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EDWARD B A I .G E N T 

A Pioneer Nelson Settler, Businessman, and Politician 

A thesis presented in partial 

fulfilment of the requirements 

for the degree of Master of 

Arts in History at Massey · 

University. 

NEIL DOUGLAS NELSON 
1981 



· PREFACE 

Edward Baigent arrived in New Zeal and almost 140 years ago, 

and except for a f ew months in Nelson, spent bis e ntire life 

in Wakefield. Unfortunately neither Edward Baigent nor any 

of his children seem to have kept diaries, or been prolific 

letter writers. The information this thesis is based upon, 

does thus come almost entirely from early newspaper articles, 

diaries of Baigent's contemporary settl ers , and old l edgers 

and journals, dating back to 1870, ~hich were found by chance 

last year in the demolition of an old building on Ba i gents' 

Rutherford Street property. 

The completion of this thes is would not. have been possible 

if not for the willing assistance I have had from a number 

of people. 

Special thanks must go to Mr Jchn Bush, who began collecting 

information relating to the Baigent famili several years ago, 

with the intenti on of eventually writing a family/ company 

history. With characteristic unselfishness, Mr Bush passed 

on to me all the mater ial he had accumulated, and I am 

extreme ly grateful for the initial help he provided. 

To Mrs M. Palmer, a great grand-daughter of Edward Baigent , 

I also extend my special thanks. Mrs Palmer has always taken 

a great deal of interest in the Baigent family, and wherever 

possible, has been of great assistance to me. 

Nelson is fortunate that early events were faithfully recorded 

by newspaper reporters almost immediately settlement was 

corrunented . The Nelson Examiner and New Zealand Chronicle 

which began in 1842 and continued until 1874, provided much 

valuable information on the early years of settlement in the 

Nelson Province. An almost complete file of this paper is 

available at the Nelson Public Library, and to the staff of 

the Library I wish to record my thanks. 

Nelso n's other two newspapers, The Colonist, 1857-1920, and 

the Nelson Evening Mail, . 1866 to the present day, are stored 

at the Nelson Evening Mail Offices, ~nd to the Lucas family, 

I extend my thanks for allowing me to spend many weeks going 

through these immaculately preserved papers. 

II 



Diaries and journals of early Nelson settlers also provided 

much valuable background for my thesis, and in this area, the 

staff of the Nelson Museum have always provided friendly and 

extremely helpful information. Special thanks must go to 

Mrs N. Russe ll, who spent several ho~rs sugge sting early 

diaries and journals which she felt would be of a~sistance, 

and ·always were. To Mr Steven Bagley , Director of the Museum, 

and Mr Maurice Watso~, for his e xcellent photographs, I am also 

very grateful. 

:To my supervisor, Professor W. H. Oliver, I wish to record my 

sincere thanks. Professor Oliver's useful criticism and help­

ful suggestions have proved of considerable assistance in the 

writing of my thesis. 

For the typing of this thesis, all credit must go to Miss 

Margaret Denby, and to her i extend my thanks for an excellent 

job. 

After having written and re-written this thesis some six times, 

the task of proof-reading becomes very diff icult, and to Mr 

John Harvey, I am indebted for the thorough job he did on 

.the train journey to Auckland. 

Finally, I wish to thank the company of H. Baigent & Sons 

Limited, particularly Mr Harry Baigent, for the assistance 

they have given me in the writing of my the sis. 

To all the above people, plus the many others with whom I 

have talked, I wish to record my sincere thanks. 

N.D. NELSON 

III 



C O N T E N T S 

Preface 

List of Illustrations and Tables 

Edward Baigent Brief Family Tree 

Map of Nelson-Wakefield District 

Survey Map of Properties owned by Edward 

Baigent during the 1870s. 

I 

II 

III 

IV 

V 

VI 

VII 

From Wi ndlesham to Nelson 

The Early months in Nelson 

May 1842 - February 1 843 

Down to Business Wakefield 1843-1853 

Involvement in Local Affairs 

Provincial and National Pol itics 

Business Years 1853-1890 

Conclusion 

Footnotes 

Bibliography 

Page 

II 

V 

VI 

VII 

VIII 

3 

9 

17 

33 

45 

56 

71 

76 

90 



I L L U S T R A T I O N S 

Edward Baigent (1879) 

Mary Anne Baigent (1868-1870) 

Immigration Forms of Edward Baigent 

Pitsawing - Taitapu Gold Estate (1890) 

Early Tree Felling Methods 

Log Hauling - Horse Team and Steam 

Page 

1 

2 

8 

16 

32 

68 

Sawmills in the Takaka Region (1890-1910) 69 

Temporary Sawmill - Takaka (1890-1910) 70 

T A B L E S 

Table One Exports of Timber from Nelson 
1844-1853 31 

Table Two Exports of Sawn Timber from 
the Port of Nelson 1843-1868 66 

Table Three Prices of Sawn Timber in Nelson 
1842-1862 67 

(All photos gratefully acknowledged to the Nelson 

Provincial Museum) 

V 

·'"' 



I r----· -· 
- ··- ---. [Alf'-:-~ 9~~! _ _]:Qj -- - . ..A 

8.183 2 (15.11.1833 
2.1891) 20.4.1885) 

Thomas 
(22.5.1807) 

!Elizabethl 
( 20 .11.1835 
19.9.1885) 

Elizabeth 
(18.2.1809) 

[~"'\rt"i-:-i:;r I 
(24.11.1837 
1. ·7 .1895) 

Ed~ard Baigent Brief Family Tree 

Thomas Baigent m. Dorothy Anne Coule 

Diana j Edwardj 
(13.3.1811) (22. 6 .1813) 

. Isaac : 
(23.4.1819) 

m. Mary Ann Hern 

~ill Joseph Henry 
(9.5.1840 (16.5. 1842 (20.11.1844 
10.3.1924) 20.6.1908) 31.8.1929) 

:oaniel 1 
(20.6.1826) 

Sarah 
(18.7.1847 
4.8.1911) 

r--1 Came out to New Zealand Born in England 

[ill~ 
(29.1.1829) 

Thomas John Hannah Eliza 
(27.7.1849 (12.7.1851 
19.5.1910) 25.8.1929 ) 

---, 

Wi lliam Char: 
(18.7.1857 
16.12.1936) 

< 
I-



NELSON - WAKEFIELD 



68 
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f, 7 

211- 0- 32 

100-0-0 

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210 - 0 - 0 

Scale 1 inch <=} 10 chains 

i 
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-- /~~-' ,.,,.-----1 

SURVEY MAP SHOWING PROPERTIES EDWARD BAIGENT O\'JNED DURING THE 1870s . 

< 



C H A P T E R I 

From Windlesham to Nelson 



\ . 

Edward Baigent. About 1870. 



'l . 

Mary Anne Baigent. (1868-1870) 



Edward Baigent was born on 22 June 1813 in the small village 

of Windlesham, Surrey, the fourth child of Thomas and Anne 

Thomas Baigent, born in 1782, married his wife Anne (possibly 

_Coule) , probably sometime in 1806, as their first child, 

Thomas was born in May 1807. Six further children followed; 

Elizabeth 1809, Diana 1811, Edward 1813, Isaac 1819, Daniel 

1826, and Eliza 1829. Of these seven children, the last 

four were later to emigrat~ to New Zealand. 

It seems likely that Thomas and Arne Baigent were staunch 

supporters of the Church of England. The baptism of Edward 

on 31 July 1814, by the Reverend Thomas Snell, is entered in 

the Register Books of the Windlesham Parish, and to all 

appearances, Reverend Snell was a close friend of the Baigent 

family. In 1841, when Edward applied to the Ne~ Zealand 

company for a free emigrati'on passage, Reverend Snell stated 

"I have known him from a child". ( 1· ) 

The extent of Edward Baigent's education is uncertain, although 

it is unlikely he received any more than a basic elementary 

schooling. As he admirably demonstrated later in his life, 

however, Baigent possessed considerable abilities in a number 

of different fields. It is probable that Baigent served an 

apprenticeship as a sawyer fairly early in his life, as this 

was the skill he brought to New Zealand. 

Edward. Baigent married Mary Ann Hern, probably in 1831, their 

first child (Edward) being born in August 1832. Mary Ann 

was a few months older than Edward, who was only eighteen when 

the marriage took place. Their second child, Alfred, was 

born in November 1833, with Elizebeth, November 1835, Arthur, 

November 1337, and Samuel, May 1840, also being born before 

Edward and Mary Ann emigrated to New Zealand. 

It appears that the main reason which prompted Baigent and his 

family to emigrate in 1841, was the difficult conditions 

prevalent in England during the 1830's. For a man with only 

limited skills, even mor~ limited finances, and a wife and 

several children to support, prospects were hardly encouraging. 

There was little chance, nor likelihood of any real material 

3. 



improvement in either -conditions, or circumstances in England. 

On the other hand, emigration to one of the new colonies 

offered a chance of real improvement to those who were prepared 

to invest the time and effort. 

By the middle of 1839, New Zealand was receiving considerable 

publicity, mainly from the New Zealand company, which had,in 

May, already despatched Colonel William Wakefield in the Tory 

to buy up as much land as possible. (2) The Company's 

4. 

publicity described New Zealand in _glowing terms. All possible 

adversities were conveniently ignored by the company. New 

Zealand was depicted as a country of grassy plains, fertile 

soils, natural harbours, and unlimited economic opportunities. (3) 

To what extent this publicity influenced Baigent in his decision 

to emigrate is impossible to say. On 14 October 1841 however, 

Baigent completed a "Form for persons desirous of obtaining 

a free passage tc New Zealand''. This application was supported 

by testimonials from Thomas Snell, Rector of the Windlesham 

Parish, and also from his employer, John Usborne. 

On the application form, Baigent and his wife are stated to be 

thirty years of age, although in 1841, Baigent could only have 

been twenty-eight. Whether this understatement of age was an 

error, or deliberate, is uncertain. On an official form sub­

mitted to him by the New Zealand company, Thomas Snell wrote, 

"I think Edward Ba.igent is a very proper person to receive 

the boon of a free passage to New Zealand. I have known him 

from a child."(4) Usborne, Baigent's employer added that 

Baigent had "lived with me eight years". To the question "Do 

you think he will prove a valuable settler?" Usborne answered, 

"I do". (5) 

In the face of this encouraging testimony, Baigent's appli­

cation was duly granted by the company. The few weeks which 

subsequently followed, must have been hectic ones for the 

Baigent family. The testimony from Reverend Snell is dated 

10 November 1841; the Clifford was boarded on 13 December. 

Despite what must have b e en somewhat hastened preparations, 

Baigent arrived in New Zealand admirably equipped to meet 

the conditions with which he was confronted. Included in 

the Baigent family stores were a cast-iron gang-saw frame, 



two pitsaws, six mill-· saws, six circular saws, a circular 

spindle, and large quantities of celting, files, and tools 

of all kinds. (6) 

The vessel the Baigents emigrated ~o New Zealand in was 

the 460 ton Clifford , commanded by Josiah Sharp. Passengers 

boarded the ship on 13 December, but she did not sail from 

Gravesend until seven days later. It is fortunate that the 

Surgeon-Superintendent aboard the Clifford, Thomas Hughes, 

kept a diary, as it is from this that details of the voyage 

are known. ( 7) 

The Cliffori carried a total of 189 persons; 148 emigrants, 

13 cabin passengers and 28 crew. Incl~ded amongst the cabin 

passengers were Reverend Charles Saxton, and his brother 

S.W. Saxton, who was to keep an invaluable diary of the first 

decade of settlement in Nefson. 

