raising organisation. During the First

World War it collected funds to reduce the debt on the manse and, in addition, made

flannel waistcoats for soldiers. In 1918, when the manse debt was paid off, the Guild

set about raising money for a new organ.

It became an accepted thing for the minister's wife to be president of the Guild, but

there have been some notable exceptions, among them being Mrs E. Wallis, Mrs M.

Robertson, Miss Elizabeth Dale, Mrs Forster and Mrs E. Neighbours.

Mrs Clara Holmes made a great impact on members during her four-year presidency.

She was a skilled needlewoman and organised a number of very successful sales of

work. Some church members still remember the "double-backed flannel pyjamas" she

made for sale. She also recognised the need for the Mangaroa women to have an

organisation of their own where they could meet and work, and in 1925 the

Wallaceville Ladies' Guild was started with Mrs W. Gorrie as the first president and

Mrs F. Scholes as secretary. This group continued until 1957.

As new churches were built, new Guilds were formed within the parish to cater for the

needs of the women in their own community. Mr Hunt asked the St David's Guild

members to assist St Andrew's ladies establish their own group.

In 1950 the younger women in the church felt that the Guild did not cater for their

special needs and a new group, the Women's Club, was formed for younger women.

Similar clubs were formed at St Margaret's and St Andrew's at the same time. In the

northern part of the district, Mrs A. F. Taylor formed a Friendly Circle to cater for the

needs of young mothers in the district. This group decided to raise money for the

building of a church.


When Iona became a separate parish there were three separate women's groups, the

Friendly Circle, the P.W.M.U. and a Fireside Group. A co-ordinating committee under

the presidency of Mrs F. Scholes was set up in 1961.

In 1964 it was decided at a national level to combine all the women's groups into the

Association of Presbyterian Women. The St David's Guild and P.W.M.U. later

decided to combine and hold afternoon meetings while the Women's Club continued

to meet in the evening. When the Co-operating Parish was formed, the Evening

A.P.W. at St David's and St Andrew's joined the Wesley Fellowship, while the

Afternoon A.P.W. at St David's retained its identity, as did the Iona women's group.

Iona now has .a day-time group and an evening group under the one president, Mrs P.

McNab.

The Wesley women's groups followed a similar pattern to those of the Presbyterian

women. A Women's Guild was mentioned first in 1929, and in 1932 there was a

reference to a Foreign and Home Mission group led by Mrs Purser. A group to cater

for the needs of younger women was started in 1948. Called the Fireside Group, it met

in private homes, with Miss Colclough as its first secretary.

In May 1959 it was decided to merge the three groups into the Wesley Fellowship.

The Fellowship met at the church and elected a president on a two-year rotation. The

first president was Mrs Esme Baxter. One of Fellowship's first money-raising

campaigns was to provide an oil-burning heater for the Druid's Hall. This year,

Fellowship has set itself the task of raising $1,600 to pay for the chairs at the new

Brown Owl centre. Members of Fellowship serve on a voluntary basis in the thrift

shop and some started an entertainment group called Wesley Revue.


YOUTH WORK

Youth work is an integral part of any church and I have tried to incorporate many of

the events in the main body of the text. However, there were people who were

particularly involved with youth work, and it would be inappropriate to write a history

of this kind without mentioning them.

Sunday Schools

When he established a Sunday School in the Rose of Sharon Hall eighteen months

before St David's was built, Mr Grant was creating a precedent. In Upper Hutt, Sunday

Schools be-came the forerunners of a church.

Miss Emma Taylor, who taught Sunday School and Bible Class for many years,

remembers coming to St David's Sunday School as a child in the first years of the

century. She came with a friend, liked it, and stayed on. Eventually the rest of her

family came to St David's. Her brother, Mr A. F. Taylor, was Session Clerk, while her

sister, Mrs Gellen, was organist for many years.

During the early years there were Sunday Schools at Akatarawa, Karapoti and

Wallaceville. The Wallaceville Sunday School ran intermittently over a period of fifty

years. At Silverstream, a Sunday School began some time before 1925 with Mr

Godber as Superintendent, and in October 1932, the Trentham congregation asked for

a Sunday School to be set up with Mr Moor as its first Superintendent. The history of

Mrs Taylor's Exchange Street Sunday School has already been traced in an earlier

chapter.

It is hard to realise today the enthusiasm and zeal with which earlier teachers and

superintendents regarded their jobs. Mr Duff was Superintendent of St David's for

thirteen years from 1921, combining this job with that of Session Clerk. His successor,

Captain Withell, who was Superintendent until 1940, was also choirmaster for a

number of years. When he died at a comparatively young age in 1946, Session set up

the Withell Memorial Bible Fund of £40 to enable Sunday School scholars to compete

annually on a project. Today interest from the fund provides Bibles for some pupils.

St David's and St Andrew's both had children's choirs for a number of years. The St

David's choir was a regular feature of Sunday morning worship until 1966. Other

offshoots of the Sunday School were the Young Worshippers League and the Busy

Bees.