The first week of the voyage was evidently very rough. Hughes 

described the vessel as "pitching tremendously". For people 

who had in all probability never experienced a sea voyage 

previously, it must have been little short of terrifying. 

5. 

On 31 December 1841, Hughes entered in his diary, "Mrs Baigent 

to have a pint of porter daily in consequence of great debility, 

being also advanced in pregnancy".(B) As the weather improved, 

however, so too it seems did the spirits and general health 

of the ~migr~nts. 

The Baigent's youngest child, ten month old Samuel,was next 

to suffer. In early January 1842, Hughes described him "in 

bad health ... having breakings out in the face and the 

appearance of cachexy". In the same entry, Mr Baigent was 

said to be suffering from seasickness and "often kept to his 

bed". 

As the Clifford entered the equatorial regions, the only 

complaint seemed to be of the heat. Emigrants from England 

were hardly used to the high humidity and temperatures in 

. the high eighties . 

In early February , Mrs Baigent took ill. In his diary for 10 



. February , Hughes described her as "being threatened with 

abortion". "Suitable medicines and reginer" were ordered. 

After several days of :i.nf"irmity , Mrs Baigent slowl y i mproved . 

The strange and inadequate diet (although dietary inbalance 

was probably most serious) aboard the emigrant ships was 

probably har dest on the children. · Three of the Baigent 

c h i l dren, suffering from what Hughes described as " impretig­

inous eruption of scalp and face ", were put on a diet of one 

pound of flour _twice weekly. Within a further week , al l 

five children were being given fresh meat. 

By the middle of March, any novelty or attra ction the voyage 

· to New Zealand may have held had obviously disappeared. Hughes 

ente:r;ed in his diary on 17 March 1842, "people appear very 

sick of the voyage and most anxious to see land once again". 

A few days l ater , Hughes conunented, "I find the majority of 

the emigrants very selfish and abominably lazy .. . " 

Afte r recovering from the illness wh ich very nearly resulted 

in the miscarriage of her child , Mrs Baigent once again became 

of concern to Hughes . By the middl e of April , the surgeon 

evidently thought that the birth of h e r child was immine nt 

" • . . Mrs Baigent' s _confinement is expected to take place 

hourly'' . Despite the concern of Hughes , the child was not 

born ~ntil near l y a month later . 

Land was finally sighted on 26 April 1942 , no doubt a welcoCTe 

sight to sea weary emigrants , eager to begin life in their 

new country . Because of unfavourable winds , it was not 

until 3 Ma~ however, that the Clifford sailed into Port 

Nicholson. The initial r eaction of most emigrants who 

viewe d the infant sett l ement was one of overt disappointment. 

J . W. Barnicoat, an earlier visitor to We llington , who also 

settled in Nelson, conunented "the whole country is very hilly , 

and all not lined with wood seems very barren~ But however 

fertil e , its unevenness would prevent its being cultivated :(9) 

Another description by Alfred Saunders,who emigrated aboard 

the Fifeshire, undoubtedly summarised the f eelings of many; 

"we all pull ed J.ong face s at the sight of the dreadfully 

rugged country we saw on each side of us .. . no l ess than 

6 • 

six wrecks of small vesse l s were going to pieces on the rocks."(10) 



Those who settled in Wellington certainl y found it vastly 

different from the rosy picture drawn by the New Zealand 

company. 

The Clifford stayed in Wel lington for only two days before 

continuing on to Nelson , a nchoring off the Boul der Bank on 

10 May 1842. Hughes' first i mpres~ i on of Nelson was con­

siderably more favourable than Barnicoat's or Saunder's of 

Wellington" ... we are a ll delighted with the appearance 

and account of the settlement." ( 11) 

Within three days a ll the· emigrants had been landed ashore , 

thus ending a voyage which had taken 151 days (21 weeks, 

4 days). The voyage of the Clifford was a very successful 

one . . On the whole , healt0 had remained good on board the 

vessel, and it must have been a very satisfied Thomas Hughes 
· , 

who entered in his diary on· 13 May 1842, "I have t h e grati -

fication to hear tha t no ship has landed her emigrants in 

7. 

better condition , better satisifed , or with so few casualties~(l2) 

(only one chi l d peri shed on the voyage) . Sadly the ~eturn 

voyage to England was not so successful:· The Cl i fford , 

sailing via Java and India, went aground on a coral reef 

in the Straits off Singapore . (13) 



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"desirous of 
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II 



CH APTER II 

The Early Months in Nelson May 1842 - February 1843 



After the cramped life aboard the Cliffo...:rd, the emigrants 

were undoubtedly glad to once again be on firm land. Any 

false illusions which may have been held, were,without 

question, rapidly dispelled, as the newly arrived settlers 

surveyed the unfamiliar surrounds. Despite the very favourable 

climatic conditions in the first half of 1842, by May Nelson 

had many problems, possibly the most serious of which was 

9 • 

that of health. Barnicoa t in Ma.y 18 4 2 commented on the 

prevalence of diarrhea, "especially amongst the recent settlers". 

The diarrhea was attributed to dietary cha!lges and "to the 

sudden and great change in the mode of living from that on 

board ship."(1) 

Only two days after going ashore, Mrs Baigent gave birth to 

a son in the b u ilding used as a hospital. Joseph Baigent, 

born 15 May 1842, is believed to have been the seventh pakeha 

child born in the Province~ 

The lana situation in Nelson in the middle of 1842, was some­

what unsatisfactory for the newly arrived settlers, as no 

sections were available for n e arly a year after the first 

emigrant ship arrived. Because there were no titles to the 

land, settlers began building huts and whares wherever the y 

could. Thomas MagaFey, who arrived aboard the Fifeshire, 

described the situation as it was in Nelson; "We had to build 

houses, squat upon land for this purpose, for the town was 

not yet surveyed." (2) Baigent however, was not content merely 

to squat on the land; he wished to obtain some form of title; 

Being anxious to get a section of land instead of squatting, 
two days after landing I took a ramble with David Clark 
up the Maitai to the end, crossed a low saddle into the 
Brook Street valley. After selecting an acre in the 
middle of the valley, I made enquiry of Mr Richardson 
the agent, if it was to let. It being so, I entered 
into an agreement for the same, on certain conditions, 
this being the first lease ever entered into in Nelson. (3) 

Although Baigent undoubtedly investigated part of the Maitai 

Valley, it is unlikely he walked up "to the end". 

Immediately aft.er completing the ·building of a whare on this 

piece of land, Baigent, along with tv-.1 0 of his sons, succumbed 

to some form of fever. In his own words, "we lay side by side 

for two months not e xpecting to live". ( 4 ) It appears the 

lviASSEY UN!Vrn:; tr 



fever, as well as b e ing serious, was also common, proving in 

some cases fatal. Baigent noted the wife of the Reverend 

Charles Saxton "died of the same complaint."{5) Fortunately 

for Baigent, his wife speedily recovered from her confinement, 

and was able to c a pably look after her husband and sons. For 

Mrs Baigent, those two months must have been a time of con­

siderable anguish and worry. Certainly the Baigent family's 

beginning in their new country was anything but auspicious. 

By the time Baigent recovered, David Clark, whom he (Baigent) 

had known for many years "as a steady honest hard-working 

man. 11 (6) had virtually completed the building of a four room 

cob house, the whare which Baigent built initially being 

·only intended as temporary accommodation. 

Evidently Baigent must have had some cap ital when he arrived 

in Nelson, for not only was he able to employ Clark, but also 

at least one other man; "I let a ditch to Strat::ord to dig 

on one side of the land for i 5 .... ''(7) With only limited 

capital, Baigent could clearly not afford to continue pay­

ing other men, without establishing his ·sawmilling business; 

"Having now recovere d from my illness, I b e gan to see I had 

made a mistake, as it was my intention to settle in the bush 

10. 

as soon as I could obtain a section suitable for my sawmill .. "{8) 

With the initial high price of timber in the settlement, it 

was obviously desira ble for Baigent to begin sawing as soon 

as he possibly could. Such was the shortage of timbe r in 

Nelson, that, in July 1842, imported shingles and timber frcm 

Van Dieman's Land were finding a ready market. 

After investing fifty sovereigns in building a house, the 

expenses of preparing the land, paying doctors bills, and 

the general cost of living in Nelson, Baigent's capital was 

obviously rapidly disappearing. The situation Baigent found 

himself in was,however, shared by many others in the infant 

settlement. 

With no legal title available for the land until early in 

1843, settlers we re loath to move out onto land and spend 

money developing it, whe n there was no guarantee they would 

· obtain title to it. Thus t h e major ity c ongregated in the 

town, using up thei r limi ted and v a lua b l e capital. Initially 

the situa tion was not t oo s erious, as there was a considerable 



demand for labour, but as the number of newly-arrived emigrants 

rose, so too did the competition for employment, ultimately 

resulting in a fall in wages and widespread unemployment. 

Thus the spirit of overt optimism which permeated Nelson 

society in early 1842, (" ... of all who have yet been landed 

from the Fifeshire, the Mary Ann, and Lord Auckland ... none 

save a few women and one man who is sick remain dependent 

upon the company for a roof; and with the same exception all 

are equally independent for their supply of food") (9) slowly 

gave way to a mood of disquiet and alarm. Whilst the Editor 

of the Nelson Examiner remained optimistic - "in a word our 

progress and our prospects are most cheering" (10) - other 

observors were not; "The state of things at Nelson is dis-

heartening, there is no money in circulation, consequently 

many . labourers are unemployed, excepting by the company .. 

scarce any capitalists have come out, and very few purchasers 

of land ... The state of affairs certainly is discouraging at 

present and I fear with little prospect of its mending as 

yet• • • II ( 11) 

After several weeks inactivity, Baigent ·began searching for 

suitable timbe r to "saw by hand". He initially selected 

11. 

some trees on a section by the present Normanby Bridge, offering 

the owner ,{40 for tp.e timber, which was declined. At this 

time, timber was selling for 25s per 100 feet. Baigent next 

appro~ched J.W. Saxton who had a section near the Sugar Loaf 

in Brook Street valley, and "wishing to build I made him an 

offer for the supply of timber at 25s per 100 feet delivered 

there which was agreed to". (12) Saxton, in his diary on 29 

August 1842, confirms this when he mentions that Baigent was 

"cutting wood for house''. (13) The securing of a contract to 

supply timber was by no means the end of Baigent's difficulties; 
There being no way of getting the timber from the 
town bush, and the end of the valley being a perfect 
swamp and quite impassable, I purchased two trees 
in the valley opposite to my section, one for 14 
&nd the other for "!/3 12s, of the company's agent, 
and at once made a pit and cut the trees for a part 
of the order. There being no more trees available 
in the valley, we made a track up a valley running 
to the left of Brook Street, in which there was a 
fine bush (14) 

We set to and cut the rest of the order and at the 
same time let the delivery to Tunnicliff and S. 
Harwood at Ss pe r 100, to take it to the building 
site on their shoulders. Having completed the 
order which came to about £ 70, I engaged to cut a 
house for Mr We lls at Wakapuaka. (15) 



Although Baigent had the machinery to establish a rudimentary 

water-powered sawmill, until he secured suitable land it 

was not practical to assemble the plant. 

It seems likely that until the establishment of Captain 

Thorns sawmill in Motueka, which began sawing about the 

middle of 1843, all the timber cut in Nelson was pit-sawn. 

This rnill,which operated for cnly a short period, was capable 

of producing 20,000 feet of timber per week, some of which 

in 1844 was exported to Tasmania. 

Pitsawing was an extremely laborious means of converting 

logs into timber, no more laborious,however, than the task 

of manhandling the cumbrous logs onto the pits. The absence 

of any practical form of transportation (of logs or sawn 

timber) in the early period of the timber industry, did,as 

Simpson points out (16), place a very high premium on the 

accessibility of timber trees. 

Baigent 1 s last job in Nelson was a contract to supply timber 

for a cottage in Selwyn Place, for the cutting of which he 

was paid 9s per 100 feet. By the end of 1842, the price of 

timber had fallen by more than fifty percent, to about 12s 

per 100 feet, and so Baige nt began looking in earnest for a 

site on which to establish his sawmill. 

It seems likely that during his stay in Nelson Baigent took 

on work other than pit-sawing timber. Road-building seems one 
l 

probable source of employment, as J.W. Saxton mentions in 

November 1842, that he "saw Baigent and heard from him that 

Mr Tuckett had been so large in his demands on the~ that 

they could not undertake the road on such terms."(17) It 

is probable that Baigent began his study of the country 

areas, in an effort to secure a suitable sawmill site,in 

early 1843, as he refers to the strike against the New Zealand 

company by the workers in Nelson; " ... we saw the company's 

men coming down the valley two and two having struck for the 

wages promised to them before leaving England. The strike 

appears to ~e general and on my tramp around the country I 

found the whare s generally deserted."(18) 

According to Ru th M. Allan, the workers went on strike on 16 

January 1843, b ut returne d to work two days later. (19) This 

12. 



strike was the culmination of several months of dissatis­

faction and frustration at the lack of employment in Nelson, 

caused essentially by the . absence of capital and the presence 

of too many labourers. 

On foot Baigent set out to expl ore the country areas; 
I set out and after a long and weary tramp I arrived 
at the Moutere entrance ; the tide bc3ing t:-P I could not 
pass and having lost all my food in passing through 
some thick scrub , I thought it wise to return. I 
took the track up the valley till I came to a large 
valley and arrived at the whares built for the road 
men but found noone there. I crossed several vallies 
and spurs till I fortunately found a surveyor ' s line 
leading down Redwoods Valley, apparently straight for 
Destruction Hill , on which Richmond Church now stands. 
I crossed the Waimea . River and was brought up by a 
large lagoon , which caused me a considerable deviation . 
I made a fresh start for Richmond, and was again 
stopped by a large swamp, but after getting the cramp 

.bY wading, crawling on my hands and knees under tutu 
bushes and other hindrances, I found myself straight 
on the tutu? line to Richmond. As I approached Stoke 
I saw a fire where the· roadmen had made their whares , 
on reaching i.t I fo'..!r.d one of the company's men na!!led 
Oxley who had just arrived to go to work after the 
strike . He gave me some tea and wished me to stay 
all night, but being very wet and ragged I decided 
to go on and arrived at home at one in the morning . 
On knocking at the door I heard my .wife say "Thank 
God you are returned: and I was equally glad to get 
borne ". (20) 

Presumably this was Baigent's first real introduction to 

travelling in the country areas . It is difficult to visualize 

how onerous a task movement was in the early days of settle­

ment in New Zealand. Outside the main centres, there were 

very few roads, and bridges were virtually non- existent . Even 

the smallest creek often proved an insurmountable obstacle 

when in flood whilst the largest rivers presented a constant 

threat. Without roads or bridges any form of movement became 

a major undertaking . 

Samuel Stephens, one of the early surveyors in the Nelson 

region , commented on another problem which added to the 

diffi culties of trave l. 
"One of the most unpleasant drawbacks to" the country 
i s the fern which so uni~ersally covers the l~nd 
everywhere on both rich and poor soils . It forms 
an almost impenetrable barrier to those who wish to 
explore the country beyond their own doors .. . we often 
meet with fern ten and twelve feet high ... "( 21) 

Aft~r his rather less than successful study of the Moutere 

area, Baigent made enquiries about the Wairnea region. Hearing· 

of severa l settlements around Foxhill, .Ba.:.gent embarked with 

13. 



14. 
a party of others to look at the area. On passing through 

Wakefield hcwever, Baigent saw a section (number 92) which 

he thought wculd be admirably suited for his purposes; on • 

making enquiries in Nelson, I found it belonged to 
Captain Wilson, and that he was willing to let it to 
me, reserving five acres at one end for Mr Hubbard. 
After paying another visit to the place and having a 
good look round and finding everything suitable for my 
purpose, I made an agreement to take the place which 
was signed on 9 February 1843 ·. Having now secured a first . 
rate site with every prospect of a good road, the company 
having started five gangs on the road, one at Stoke, one 
at Richmond, one in Maddox Bush, one at Lower Wakefield, 
one at Upper (Wakefield?). I felt sure before I was ready 
with my mill, the roads would be passable .... (22) 

The purchase from John Henry Wilson, described as "conLmander on 

the retired list of the Indian Navy of the Honourable East India 

Company,'' (23) was made on a scheme of deferred payments. An 

interesting feature of the agreement is that Baigent undertook 

"to erect and build on the said piece or parcel of land 
or ground, hereby demised, and complete and finish ready 
for habitation withi~'two years of date hereof, one good 
and substantial hou~P thP vaJ.ue of which shall be not less 
than one hundred pounds, with chimneys, windows, doors and 
the· necesss.ry fittings, etc, etc." (24) 

According to Ruth M. Allan, such an agreement was not unco:mmon 

in this period, (25) the most likely reason, being an attempt 

to counter speculation, which was a major problem in colonial 

settlements. 

Several reports (26) state that upon the purchase of this land, 

the Baigent family immediately shifted out to Wakefield. This 

however, is unlikely. More probable is that initially only 

Baigent and Clark moved to Wakefield, whilst their families 

remained in Nelson. Several weeks of busy activity took place 

on the Wakefield section following the purchase; 

Having arrived on the land our first object was to build 
a whare, next to dig a pit and saw boards for our houses, 
one for Clark of weather-boards with a board roof, and 
a small one for myself of cob of two rooms 10 feet square 
with boarded roof. This done, we had to see about a mill­
lead and dam. By making a dam-head and sinking a water­
course I found I could bring the water from the Eighty­
eight valley stream by means of a lead for about two chains 
with plank sides to guard against flood~. My next work 
was to build a water-wheel and fix my circular saw to the 
best of my judgement. When complete I found my whe el was 
far too small, not being powerful enough to drive the saw 
at more than half, but stili I could cut a good deal by 
sinking a pit and breaking down the logs by hand. About 
this time Capt. Wakefield paid me a visit, complemented 
me on my perseverence and promised to send me up some 
seeds. ( 2 7) 



With these preparations made, the time had come for the 

families of Clark and Baigent to mcve out to Wakefield. With 

the help of a cart borrowed from the N.Z. Company, both 

families were soon settled in their new homes. 

By late March in 1843, nearly 300 persons were settled 

in the Waimea District , the majority of whom were engaged 

in agriculture, although sawyers , carpenters, shoemakers, 

bakers, as wel l as many others, were also included in the 

numbers. (28) 

15. 



.. . . ..:.. 

Pitsawing timber in the Taitapu Gold Estate in 
about 1890. The first timber Edward Baigent cut 
in Nelson and Wakefield, was pit-sawn . 

.. ......... 



CH APTER III 

Down to Business : Wakefield 1843-1853 



Progress in the Waimea was rapid. In July 1843, the Nelson 

Examiner commented "there is now a considerable village, con­

taining many well-built substantial houses. The quiet of the 

wilderness is not only broken by the sound of the axe, the saw, 

the whistle and call of the ploughman, but the ring of the 

anvil is also heard there". (1) 

The nature of the land generally discouraged rapid development. 

Much of the area south of the Wairoa River was covered in 

dense forest, totara, white pine, and matai, which,whilst 

proving a boon to the early sawmillers, hindered their agri­

cultural counterparts. 

All the western hills were clothed with light 
forest, with some large trees. Pigeon Valley 
was blocked with another pine forest with many 

. forest giants, as was also the case towards 
Wai-iti, and into the mouth of 88 Valley. (2) 

Heavy bush was not the only· obstacle to road building and 

land development. Much of the Waimea plain was covered with 

fern and scrub, with large areas of swamp, particularly around 

Stoke, Richmond, and Appleby. Samuel Stephens, one of the 

original survey · party, described with feeling "the swamps and 

rivers that have so often to be waded through". (3) In his 

memoirs, Thomas Magarey also comments on the difficulty of 

travelling through .swamps "from two to six feet in depth",(4) 

which either had to be crossed or circumvented. The geography 

of the Waimea area did thus confront the. early pioneers with 

obstacles which severely challenged their skills and ingenuity. 

17. 

Having settled into their new surroundings, the spirits of the 

Baigent family were soon dampened by news of the Wairau "Massacre", 

in June 1843. The effects of this incident upon the morale of 

the settlers must have been little short of devastating. Con­

siderable concern was experienced by those in outlying areas 

who believed attack by the Maori to be imminent. "The women 

were in the greatest alarm, fearing that the natives would 

come round the Top House and attack the out settlers at Foxhill, 

and the men equally down-hearted,''(5) said Baigent. For several 

weeks the prospects of the Nelson settlement looked to be in 

grave doubt, and confide n c e and optimism were dealt a severe 

blow. Magarey commente d that "the terrible event took away 

the appetite of the people,''(6) while Ste phe ns no doubt echoed 

the sentiments s h ared by many; "The Wa iroa Massacre and contingent 



18. 

circumstances have cast such a gloom on our prospects, that 

few of us would be disposed to remain here if they had any 

better opening elsewhere, or the means to return to England."(7) 

Despite the large numbers who settled in and around Wakefield, 

the settlement initially did not flourish. The main obstacles 

to progress were a lack of capital·, and a lack of farming 

knowledge. With insufficient capital to develop their land, 

settlers welcomed the offer of employment by the New Zealand 

Compan~ Utilizing a system of piece work, men were employed on 

road building, and other similar works, whilst generally being 

left ample time to develop their land. The chance of employ­

ment was gratefully accepted by many, for as Baigent commented, 

"this was a boon I did not expect, and it furnished us with 

our rations and monthly w~ges which was a great saving to 

my purse". (8) There is little doubt that the employment 

and subsequent wages paid b'y the New Zealand Company saved 

the infant settlement from early disaster. By the end of 

1843, the company had spent 116,000 on public works wages 

in Nelson, and early in 1844 was still paying out wages at 

the rate of 11,200 a month. (9) With the New Zealand company 

suffering serious financial difficulties, retrenchment was, 

however, ultimately inevitable. Rates of pay were gradually 

decreased, and by the middle of 1844, the Nelson office of 

the New Zealand company was on the verge of bankruptcy. (10) 

With public works employment no longer available, the community 

was thus thrown upon its own resources. 