The Methodist Sunday School dates from 1928. It had a small but steady number of

scholars throughout the first twenty years. During Sister Edith's stay in the district she

paid special attention to the Sunday School. A thriving Sunday School grew up at

Pinehaven with Mr V. Ackroyd as its Superintendent in the 1950s. In 1955 extra

rooms were built on the back of the Upper Hutt church "mainly for the use of the

Sunday School".


Mr. J. O. Duff, St. David’s Session Clerk, and Sunday School Superintendent.

A Sunday School at Te Marua was opened in February 1956 "in Miss Rockels' bach"

with Mrs V. B. Earle as Superintendent. It was open to children of all denominations.

The Cottle Street Sunday School was opened in March 1956 and catered for children

in Trentham who had previously gone to Sunday School at Trentham Camp. It was

hoped that it would cater jointly for Methodist and Presbyterian children in the area.

Mr J. Tobin was the first Superintendent.

From 1969, when Mrs Viti Olds come to Upper Hutt, there has been a junior choir

contributing to Sunday morning worship.

Superintendents at Wesley Sunday School since 1954 have been F. Thomas, H.

Gibbon, G. Heppleston and A. Hawke.

Bible Class

Bible Classes have been held for young people in all of the church centres and the

support and level of activity has fluctuated over the years, largely dependent on the

nature of the leadership available. At various times groups have developed into strong

units, contributing to the life of the church, then tending to fall away, and in some

cases ceasing to function altogether for a period.

While little is recorded of the activities of these groups over the last one hundred years

there is no doubt that they have played an important part in the lives of many of the

people who have made the Upper Hutt Co-operating Parish what it is today.

Yesterday’s Hotrods: Boys from St David’s Bible Class with the transport used by the group to

travel to Kaitoke to take Sunday School there in the mid 1930’s.


THE UPPER HUTT CO-OPERATING PARISH

1976-1979

TO THE PRESENT

The inaugural service of the Co-operating Parish was held in the Upper Hutt Civic

Hall on Sunday, 14 March 1976.

The members of each of the four congregations had been able to elect people to

represent them on the newly formed Parish Council. The three ministers already in

Upper Hutt, the Revs. J. S. Olds, W. J. Baker and Dr C. Sherriff, became part of a

team of four ministers. A board of nomination had already been set up to elect a

fourth. The Rev. I. A. Milner was inducted into the parish on 9 September 1976. The

ministerial team included two laymen, H. N. McCarthy and J. N. Kemp, and met

weekly. Mr Kemp, who was formerly Session Clerk at St Andrew's, has now moved

to Masterton. The present treasurer of the parish is D. N. A. Davis and the secretary C.

A. Oram.

Rev. Ian Milner and Mrs Ruth Milner who joined the Co-operating Ministry Team in 1976.

It had been decided that the St David's site should be sold and the proceeds

contributed towards the development of the Wesley Centre site. In July 1976 St

David's Church was demolished. During the same month, the old manse, St David's

House, was let to a refugee family (the Espinoza family) from Chile. The family

comprised two adults and four children. The site, which now comprised the two

manses and a hall, was offered to the Wellington Hospital Board as a possible site for

a health centre. However, negotiations fell through and the property is still in use for

church purposes.

In July 1977 the parish conducted a stewardship campaign and members responded to

this appeal for increased financial support. Associated with this stewardship campaign

was an appeal for pledges for the development of a new church centre at Brown Owl

and the response in pledges more than met the $25,000 target that had been set.


In August 1977 the Rev J. S. Olds, who had been Chairman of the Parish Council

since its inception, died suddenly. His contribution to the development of the Upper

Hutt Methodist Circuit, followed by his role in the development of the Co-operating

Parish was acknowledged by all who were involved and his death was keenly felt by

the parish. At the time of the inauguration of the Co-operating Parish, St David's

members, being without their own minister following the departure of the Rev. N.

Creighton, received much support and pastoral care from the Rev. Olds and the shared

grief in his passing proved to have a unifying effect on the now combined

congregation at the Wesley Centre.

The vacancy created by the death of the Rev. Olds was filled by the Rev. Graeme

McIver, who joined the parish from Timaru in February 1978.

Rev. Graeme McIver, Mrs Beatrice McIvor and their daughters Jennifer and Linda. Mr. MrIver

joined the Co-operating Parish Ministry Team in 1978, and both he and Ian Milner are based at the

Wesley Centre.

From 8 to 15 October 1978 the entire parish was involved in "Centrepoint". This was a

week when the whole parish had an opportunity to meet together and discuss various

aspects of the work of the church in Upper Hutt. There were two guest speakers, the

Revs. Warwick Gust and Duncan Jamieson, from Napier. The Rev. Jamieson is

married to the daughter of J. C. McCaw, St David's longest-serving minister.

In March 1979 the Rev. W. J. Baker resigned to take up a position as chaplain at

Woodbourne Air Force Station. He has been replaced by the Rev. John Howell from

Auckland, who will be based at Brown Owl. Dr C; B. Sherriff will retire at the end of

this year and another minister is being sought to replace him. In addition, Mrs Gwen

Johnston has been commissioned as an honorary lay worker.