In the months prior to its collapse, company officials made 

available seed to the settlers, advising them to cultivate as 

much land as they could, perhaps foreseeing the disastrous 

effects the demise of the company would herald. Despite these 

good intentions, the effects were disastrous. The iintt1ediate 

result for large numbers was hardship and hunger. Baigent 

commented that" .... many suffered extreme distress and want, 

some to my knowledge, digging up their potato cuttings, others 

collecting sow thistles and wild swedes in the ri.ver .... "(.11) 

Fortunately the forests provided an abundance of wild life, 

which helped supplement the diets of many families, pigs 

and .wild birds being particularly corrunon. 

Those who had taken the advice of the New Zealand company 



and planted crops, were, according to Baigent, "prepared to 

some extent to meet the position by having some corn and 

potatoes which they could use .... 11 (12) 

Families possessing corn and other grains were now forced 

with the equally serious problem of having no way of convert­

ing their corn into meal. Baigent was finally able to put 

to good use the small water-wheel he had made after first 

settling at Wakefield~ 

Mr Kerr of Waimea West had a small h~nd flour-mill 
with a small part of French Bur stones abo~t fourteen 
inches across nicely fixed on a frame with handle to 
turn it and also a small dresser. I managed to purchase 
this and by putting a small shaft with a cog wheel and 
an iron socket to connect it with the little water­
wheel. I soon had it ready for use, and by fixing 
the dresser to the end of the building by a small 

_pulley on the S?j_ndle and one on the shaft with a rJpe, 
I could both grind and dress at the same time. No one 
can tell you how than~ful the people were for this little 
convenience, for small as it was, it would grind a 
bushel an hour. It was attended by my two sons, I 
myself taking it occasionally. · It was strange to see 
the men bringing their grist to grind, some with a 
peck, some with half a bushel, and very few with more 
than a bushel. (13) 

19. 

It is possible, and in fact probable, that this was the earliest 

power-operated flourmill in the Nelson district. The water-wheel 

was originally built for the sawmill, with the flourrnill being 

added sometime in 1844. The charge for grinding grain was 

one shilling per 80 lb bag. The primitive mill proved a boon 

to the surrounding settlers who travelled long distances, often 

carrying 60-80lb of wheat and other grain to be crushed into 

meal, pure flour at that time being unprocurable. In these 

days, the sawmill was usually operated during the day whilst 

the flourmill operated at night. As Baigent comments; "many 

a night did I work till twelve o'clock at the little mill". (14) 

The wages which Baigent obtained from the New Zealand company, 

and the revenue from his grist-mill, enabled him to begin 

making improvements to his sawmill. Realising the original 

water-wheel was too small, Baigent's initial task was "to 

build a larger ·and more powerful wheel with a long shaft 

having a seven foot spur wheel at each end, one for the two 

vertical and the other for the circular saw ... "(15) The 

erection of a larger wheel made necessary the enlargement 

of the water l e ad (which Baigent had earlier bought from the 

88 Valley Stream). The task of deepending and widening the 



lead took Baigent nearly two years to cornplete, but "when done, 

it answered my purpose for many yea::::-s".(16) 

The improvements which Baigent made to his sawmill were spread 

_over many months. In November 1845, the Nelson Examiner 

reported that Baigent had "just completed a most excellent 

breast-wheel (his former one being too small) and fixed some 

upright saws. He also contemplates adding considerably to 

20. 

his flour mill, by getting 6ut a pair of large stones from 

granite, of which there is some very excellent in the neighbour-

hood". The article concluded by commenting, "This man's 

perseverence well entitles l1im to the reward which awaits his 

labour, and for which he appears contented to wait with cheer­

fulness". (17) 

It seems likely that the bulk of the timber Baigent cut at his 

original mill was utilised· around the Wakefield area, for 

there is no mention of him transporting timber into Nelson 

until late in 1846. 

The wages of men whom Baigent employed in the building and 

working of his mill, were frequently paid "in kind", labour 

being exchanged for timber, potatoes, meat and other goods. 

Such an arrangement no doubt admirably suited both parties, 

and was widely used in Nelson during the 1840s due mainly 

to the serious shortage of cash in circulation. 

The larger and more efficient mill, ready to begin produ~t ion 

early in 1846,worked both a circular and vertical saw, and 

was capable of cutting 100 feet of timber per hour. With the 

increased production of his new mill exceeding local demand, 

Baigent was now confronted with the problem of how to trans­

port the timber from his mill into Nelson. 

Although a road had been completed to Richmond by March 1843, 

it did not .reach Wakefield until nearly two years later. 

Even when completed, the road did not solve the problems of 

timber transportation. For many years the early roads were 

unsatisfactory for anything other than light traffic, 

particularly in the winter months when they frequently became 

little short of bogs. Compounding this problem was the absence 

of any bullock drays in the district until later in the 1840s. 

Thus in 1846, the only alternative for Baig ent was to transport 



his timber by water. 

Having completed his new mill, Baigent found himself indebted 

to a Mr Perry of Nelson, who had supplied him with iron and 

other materials to the value of ~35. Baigent agreed to pay 

Perry in timber, delivered in Nelson at 4s 6d per 100 feet, 

and so began preparations to raft the timber; 

I built a raft of boards about 18 feet long, 8 inches 
deep and four feet wide, placing the boards one on the 
other with three battens across the top and bottom, lashed 
with flax at the ends. This done we pushed the raft into 
the waste lead with a long pole, an axe, and a cross cut 
saw on board, and the men throwing the vertical and cir­
cular out of gear, and giving the wheel a full flow of 
water I floated down the lead into the river, and in 
three weeks mostly up to my knees in water, I cut a 
passage through all the blockages about twelve feet 
wide down to Waimea West Village, a distance of about 
six miles. We then built a number of rafts like the one 

· 1 had been using and when they were all in the river, 
made a start with four hands to guide them in their 
course, taking two da·ys to reach the port at the mouth 
of the Waime a River. When the tide was down we had to 
undo them and build them into one raft about 20 feet 
square, and five feet deep, with a strong warp and an 
anchor an d then were ready for the trip to Nelson. 
Having obtained the services of a boatman named Styles 
to take us in, we ran on a sriag which delayed us till 
next tide, before we could get off. When we landed in 
Nelson I paid my bill on the very day Mr Perry sailed 
for Wellington, and was lost with all hands in the 
French Pass. (18) 

According to J.W. Saxton, Baigent employed a group of carters 

to raft his timber to Nelson, " ... the carters found that he 

could not float the red pine and then demanded 2s per 100 

which he was obliged to give ... "(19) Although Baigent does 

21.. 

not make this clear, there were obviously several men employed 

in the operation, and it is quite likely that some were carters. 

To glance at the Wai-iti River today, it seems hardly possible 

that timber could be succesifully rafted into Nelson. In the 

1840s however, the Wai-iti apparently carried considerably 

more water than it does today. 

Despite this method of transportation being less than completely 

successful, Baigent rafted . two further loads. The second 

contract, to sup ply several thousand feet at 4s 6d per 100 feet, 

to a Mr Schroeder , was completed without incident, although 

"every raft got stuck either on sna~s or on the sands, which 

always lost us a tide". ( 20 ) 



The third raft which Bai.gent brought down, was not however, 

so uneventful, "My last raft I let to Messrs Sigleys and 

Burn. Being too late for the tide they had to anchor 
at the Oyster Island for the night. A heavy thunder­
storm delayed them till the tide had turned and they 
were too late to round the roe~, and a heavy gale was 
rising." (21) 

Bai~ent, who was present on the beach watching the proceedings, 

foresaw the potential danger, and secured the services of the 

harbour pilot boat; "we were soon out and fixed to the tow­

rope, but the surf still increasing, the three boats seemed 

22. 

to have no effect on the raft and at last the towline broke."(22) 

The raft was quickly abandoned and the boats assisting ran 

for shelter. Luckily the raft did not break up as expected, 

but was swept ashore intact; 

.Fortunately the tide had not turned, or I should have 
lost all as it would certainly have gone to sea. All 
we could do now was to save the boards from drifting 
away, and when the tid~ was down, we rebuilt the raft, 
and the next tide got it s~fcly into the harbour. This 
was my last attempt to carry timber by water, and for 
all this I did not receive a single pound in cash, but 
was paid in pork, flour and shop goods. (23) 

In all, Baigent rafted some 40,000 feet ·of timber into Nelson, 

each raft consisting of 2000-3000 feet. 

By 1847 a bullock team had become avail.able to transport timber, 

and so- Baigent gave up rafting the tirnbe:c, a method ·,,,hich 

although not always successful, certainly provided much excite-

ment and drama. The early "bullock" team, owned by a Mr B. 

Lines, did according to Baigent, consist of" ... a ·cow and 

a black bull, with which he made two trips a week to town, 

taking 700 or 800 feet at each trip~ Soon after this, cattle 

and drays were more largely imported, and bullocks, cows, 

and drovers could be bought."{24) 

Baigent comments that the availability of wagons to transport 

the timber into the Nelson market, resulted in an increased price 

" ... the increased demand for timber in Nelson soon doubled 

its price." (25) 

Even with the availability of bullock wagons to transport 

. timber (and other goods) the condition of the roads was still 

a serious problem. Baigent cornrnented; 

The greatest d r awback now was the want of roads, and 
I used to make it a rule to go round of an afternoon 



to get the men to· turn out for a day to r,"atch up 
and repair the roads so that ihe carts could get 
along. I always found the settlers perfectly will­
ing to help as it was for the good of all.(26) 

Althciugh water powered sawmills were considerably more efficient 

than pitsaws, and did much to revolutionize the New Zealand 

timb_er industry, they were still very primitive. A description 

of B~igents' early mill is of great interest, as it demonstrates 

clearly how resourceful a mill owner had to be in the days when 

even iron was very scarce. (27) 

As mentioned earlier, Baigent brought with him from England 

a considerable amount of sawmilling equipment, including saws, 

spindles, files, and belting. Much of the saw'TI1ill, however, 

had to be built up using only local materials and ingenuity. 

The water-wheel, which consisted virtually entirely of wood, 

due to the scarcity of iron, was built around an axle composed 

of a 14-16 inch square shaft of Totara. (or in some cases 

Matai). Both ends of the axle were rounded by chisels, and 

iron bands shrunk around them to avoid splitting. Both ends 

were then centrally bored to take squ~re ·iron gudgeons 

which were driven into the borings, thus providing an axle. 

The gudgeons were approximately two feet long, and were 

cut from three inch square iron bars. To tighten the 

gudgeons, long iron wedges were driven into the wood between 

the iron bands and the gudgeons, additional wedges being 

driven in when any slackness appeared. The square sections 

of the gudgeons that would seat in the bearings carrying 

the wheel, were then roughly rounded off with cold chisels 

and finished by filing against the slowly revolved axle. 

The arms of the waterwheel were morticed into the wooden 

portion of the axle, while the rims and boxes were also 

morticed together, well wedged and then pinned right through 

with AkeAke or Black Maire dowels. No nails were used in the 

construction of the wheel, although liberal use was made of 

flat iron strapping at most joints. 

All bearings were made of wood, the timbers used being 

exclusively Ake Ake and Black Maire. A good supply of spare 

bearings was always kept on hand, these bearings being care­

fully shaped and bor ed, then soaked until ~equired in a barrel 

of whale-oil. Af ter being in use for a while, the bearings 

devel6ped a bright glass- l ike surface, and would generally 

23. 



24. 

last for years. 

As petroleum lubricants had not been discover~d, the universal 

lubricant was whale-oil on al l bearings, and tallow on the skids. 

In the surnmer , once a barrel of whale_-oi l had been opened, the 

rema_inder would go rancid. Mr L. E. H. BaigeP-t once recalled 

his father saying, "if you followed your nose, it would always 

lead you to a sawmill." (28) 

Where bolts were unavoidable, they were laboriously made out 

of square sectioned rods, the sections to be threaded being 

just heated and hammered as near round as possible, then more 

accurately rounded by revolving against a file. The thread 

was then marked on the bolt by slowly turning the bolt against 

a file held on an angle, the markings then being cut into 

the bolt by co l d chisel and finished off by filing. 

The "nuts " were first heated, then punched through with a 

drift of the correct size , after which they were again heated 

and gradua lly worked onto the threaded ends of the bo l ts . 

Great care had to be taken in only cutting a little each time , 

and in unscrewing the nut before it seized on the bolt . Ob­

v~ously each nut and bolt was very much individual , and the 

nuts were certainly not interchangeable. 

The earl~ belting which Baigent brought out from England , 

was three inch gutta-percha (a form of rubber belting) which 

was join~d by melting the broken edges. This _forrn of belting 

was, however , somewhat unsatisfactory . It was necessary to 

keep the gutta-percha covered, other ... 1 ise it could melt , and 

thus stretch in the sun . After the initial trials of the 

gutta-percha, a bullock hide belting was used. 

Fresh hides were nailed upside down on the mill floor , and 

covered with a layer of wood ash . Constant trampling worke d 

the ash into the hide and after a few weeks the hides were 

scraped clean. The hide was now "tanned" , and ready for belting. 

All belting was double ply , ·the strips of hide being carefully 

matched for uniformity· of strength and stretch. Once matched 

the b e lt was sewn through with coppe r \v i re , a.nd narrow l aces 

of hide . No g lue was available, and a ny workman who could 

produce a belt which would run fa i rly evenly was considered 

"quite useful". In s ome cases flax r opes we r e use d fo :c be lting. , 



Unfortunately, because of their tendancy to stretch, they 

were of little use other than for very light drives. 

Due to their thickness and untensioned condition, the early 

circular saws revolved very slowly .. It was a standing joke 

amo~gst mill workers that a nan could run around a tree 

faster than the saw revolved. The saws, which had relatively 

short "flan" type teeth, had a cutting edge which ran the 

full length of the tooth front, ending in a needle point. 

This needle point tooth would not stand up to any "bone" or 

"flint" in the timber , and any such logs were immediately 

discarded. Timber was expendable ; saws were not . Similarly, 

only selected trees were fe lled , and no log above the first 

limb was taken. 

Once trees had been felled, they were debarked in the bush 

to make them skid more readi'ly, and also to avoid clogging 

of the saw teeth with bark. The dragging of the logs was 

generally done with bullock teams. 

As areas of bush were cut out, and mills ·relocated, improve­

ments were made . The ear ly mills were e n t irely depende:1t, 

however, on their sole source of pcwer , water . If rivers or 

streams dried up during periods of drought , the mill came to 

a stand·stil 1. Such a:1 occurrence was not uncommon. I:1 March 

1846, J.W. Saxton reported Baigent 's mill being i dle through 

a lack of water. (29) 

By March 1850, Baigent had eight men employed at his sawmill , 

which normally worked six days a week. The normal working 

day consisted of ten hours, although in the winter months 

the day was from the time of "can see" to that of "can't 

see". 

Wages paid in the first decade varied considerably, much the 

same as the f luctuations in the prices of t.imber. The deter­

mining factor with regard to wage levels was labour availa­

bility. In the first few months of settleme nt l abour demanded 

a high price, t h e re being a labour shortage . By the end of 

1842, howe·,rer , thz re was a l abour s urplus, and so wage leve ls 

correspo ndingly fe ll. 

25. 



By February 1845, wage levels had stabilised, agricultural 

workers receiving about 10s per week, whilst mechanics and 

other (semi) skilled labourers demand 18-2ls per week. (30) 

Wage levels rose steadily thereafter, and by 1852 trade 

labour was receiving between 5-6s 6d per diem.(31) 

26. 

The first decade of Nelson history saw a considerable fluctu­

ation of timber prices, generally corresponding with similar 

fluctuations within the economy as a whole. In 1842, before 

sawmilling had become widely established, imported and locally 

pitsawn timber was commanding 25s per 100 feet. Within three 

years,however, the price had fallen to only 5s p~r 100 feet. (32) 

After this slump, the price began to rise, reaching 10s per 

100 feet in August 1850, and 20s per 100 feet in July 1853. (33) 

By February 1845, there were three water-powered sawmills 

operating in the Nelson Province, one in Motueka, (owned by 

Captain Thoms), one in Waime a West (Hugh Martin) and Baigents 

at Wakefie ld. 

The transition from pitsawing to water-powered sawmilling 

signalled a major development in the timber industry . With 

the increased production of timber, came the beginnings of 

an export trade . In February 1845 , the Nelson Examiner reported 

that,in 1844, 180,000 feet of sawn timber had been exported to 

Van Diemans Land. (34) During 1845, considerable qua ntities of 

timber continued to be shipped to Hobart, as well as to other 

Australian markets , and also Tahiti. Al thou_gh the market was 

well established , the industry y;as seriously hampered by 

irregula r shipping, and in August 1845, the Examiner reported 

that there was sufficient sawn timber and spars available to 

load "4 or 5 good sized vessels". (35) It was directly because 

of the shipping shortage that Thoms Motueka mill virtu a l ly 

came to a standstill, it being considered " useless to cut 

timber when no vessels can be obtained to convey it away .... "(3 6) 

Despite these problems , exports of timber from Ne lson steadily 

grew during 1845-46 . Prospects for a valuable and continuing 

export t rade looked promising . As the Nelson Examine r commented 

in January 18 46 ; "The::-:e i s like: ly to be a considerable demand 

immed i ate ly for sawn timber for shipment to the neighbour ing 

colonies , and sawyers will therefore de well to get a stock 

by then, as more wil l b e r equired than can be possibly got 



ready". (37) This optimism was justified, for in 1846, 

168,120 feet of sawn timber worth .!497, and spars and sta ves 

worth a further .tl31-10-0 left Nelson. ( 38) .Timber accounted 

for more than twenty percent of Nelson's total export trade 

in 1846. 

27. 

The extent of Edward Baigent's involvement in this export trade, 

is uncertain. It seems probable that the timber he rafted 

to Nelson late in 1846 was the first he had (in any quantity) 

supplied outside the Wakefield area. It is thus unlikely that 

he became involved in any timber exporting until after this date. 

Exports of timber from Nelson reached a peak in 1847, when 

more than 330,000 feet was shipped ove~~eas. This rapid 

growth fell away in 1848,however, when exports slumped to 

only half the figure of the previous year, and by 1849 the 

overseas timber trade had virtually ceased. Details cf timber 

exports from Nelson, both to overseas countries and other New 

Zealand colonies, up until 1853, can be seen in Table 1. 

The decline in timber exports at this time appears to have 

been caused by a decrease in local timber production, rather 

than in overseas demand. Bell, in his report upon the Nelson 

settlement in 1849, noted that the only manufacturing decrease 

of any importance "is in the number of sawmills, and this has 

happened unfortunately at a time when the demand for tirr~er 

is larger than it has been for years .... "(39) Bell was. 
I 

however, confident that tr.e trade would soon increase, con­

cluding that "the prospects of trade in this place are brighter 

now than they have been for some years.''(40) His confidence 

and optimism was not immediately rewarded. In 1850, only 

23,000 feet of timber was exported, and in the following year, 

timber did not even feature in Nelson exports. At this time, 

only two sawmills were mentioned in the annual Nelson statistics; 

those of Baigent and Martin. (41) 

The reasons for the decline in the number of sawmills working, 

and the corresponding fall in timber production in the late 

1840s, were due to several factors. Much obviously depended 

upon local demand, which it seems fluctuated considerably. 

After problerr,s as s ociated with the transportation of timber 

to markets in t he mid 1840
1

s, sawmillers were perhaps reluctant 

to erect large mills. The slump in tin1ber prices, after the 



initial boom in the ear l y 184 0s,was a lso a contr ibu ting 

factor, although by the late 1 840s prices h ad again risen. 

Following the decline in timber exports in the late 1840s 

and early 1850s , timber once again fea~ured prominentl y in 

Nelson exports in 1852, when 1 30 ,00 0 feet left t he port. This 

trend continued in 1853, when the ·export figures ec lipsed 

those of 1847. Prospects for a future export trade again 

looked e xtremely promising, and the Ne lso n Examiner reported 

the erection of three further sawmills in 1853, one steam 

and two water-powered . (42) 

According to a Ne l son Evening Mail report in 1928, ( 43) the 

· name Glen-iti (which Bai gent gave to his homestead) is men­

tioned in the l ate 1840 s , with r egard to the export of timber. 

Although this r eport c annot be confirmed , there is no r eason 

to disbelieve it , as being ' one of the l eadi ng sawmillers in 

the province, it would be surprising if Baige nt had not been 

involved . 

28. 

During the f irst decade of his residence in Wakefield , Baigent 

was involved in work othe r than sawmilling . Farming must h ave 

taken up a considerabl e amount of time, especially in the first 

f ew years. Accordtng to the Nelson Census of 1849, Baigent had 

20 acres of land fenced, 5½ acres cultivat e d , 5 acres in gras s , 

½ a n acre in orchard , and a further 5½ acres cleared . Baigent 

wa s also listed as owning 16 cattle and 2 pigs . (44) With the 

di fficult conditions experienced in the mid 1840s, and the 

s hortage of money in circulation , the d evelopment of the farm 

was as important as that of the sawmil l. 