The new parish set itself three main objectives—to establish effective outreach and

development in the northern part of the parish; the development of the Benzie Avenue

site as the main centre; a mission in tertiary education institutions in the southern part

of the parish.

The first objective is well on the way to realisation. By June 1978 plans and

specifications for a new church complex at Brown Owl had been approved by the


appropriate committees of both churches at national level. The section chosen was one

owned by the Presbyterian Church on what had once been part of the St Joseph's

Orphanage farm and the estimated cost for the building is $70,000.

Rev. John Howell

who was inducted into the Upper Hutt Co-operating Parish ministry team on 2 August 1979.

The official opening of the Brown Owl Centre will be an integral part of the parish

centennial celebrations over the weekend 31 August-2 September 1979. The first

service in the new centre is planned for Sunday, 9 September 1979. This further

example of outreach is a fitting achievement to mark this, the centenary of our parish.

M. E. EVANS,

Upper Hutt.

July 1979

With the completion of the new building on the corner of Fergusson Drive and Benzie Avenue, in

1973, the Wesley Centre is now an extensive complex linked as it is to the old Church and to the old

Wesley Hall.


Another working party. The ministers at retreat

From left: Rev. Ian Milner, Mr Noel McCarthy, Rev. Dr. Colin Sherriff, Rev. Winston Baker, Rev.

Graeme McIver.

AND TOWARDS THE FUTURE

It is good to look back into our past to some of the events and people that shaped the

development of what is today known as the Upper Hutt Co-operating Parish. The

traditions and loyalties of each denomination are to some extent still apparent, and

rightly so, but the melding of these traditions has become more and more evident. The

last three years has been a time of adjustment and settling in and that period is now

almost behind us.

We have an extensive plant, both land and buildings, well utilised not only by the

church family but by many community organisations. However, our greatest assets are

our people, of all ages, drawn from all walks of life and at varying stages of

commitment to the church and all it stands for.

When we reflect on that which has been achieved by our people in the last one

hundred years, achieved in the face of all manner of difficulties, the justification of

their faith and conviction is clearly evident in the parish as it stands today.

If that same commitment, enthusiasm and energy shown by the story unfolded in the

history of the parish is carried forward into the coming years then those who write up

the next chapters of our parish outreach to Upper Hutt should have much to record.

Acknowledging all that has come "from quiet homes and first beginning" the present

gives thanks to God for the past and looks to Him for strength and foresight to go into

the future.


SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Minutes of Quarterly Meetings—Methodist Church 1927-1976

"Flickers the Flame" by William Greenwood (cyclostyled 1946)

St David's Session Books 1913-1976

St David's Board of Managers Records 1879-1976

St Andrew's Management Committee Minute Books 1933-1966

St Andrew's Session Books 1966-1976

lona Session Books 1959-1961; 1965-1976

Cyclostyled Jubilee Booklet—Seventy-fifth Jubilee of St David's (1953)

Cyclostyled Notes by L. Gorrie for Sixtieth Jubilee, Wallaceville Church (1953)

Note Books of Ladies' Guild, St David's

Note Books of Mrs Taylor's Sunday School

Records of Ladies Guild, Wallaceville

"Upper Hutt" by J. A. Kelleher (1971)

Miss Emma Taylor, Trentham

Mrs F. Scholes, Mangaroa

Mrs P. McNab, Mangaroa

Mr and Mrs Clif Oram, Upper Hutt

Mr and Mrs Noel McCarthy, Upper Hutt

Mrs Marsh, Trentham

Mr F. Aipe, Silverstream

Mrs E. Baxter, Upper Hutt

Rev. Ian Milner, Upper Hutt

"1852-1952, Knox Church, Lower Hutt" Centennial Booklet


PHOTOS AROUND THE PARISH IN 1979

A group of juniors from the Girls’ Brigade.

Boys’ Brigade inspection at St David’s Hall.

Meal line-up at the Parish Family Camp, El Rancho, Waikanae


The Parish Treasurer, considering another request for funds?

Leaving worship at St Andrews.

The Junior Choir at Wesley Centre.

Led by Mrs Viti Olds, this choir makes an important contribution to Sunday morning worship.


A group at the Women’s Dinner, a Parish function held at the Wesley Centre.

At the Fancy Dress Parade, Parish Family Tea.

A demonstration by the professionals at the Parish Scottish Dancing Evening in St. David’s Hall.


Discussion group at Parish Family Camp.

A group at the Friday Night Youth Club.

Settling in at the Evening Youth Group House Camp.


Wesley Revue in action.

Washing up in the Wesley kitchen.

At a Tupperware party.

A leatherwork demonstration by the 3rd Upper Hutt Company.


OUTREACH TO THE FUTURE BROWN OWL

CENTRE

Laying the Foundation Stone.

Planned as a family centre, the Wakelin family were invited to lay the foundation stone at a service

held on 11 March 1979.

Centre under construction.


Centre under construction.

Completion is assured for the official opening ceremony on Saturday 1 September 1979,

Forming part of the Parish Centennial Celebration.

from quiet homes and first beginnings 1879-1979

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