In 1844-45, there was a considerable demand for stave s , and, 

in August 1845, Bai gent became involved in a stave contract , 

at Sandy Bay , through which he lost ~ 1 5 . It appears likely 

that Bai gent l et out a contract for the supply o f staves , as 

a Mr Schroedar refunded the money which Baigent lost . (45) 

Although much of the Wakefie l d district was, as mentioned 

earlier , initial ly covered in forest, large areas were 

within a few y ears destroyed . In March 184 6 , Saxton described 

Wakefie l d as " squalid and wretched , quite l anguishi ng, and 

the same destruction of timber .. .. '1 ,46) whilst a few months 

l ater , Baigent " complained fee l ingly o f the injustice of 



allowing squatting and cuttina down trees", and "the havoc 

and burning of !viaddox' s Bush" . ( 4 7) 

Building was another area in which Baigent was extensively 

involved, particularly in his first £ew years in Wakefield. 

In April 1849, Saxton reported Baigent as agreeing to erect 

a stable for him, consisting of four stalls, a hay loft, and a 

shingle roof, for the sum of £30. Baigent was to provide all 

29. 

the materials except transport costs and the brick foundation. (48) 

Baigent also erected several other .buildings in the Wakefield 

area, most notable of which was St. John's Church, which is 

still standing today. (49) 

For several years, the lack of a bullock team posed serious 

problems for Baigent. In April 1847, Saxton offered to sell 

Baigent four bullocks at tl2 each, on the security of his 
·. 

mill. (SO) Baigent declined this offer, But in July 1849, he 

finally did buy his own team for the sum of /!. 22. (51) (It 

would seem almost certain that this team consisted of only 

one pair of bullocks). 

During the 18 4 Os, Baigent g!'."adual ly added to the area of land 

· he owned . In September 1849, Saxton mentioned that Baigent 

had bought a section for {40, and in January 1850 recorded 

that he (Baigent) had taken two more sections which would 

"supply him and his sons and the mill with wood for their 

lives."(52) By this time, Baigent had 155 acres of land 

suitable for milling which, commented Saxton.,' ' to himself and 

his sons should be a fortune."(53) 

In 1850-51, Baigent had the distinction of providing the 

timber for the building of "t;he Nelson Cathedral, which was 

opened by Bishop Selwyn on Christmas Day 1851. According 

to Henry Baigent,(54) it took ten bullock teams to transport 

the timber from Wakefield to Nelson, each trip taking two 

days. Only small loads could be transported on account of 

the poor roads. 

During his first eight years at Wakefield, Baigent made 

numerous trips into Nelson, as well as to other localities. 

It seems probable that most of these journeys were made on 

· foot, as it was not until February 1851 that he bought his 

first horse. According to Saxton, from whom Baigent bought 



the horse, he was no longer able to "bear the walk down to 

Nelson from Wakefield". ( 5 5) 

By 1853, Baigent was well established as both a flour and 

sawmiller in the Wakefield area, and his future prospects 

looked encouraging. After settling in the district only 

ten years previously, Baigent had ·become one of Wakefield's 

leading citizens. It was the affairs of his district which 

were to absorb much of Baigent's time in the years to come. 

30. 



TABLE ONE. 

Year 

1844 

May 45 
1845 
Apr 46 

1 846 

1847 

1848 

1849 

1850 

1851 

1852 

1 853 

EXPORTS OF TIMBER FROM·NELSON 

1 844 - 1853 

~ 

Exports from Val ue 
Nelson 'I:. 

180 , 000 

271 , 549 .l. 961-7-0 
.. 

J.68 , 120 £ 497-0-0 
·- --

332 , 850 l!,976-0-0 i 

160 , 000 ~544- 0-0 

15 , 000 ,l50-0 -0 

23 , 000 i!,87-0-0 

- -

130 , 000 £:.610-0-0 

369 , 890 £4 , 092-0-0 

--
Coastal 

Trade 

82~ 

94 , 402 

98,500 

87 , 000 

80,000 

29 , 800 

Al l f i gures except those for 1853 from The Nelson Examiner 

and New Zealand Chronicle . Annual statistics were published 

in the newspaper . The figures pertaining to the coastal 

t rade refer to trade with other New Zealand centres ; exports 

from Nelson refer to trade with Australia and other "over­

s eas " colonies . 

3 1 . 



During the nineteenth century virtually all 
trees were felled by hand. 



C H A P T E R I V 

Involvement in Local Affairs. 



33 

Edward Baigent features prominently in the history cf the 

Wakefield District. Besides his political involvement in 

the Provincial Council, and House of Representatives, Baigent 

was in addition, an active participant in local affairs. 

Considered the founder of St. John's Anglican Church, Baigent 

· was the moving force behind the establishment of the Waimea 

South Mechanic's Institute, a long serving member of the Waimea 

District's Road Board, a representative of the Lower Wakefield 
/ 

Educational District, and closely involved with the ivaimea 

South Volunteer Rifles, and the Nakefield Cricket Team. 

In view of this widespread involvement in the affairs of the 

District, it is hardly surprising that Baigent is commonly 

referred to as the "Father of Wakefield". (1) 

In the Province of Nelson, education was, from the arrival of 

the first group of settlers, regarded as one of the top 

priorities. Under the terms cf purchase, a proportion of the 

revenue from land sales was to be devoted to education, and 

developing other amenities in the settlement. Although this 

never occurred, due to the unfinancial position of the New 

Zealand Company, Nelson did successfully organise the first 

system of public schools in New Zealand. The organisation of 

education, before the Provincial Council came into operation, 

fell largely upon the Nelson School Society, and the British and 

Foreign School Society, the aim of both groups being the .... 

establishment of an elementary school which will be open to 
the children of all without regard to the religious 
_opinions of their parents, in which no sectarian views 
whatever shall be taught and that the Bible, when read, 
shall be read witho~t note or comment.(2) 

The two societies, which merged, gradually extended their 

operations, and by 1854 controlled nine schools. 

It was Edward Baigent's wife Mary Ann, however, who established 

·the first school in the Wakefield District. Baigent suggests 

that his wife opened the school to divert the attention of 

the children_ away from the horrors of the Wairau "Massacre"; 

'' •... the poor little children were running about wild and 

ragged, expecting to be eaten up by savages. I suggested to 

my wife to divert their attention by opening an infant school, 

to which she agreed."(3) Educ~tion was obviously of concern 

for Baigent, as he had six children in 1843, (with a further 

five to follow) and many of his neighbours also had large 



families. Each child attending the school was charged two­

pence per week , and after the Rev . Mr Reay heard of Mrs 

Baigent's effort , he agreed to subsidise the school with a 

further twopence a head. 

The Baigents' whare, which doubled as the schoolhouse, soon 

became too small for the purpose ; 

The attendance in less than three months became so 
many that our little · room was too small for the 
accommodation of the children wishi-ng to attend . 
At the same time, a gentleman of Education had 
squatted on a piece of unsurveyed land where the 
present school stands , with the intention of op2n­
ing a store for the district. He not being very 
successful in his object , myself and others thought 
it a good chance to offer him the care of the school 
in his own house . (4) 

According to L . R . Palmer who wrote a history of St . John's 

Church, the "gentleman of.~ducation " referred to above , who 

became the first school - master in Wakefield:was John Thomas 

Smith. (5) Baigent, in his history of the ear l y days in Wake­

field and Nelson, states however , that he invited a Mr 

Wilkinson to take charge of the school , promising to do all 

he could to help. Wilkinson agreed to the =equest , and,if 

Baigent is correct , took up the l ocal position of school ­

master . 

The problem next confronting the people of the Wakefield area 

was to raise sufficient funds to retain their schoolmaster . 

Fol lowing an approach to Rev . Reay , the then clergyman of the 

province , the minister agreed to pay 112 - 10 - 0 per annum out 

of the church funds towards the support of the school. The 

r emainder of Wilkinson ' s salary was pai d by local donations 

of food , and in some cases money . 

Wilkinson proved a success as master of the Wakefield school , 

. until he was no longer able to control the pupils . His 

decision to l eave the district resulted in the closure of the 

school for several months. Following the departure of 

~ilkinson, the position of schoolmaster was offered to a Mr 

J.T. Smith " a person very much r espected by the old settlers , 

who had been manager of the company's store , and having had 

the duty of serving out the rat.ions , had become very well 

known and popular ." (6) 

34. 



Before Smith took up his position, the school-building was 

offered to the Church, but before the property could be 

purchased, it was necessary to obtain security for the land 

upon which the building stood. Church officials approached 

the New Zealand Company agent, Mr Dillon Bell, and he gave 

to them the block of land in question. 

After securing the title to the land upon which the school 

stood, Rev. Reay asked Mr Dillon Bell for a piece of land 

for the site of a Church, a request to which Bell acquiesced. 

With the land for a Church being acquired! settlers in the 

Wakefield District were now asked for their assistance. Local 

residents responded generously with gifts of timber, labour 

and cash towards the building of the Church, repairing the 

schoolhouse, and building a schoolroom. The remainder of 

the cost was defrayed by the Bishop of New Zealand out of 

35. 

Church of England funds, amounting to about two hundred pounds. {7) 

It is generally believed that the design for the Church was 

drawn up by Mrs Reay, wife of the minister. Baigent states 

that Mrs Reay was the architect, (8) although it is probable 

that Mr Charles Heaphy, the noted early surveyor, helped Mrs 

Reay in her design. To confuse the issue even further, the 

Nelson Examiner report upon the opening of St. John's stated 

that the plans were "prepared under the direction of Rev. C.L. 

Reay." ( 9) 

The building of St. John's was duly begun on its prominent 

site overlooking the village of Wakefield. Edward Baigent 

superintended the erection of the Church, which, with the 

help of two carpenters, Messrs J.P.Horn and Rush, was framed 

in his garden. With the frame completed it was carted to 

the Church site, where the foundations had been prepared by 

other local men. According to Baigent, 

"the carpenters wages were 3s 6d a day, labourers 
2s and 2s 6d, and the shingling was done by Mr 
Jessop at 2s 6d per square, for labour only. Mr 
Stallard of Nelson made and framed the windows ... " (10) 

The total cost of the Church was £111-5-9, of which, besides 

his labour, Baigent contributed ~5 worth of timber. The 

building of the church was very much a local effort, and 

reflected the conununity spirit and religious zeal of the 

early pioneers . 



The first public service at St. John's was held on Sunday, 

11 October 1846, when it was opened by the Rev .. L. Reay. 

The Nelson Examiner reported that although the building 

was not yet c0mpleted, "when finished it promises to be 

36. 

. one of the most ornamental constructions in the settlement."(11) 

With the completion of the Church , attention was once again 

focused on the educational facilities of the area. It was 

desired that both a day and Sunday school. be opened in connec­

tion with St. John's . Bishop Selwyn made available money 

for the purpose and so it was decided that a new building 

should be erected for the school, and additions made to the 

old one so as to provide accommodation for the schoolmaster 

and for boarders. Mr J.T. Smith took charge of the new 

school which was erected in 1848 at a cost of f.70, and soon 

had a large number of pupils, including several boarders ·, 
from Nelson. The attendance of boarders at the Wakefield 

school, raises some doubt as to whether the school was 

under the control of the Nelson School Society . It seems 

unlikely pupils would have come from Nelson to attend the 

Wakefield schoo l, unless the syllabus offered was different 

from that of the society schools . A number of schoo ls , 

Church and private, did remain outside the societies control , 

and it is possible that St . John's school was one of these . 

After obtaining l ega l title to the land on which the Church 

and school stood , part of the land was accidentally sold by 

the Commissione r of Crown Lands, the Hon. C.A. Dillon. 

Although the school committee informed Mr Dillon of his 

mistake, nothing was done until Sir George Grey visited 

Nelson, and the matter was brought to his notice. To 

solve the problem it was decided that the Church should 

select another Block of land of similar size as near to 

the Church as was possible. The job of selecting the 

Block of land was given to Edward Baige~t and he chose a 

9½ acre section adjoining St. John's. 

With the departure of Mr J.T. Smith from the Wakefield 

school, (1 2 ) a Mr John Squire took over the position of 

schoolmaster. With the passing of the Nelson Education 

Act in March 1856 , attendance numbers increased to s uch 

an extent that the Church school was no longer la~ge e nough. 



37. 

Rather than spending money enlarging the Church school-house, 

it was decided to erect a larger public school on a new site. (13) 

Thus schooling which began in the Baigent's own primitive whare 

in 1843, with Mrs Baigent as the first teacher, gradually 

expanded to include far larger numbers, under a more efficient 

system. Primary education was one of the first subjects the 

Nelson Provincial Council concerned itself with. A commission 

was established in 1855 to study the question of education 

in the Province, and the recommendations of this commission 

were embodied in the Nelson Education Act of March 1856. Under 

the terms of this Act, every householde r was levied a uniform 

rate of il per annum: and a fur t her 5s per annum for each child 

attending a school. Nelson was the only Province to introduce 

compulsary taxation for the purposes of education. 

The Province was divided into educational Districts, each of 

which elect.E>d a committee of nine to superintend the working 

of each . school. Edward Baigent was a member of the Lower 

Wakefield comP.1ittee for many years, and he s.erved as their 

representative on the Central Board on at least one occasion. (14) 

The Nelson Educational legislation was used as a model by 

other provinces, and the New Zealand Education Act of 1877 

owed much to the Nelson system. 

In 1855, Baigent was one of a deputation of four who travelled 

to the Moutere area to visit the Rev. Thomas Adolphus Rowde n, 

and invite him to become the first resident clergyman of the 

Waimea West and Waimea South districts. (15) After some 

deliberation, Bowden acquiesced to their request and he 

settled at Brightwater, where a Church was to be built. 

Baigent was elected to the St. Paul's Anglican building 

committee, and according to Hollis Hill, gave generous 

supplies of timber for the Church construction. (16) In the 

building of the Church parsonage, Bawa.en reported that "Mr 

E. Baigent and Hugh Martin (of the Gorge) both sawmillers, 

promised liberal contributions in timber. (17) 

St. Paul's Church was opened for public worship on 9 August 

1857. Baige nt c on t i n ue d to play a prominent role in the 

affairs of St. Paul's, s erving as its r e presentative on the 

Archdeaconry Boa rd, and also a t the f irst diocesan synod 



held in 1859, and according to Hill, reta ined his interest 

in St. Paul's Parochial District until his death. (18) 

Baigent was also closely involved with the Wesleyan Chapel 

at Spring Grove, and when it was opened in April 1858, he 

acted as Chairman. In the speech he made, Baigent stated 

that when he looked back sixteen years to when he arrived, 

"he discovered abundent cause for gratitude. When he landed 

here the country was a desolate wilderness; now it was a 

fruitful field. Such an assembly, on such an occasion, in 

such a place as this, he considered as on evidence of the 

Devine authenticity of our faith."(19) This speech reflected 

Baigent's own religious faith, which was shared by a large 

proportion of the early settlers in the area. 

Despite his involvement in the two Brightwater churches, 

Baigent's main interest wai in St. John's. Baigent was 

evidently one of the more wealthy members of the Parish, 

for when donations and subscriptions were called, his name 

was always well to the fore. 

Late in 1864, it was decided to extend St. John's church, 

and subscription s were opened to raise the money needed. 

A total of 1104-17-6 was pledged, including a 15 grant 

from the Church Extension Fund, f. 10 from Rev. Francis Tripp, 

and f5 from Baigent. (20) In July 1865, the work was commenced, 

with Baigent acting as superintendent of works. The cost of 

lengthening the Church came to f63-10-0, with a further £ 14 

38. 

being expended on new seats. At the same time as the extensions , 

the Church gable was lined, and the paths were gravelled. 

According to Palmer, Baigent was the mainspring of the effort, 

and "he was thanked for his persevering and energetic efforts 

in restoring and enlarging the Church ..... "(21) In recog-

nition of his services, two side pews were erected, one for 

Edward Baigent, and the other for the Churchwardens. 

In 1875, Edward Baigent was elected Treasurer of the Building 

Committee for the parsonage, which was completed at a cost 

of over £ 360, of which Baigent cor,tributed .t10. The builder 

of the house was Amos Baigent, son of Edward's brother Isaac, 

who had emigrated to New Zealand in 1852. 



Upon the completion 0f the parsonage, a subcommittee, 

including Baigent, was established to examine the Church, 

and make an estimate of the repairs which were needed. By 

1876, St John's was thirty years old, and,from all reports, 

had taken on a somewhat dilapidated appearance. It was not 

until 18801 however, that repairs were carried out, with 

Baigent donating half of the shingles and timber needed for 

the renovations. 

Support for st. John's steadily grew during the later half 

of the nineteenth century, and, in the Church minutes for 

1884, it is noted that monthly Church Services had begun 

to be held at Pigeon Valley, where Baigent "had kindly lent 

a small building for the purpose."(22) 

In 1887, the final major structural alteration was made 

to St. John's. With Baig~rit's approval "the East Wall of 

the Church was moved, and a ten foot extension made to the 

Chancel". (23) At the Annual General meeting of parishioners 

in July 1888, Baigent was thanked for the work and materials 

he had contributed towards the Church enlargement. 

39. 

In an account of Edward Baigents' life by a Rev. J,H. Honeywell, 

who evidently knew him well, the Rev. gentleman commented: 

I have passed many pleasant hours in his company 
in New Ze aland, and have b een much interested in 
his reminiscences of Bishop Selwyn, whom he accom­
panied in many of his excur sions, and whom he carried 
on his broad shoulde rs through the Pacific surf, on a 
memorable occasion at Motueka, near Nelson, when the 
Bishop landed there on one of his Episcopal journeys. 
He often stayed at Mr Baigent's house when visiting 
the neighbourhood of Wakefield for confirmation and 
other business. So also did Bishop Hobhouse ... and 
Bishop Suter ... has been with so often at Mr 
Baigent's, and listened with much interest to the 
accounts given with much fire and graphic force of the 
old days of the colony. (24) 

Edward Baigent's involvement in St. John's extended much further 

than the donation of money and materials. Baigent served 34 

terms as a church vestryman between 1857-1892, and was still 

serving in thjs position at .the time of his death. Baigent 

represented St. John's on the Archdearonry Board in 1856-1858, 

and also served a s synod repre sentat ive from 1867-1869, and 

again from 1876-1879. 



40. 

Baigent ' s involvement in St. John's was a personal one, as h e 

was obviously a man of deep religious convictions . Dur ing 

his life at Wakef i e ld, he unselfi s hly gave gene rous amounts 

of time , materials and money to St. John's. Considering his 

~idespread involvement in Church activities, it is thus , hardly 

surprising that Bai gent holds , as Palmer says , such a conspicuous 

place in the history of St . John's. 

As a sawmiller , Baigent took a great deal of interest in the 

condition of l ocal roads . Baigent commented t ha.t groups of 

, local men frequently spent a day repairing roads so that they 

could be us ed by carts and wagons . (2 5) 

Unde r the Country Roads Act, Baigent was first e lected to the 

Roads Board, for the Waimea District , along with four others 

in July 1858 . He was r e - elected in the following year along 

with Messrs Barnicoat and Kerr. In August 1 859 , a publ ic 

dinner was held at Wakef i e l d to than k Edward Baigent "for h i s 

valuabl e and gratuitous services as a member of the Roads Board ," 

( 26) even though he had at this poi nt been a member of the Board 

for only fourteen months . Speaking at the dinne r , attended by 

· 30 -40 guests , Baigent stated that from the commencement of 

s ettlement in t h e area , he h ad g i ven his utmost attention to 

the subject of roads. Baigent e xpressed concern that Wai mea 

South had not received t he assistance from the Government , 

which he believed the district deserved . He c l aimed that for 

every shilling received from the Government , before the Provincial 

Council was established , l ocal residents had given a pound in 

voluntary labour ; " ... had i t not been for those voluntary 

services . . .. t he roadswould not be in the satisfactory state 

they were now in and very poss ibly (there would be) no road 

at all." ( 27) Even afte r the establishment of the Prov incial 

system of Government , l ocal subscription and labour was fre ­

que ntly necessary to form or improve roads and bridges. In 

June 1862 the Ne l son Examiner r eported a meeting at Waimea 

South to consider the .necessity of erecting a bridge over the 

Wai-iti Rive r. (.28 ) At the meeting loca l residents were asked 

for their financia l he lp to .enabl e the building of a bridge . Such 

a request was not uncommon during this per i od . 

To r aise r evenue for roading works , the Waimea Di stricts Road 

Board imposed a levy of ld in the pound upon al l lands and 

tenements within the Distr ict , In 1864 , Edward Baigent was 



forced to pay ;£ 8- J. "-6 to the Board, being the fourth large~t 

land owner in the Wairnea South District. (29) 

Baigent continued to be re-elected to the Road Board and at a 

Board meeting at Wakefield in June 1865, he supported a resolu-

41. 

tion to establish a separate Road Board in Waimea South. Baigent 

claimed that he had travelled 1700 miles to the meetings of the 

Board, and over 11,000 miles in inspecting and setting out work 

for the Board. (30) It appears however, that this resolution 

lacked widespread support, for separate road-board sub-districts 

were not formed until some years later. 

The raising of funds for road development and maintenance was 

obviously a major problem for the Road Boards. Besides levies 

on lands and tenements, revenue was raised through toll gates, 

and bars placed at strategic points on main roads. The first 

Highways Act was passed in· ·the Nelson Provincial Council in 1856, 

being amended in 1858, ar1d again in ~1863. Eventuz.ll~l these ~"·""ere 

presented in the form of t~e Nelson Highways Act of May 1872. (31) 

There were clauses in the Act dealing with obstructions on roads, 

ditches and drains, regarded as a dange~ to health; and an un­

usual clause relating to the injury of roads through shading; 

If any road shall be injured by the shade of any 
hedges or trees, and the sun and wind are thereby 
excluded from such highway to the damage thereof ... 
the owner or occupier shall be liable to a penalty, 
not exceeding five pounds. (32) 

The main object of the Act,however, was the setting up of toll 

gates.· A uniform scale of charges was established. "For every 

sheep, lamb, pig or goat, l/2d; every ox or head of neat 

cattle 2d; every horse, mare, gelding, ass or mule 3d; every 

gig, cart, dray or other vehicle drawn by one horse 6d .... ''(33) 

Under the Act, clergymen, Government Officers and funeral 

processions were all exempt from the tolls. It was this exemp­

tion clause which caused much controversy, particularly regard­

ing Government Officers, who it was felt _were abusing their 

privilege. Five days after the Act was passed, Edward Baigent 

presented to the council a petition signed by 750 residents 

"praying that the exemption clauses should be repealed."(34) 

Despite the widespread discontent,however, no immediate changes 

were made. 

In 1872, the Roads Board levy was reduced to three farthings 

in the pound upon all lands and tenements. As the largest land-



owner in Waimea South , Baigent was levied 18 - 10 - 6 . (35) 

By Jul y 1 873 , when Road Board elections were once again he l d , 

t h e Waimea Road District , in compliance with the wishes of 

_Ratepayers , had been divided into six sub- districts . Baigent 

was du l y e l ected member for Spring Grove , and was later chosen 

as Chairman. At the t i me these elections were hel d , the Roads 

Board Levy had been furth e r reduced to on l y l/2d i n the pound 

upon a l l rateable lands and tenements within the district. 

Despite the fifty percent reduction in the levy since 1864 , 

.- Edward Baigent was levied 19 - 12 - 6 in the Wakefield District , 

42 . 

l 2-1-o in the Spring Grove District, and ll-15 - 0 in the Dovedale 

Di strict, reflecting the large areas of land he had accumulated. (36) 

Bai gent was re - elected to the Waimea Roads Board as a member 

for Spring Grove for the last time in July 1874 , losing his 

seat two years later to Wil l iam White , by 14 votes.(37) To 

what extent Baigent's defeat in the Roads Board election reflected 

a l oss of popularity is difficult to ascerta i n . Obviously 

the fact that he was defeated signifies clearly that his popu­

larity was no t as universal as previously. At the time of the 

· 1876 e lection, Baigent was serving his District in the House of 

Representatives in Wellington, and it is possible that the 

people of Waimea South felt he was no longer capable of effect­

i vely carrying out both jobs . 

For nearly two decades , Baigent served on the Waimea District ' s 

Road Board, trave lling thousands of miles in the course o.f his 

duty . To some extent Baigent ' s interest in the Roads Board was 

c l osely associated with his business interests . Without satis­

factory roads his sa~nilling business was seriously affected . 

Neverthe l ess Baigent did give up much of his time to ensure 

t hat roads i n the Wai mea area were mai ntained in a reasonable 

condition, something which benefited the whole District . 

The Waimea South Mechanics Institution h e ld its first meeting 

a t the Church school in Lower Wakefield , on 20 July 1853 . A 

management corr~ittee of eleven was formed, including Edward 

and Alfred Baigent , with Edward being e l ected Treasurer . Accord­

ing to the rules and regulations of the Institution , the society 

was formed "for the purpose of mutual instruction a nd the general 

cu l t ivation of literature and science " . (38) 



At the July 1853 meeting, a call was made upon the public 

for subscriptions, and it was moved "that the committee be 

empowered to use their discretion in the rejection of any 

books of a doubtful character .... and are requested to reject 

all those of an infidel tendency."(39) 

At the first Annual General meeting· of the Institution in 

November 1854, it was noted that ~43-19-10 , had already been 

pledged towards the erection of a building, a committee for 

which was formed , including Edward Baigent. In March 1855, 

.the Nelson Examiner mentioned that Baigent had subscribed Jl2 

towards the Institution. (40) The building of the Waimea South 

Mechanics Literary Institution was opened at 2.00p.m . on 17th 

July 1856, being attended by some one hundred persons . The 

Chairman paid a well merited tribute to Mr Baigent "to whose 

exertions the success of the Institution is mainly attributable 
.. 

and to whose liberality they were indebted for a gift of 

4 3. 

two acres of land, on which this building had been erected . "(41) 

The rules and regulations of the Institution stated that ordin­

ary members under 21 years of age were t.c pay a subscription of 

ls6d per quarter , plus an entrance fee of ls5d, whilst ordinary 

members over 21 years of age paid ls6d per quarter , and an 

entrance fee of 2s6d. Subscribers of 10s per annum were made 

Honorary members . (42). 

In November 1856 , Edward Baige nt was elected Chairman of the 

Institution , and he also serve d in the position of Treasurer 

for many years. Alfred and Isaac Baigent also feature prominently 

in the early history of the Institution , and in 1864 it is 

entered that subscriptions were pai d by Eliab , Joseph , Amos, 

Edward, Samuel, Isaac and Henry Baigent. 

The Waimea South Mechanics Literary Institution represented an 

important step in the social and cultural history of the area , 

becoming the favourite meeting place of many locals. 

It can be seen thus that Edward Baigent payed a prominent ro l e 

in local affairs - Church , educational , and reading, giving 

generously materials, finance , expertise , and time , to e s t ablish 

institutions which the people of the are a today are still b e nefiting . 

In each of the institutions which Baigent helped establish, he 

was personally involved , particul a rly in the case of St. John's 



Church, the Baigent fami l y being staunch supporters of the 

Anglican faith. An indicati.on of Baigent ' s standing in the 

local community , can be seen from the number of committees 

and Boards he was elected to. Edward Baigent was both a 

.respected and popular figure in Wakefield and Waimea South. 

44 . 



C H A P T E R V 

Provincial and National Politics 



45. 

In view of Edward Baigent's widespread involvement in local 

affairs, it was hardly surprising that he extended his interests 

to the political arena. The year 1853 signals a watershed in 

Baigent's life, for it was in this year he was first elected 

to the Nelson Provincial Council, beginning what was to be a 

long career in provincial politics. 

Following the passing of the Constitution Act of June 1852,(1) 

which created a two tier political system, in the form of provincial 

councils, and a General Assembly , a Committee of 32, including 

Edward Baigent, was established in the Waimca Electoral District 

to "watch over the registration of the District and to suggest 

fit and proper persons to represent it in the House of Repre­

sentatives." (2) 

Once electoral boundaries had been defined, the next step was 

the drawing up of the e l ectora l rolls , which was carried out 

bet\.·:ccn 15 1\pril and 15 :-~cc1y 185 3 . I~ June 1853 , Edward Daigeut 

was nominated as a candidate for Waimea South in the Provincial 

Council e l ections . Baigent accepted the nomination and began 

preparing for the e l ection which was to be held on Thursday 18 

August 1853 . Baigent comfortably won a seat in the Council , 

polling twice as many votes as the second candidate J . W. Saxton , 

who was also elected . 

The election of 1853 was characterised by widespread bribery 

through the offe ring of " free beer" to entice voters; "Men, 

women and children were to be seen in a state of helpless intoxi­

cation, " (3)reported Alfred Saunders , who was a staunch supporter 

of the Abstinence Society. The Corrupt Practices Prevention 

Act of 1858 did much to ensure that a r epetition never o c curred . 

In being e l ected to the fifteen man Provincial Council , Baigent 

joined select company, which included doctors and barristers . 

According to H.F . Allan , "of the fifteen who composed the first 

council, at least ten were entitled by birth and education to 
,, 

be called in ~he parlance of those days, 'gentlemen' . (4) It 

is hardly surprising thus , that Baigent and other mewbers "chosen 

solely for their honesty and good works, were outshone in debate 

by the brilliance of the profe ssional men." (5) Although other 

men in the council may have bee ri more erudite, Baigent was elected 

by the people of Waime a South for his "honesty and good works ", 

and when voting took place for the Provincial Council on 14 Octobe r 



1857, Baigent once again topped the poll.(6) 

In his first few years as a member of the Provincial Council, 

Baigent confined himself to those subjects with which he was 

familiar, such as roading and other matters, particularly 

involving his own electorate. In January 1862, Baigent was 

re-elected for a third term without opposition. (7) 

The question of a railway in the Nelson area occupied con­

siderable time in the Provincial Council during 1863. Many 

public meetings were held to discuss the topic which generated 

··much debate. The proposed railway from Nelson to Four 

Rivers Plain (Murchison) obviously had many advantages, the 

greatest of which was that it would have provided an all-

weather link, unlike the majority of existing roads. Baigent's 

reaction was initially one of caution, emphasising that he 

would only give his support for a railway, if some good could 

46. 

be derived from it. Within a few months however, Baigent had 

come out firmly in favour of establ{shing a rail system, arguing 

in the Provincial Council that the value of timber which could 

be brought out of country areas, justified its existence; "If 

a railway were made to the Big Bush, it ~ould pay to cut the 

timber there and bring it into town. I think it would pay 

to put a railway down purposely to bring tirober into Nelson."(8) 

Baigent's support was undoubtedly partly motivated by his 

business interests, which would have greatly benefited from the 

establishment of a railway. Other Councillors,however, did not 

share Baigent's optimism regarding the timber potential, despite 

his obvious experience in such affairs. The question of a rail­

way in the Nelson area thus lapsed for several years. 

In October 1865, Edward Baigent was re-elected to the Provincial 

Council for the fourth time, reflecting the high esteem in which 

he was held in his electorate. At a meeting following his re­

.election, Baigent commented on the large areas of land within 

New Zealand which could bemade available . for settlement if 

roads were established. He pointed out that until these areas 

were opened up by roads, they were of little value. Baigent 

was later to speak sev~ral times on this subject in the House 

of Representatives. 

Despite the fact that his calls to establish a railway were 

ignored, Baigent maintained his support, arguing that '' ... a 

. I 



railway was very necessary for communication with the inland 

country, and ... (that) Nelson would be nothing but a small 

village if it had not a ready road for the country produce". (9) 

Baigent claimed that if the Province was to develop, a railway 

was a necessary prerequisite. 

47. 

In June 1867, Baigent announced hi~ intention of offering himself 

as a candidate for the Waimea's for the General Assembly elections, 

after having been several times requested to put himself forward. 

In being nominated for the House of Representatives, Baigent was 

described as "a fearless and fair politician who had risen by 

his own industry and perseverance."(10) In seconding the nom­

ination of Baigent, a Mr Horne said, "It was obj e cted that Mr 

Baigent was a man of plain speech, and only of ordinary edu­

cation, but he was an hone st man, and honesty was but poorly 

heard in the councils of the nation ... Mr Baigent had a plain 

and honest tongue, and only meddled with matters he had a 

practical knowledge of."(11,In accepting the nomination, Baigent 

stated that "he had always confe ssed he had not the ability 

necessary to go to the Assembly , and the electors knew it, but 

he would at least give an hone st vote ... .. " (12) Baigent went 

on to state that he would resist any inva sion of provincial 

institutions by the General Gove rnment, a stance which he was 

to maintain throughout the ensuing provincialist-centralist 

debates. 

Polling for the Waimea Seat took place on Friday 27 June 1867, 

with Baigent being ele cted with a comfortable margin. (13) The 

Editorial in The Colonist, acknowledged Baigent's success, saying 

"we give every credit to Mr Baigent for hon