Piecing together Richmond Story

This little stone cottage sits under the wing of the giant Puke Ariki building and it seems to have been around for a long, long time. It has. It was built 150 years ago but not where you see it now.

The house was just a stones throw away from the sea and there was a time when it was thought to be one of New Plymouth's most elegant buildings.

This week's story tells us more.

Rewind to 1853

This was the year a New Plymouth stonemason chipped away at the Kawaroa reef. He needed stones to build a house.

Decide whether these things really did happen around 1853. Just answer true or false and you can check your answers at the end of this week's TreasureLink.

1. High numbers of new animals and plants are being introduced to New Zealand.

2. Cows are by far the most favoured animals for farming.

3. New Zealand is already governed in much the same way as it is today with elected Members of Parliament.

4. The gold rush is on in Otago.

5. New Zealand's settlers do not really trust their Governor Grey.

Let's compare

Picture in Pencil: In 1855, James Crowe Richmond sketched this picture of Beach Cottage on its original site on New Plymouth's foreshore.

Click here for a photo of  New Plymouth's Devon Street in 1859. By now the little stone cottage has been built. Are the Devon Street buildings and the cottage built of similar materials? Look closely at the walls and each roof.

Think pair and then share your ideas with someone else. If you were building way back then, what building materials would you choose?

Early immigrant years

New immigrants built Richmond Cottage in 1853. 90% of New Zealand's immigrants at this time were from Britain. Check out this graph and find out these things. You can check your answers at the end of this week's TreasureLink.

1. In the 1840s were there more or less than 1,000 immigrants arriving each year?

2. Was Richmond Cottage built in the peak year of immigration for the 1850s?

3. It is thought that the land that Richmond Cottage was built on was bought in 1841. How likely is it that the immigrants that bought this land had at least part of their fare to New Zealand paid for?

4. Was Richmond Cottage built before or after the peak years for immigration?

But why did that happen?

Pair up with a classmate and come up with a possible reason why each of the things below happened.

1. Immigrants often came from the same part of Britain. Many for example came from Kent. They didn't all leave at the same time but over the years a large number of people from Kent settled in New Zealand. Why was this?

2. Many of the new settlers were very versatile people. This meant they were able to do all sorts of jobs. Why was this?

3. Many of the new immigrants expected to be able to make a living off their own land. Why was this?

4. Many of the immigrants chose to emigrate from New Zealand when they could have just shifted to the big British cities and worked in factories. How come?

5. New Zealand became a multi-cultural country from the time the new settlers started to arrive. How come?

Word wise?

These words and phrases are all in this week's story. Choose either (a) and (b) to show the best meaning and then check your answers as you read the story.

1. fledgling (a) newcomer (b) young bird

2. matriarch (a) oldest female of the family or (b) grand lady of the family - the one who sets the rules.

3. waylaid (a) ambushed unexpectedly or (b) put in danger.

4. bought by proxy (a) getting a bargain or (b) giving someone else the right to buy for you

5. hewn (a) rock hard or (b) to make and shape

6. proviso (a) a special condition or (b) a set of rules

7. nucleus (a) the dead centre or (b) the main part around which other parts are gathered

8. ramshackle (a) bedraggled and dilapidated or (b) full of sheep

9. artifacts (a) objects made by people (b) anything really old

10. languid (a) long faced or (b) weak and lacking energy.

Let's leave England!

Click here for this week's story and read the first three parts through to "Long walk home".

What does this early part of story and the cartoon above tell you about why some people were ready to leave England and sail to the other side of the world?

What a fine place!

It seems that Charles really liked living in Taranaki and he returned to England in 1850 with some "exaggerated claims of a grand life in the colonies". He probably wanted others to emigrate so perhaps his stories stretched the truth a little.

Imagine Charles talking to the Richmond family. Jot down his answers to the questions they may have asked and you will have the script for a short play. Get together with some classmates and read through each other's plays.

Maria Tell us about New Zealand Charles. Is it really as wild and as beautiful as some people say?

Charles

James What about Taranaki Charles? I have heard it is exceedingly tough country and very difficult land to clear.

John

Henry Are there good farms out there Charles? Can a man just go and buy land for a farm and set himself up with sheep and pigs?

Charles

Christopher The newspapers say the Maori people don't want to sell their land Charles.  Why travel all that way to New Zealand when we may not be able to buy land? Surely we would be better off here?

Charles

Jane Tell us about the dangers in Taranaki Charles. England can be difficult but dangers are few where we live.

Charles

Jane And what about hospitals and schools Charles? Are there any doctors at all in this place they call New Plymouth?

Charles

Maria Do say there are no snakes Charles! There are tales of Australian immigrants being bitten by snakes. And do tell Charles. What about those big birds? I do hear there were once giant birds far bigger than a man. Could they not be still hiding among the trees?

Charles

Jane Is the weather fair Charles? New Zealand seems very close to the South Pole to me.

Charles

Christopher How big is this New Plymouth Charles? Does it have its own port, hotels and shops?

Charles

James And tell me Charles. How do New Plymouth people get to the main towns? I believe they are called Wellington and Auckland. Are there trains and coaches?

Charles

Henry Are there young ladies in New Plymouth Charles? I would hate to think the place is full of pioneers with long beards and axes. There is no shortage of ladies in England Charles and a man must think of settling down.

Charles

Jane I think I would miss the singing of our English birds at dawn Charles. Surely there would be nothing like that sound in the wilds of Taranaki?

Charles

Henry Have you climbed that mountain Charles? The one they call Egmont? I like that name. It is very English. Tell me Charles, what can you see from up there?

Charles

Maria Do you really think we should go Charles?

Charles

A bit of a walk

Now this is interesting. Read "Long walk home" and find out how the Richmond brothers travelled from Auckland to Taranaki.

Only two brothers made the trip so who is the third person in the cartoon above? Write speech bubbles for the cartoon that will give readers the answer.

How else could the brothers travel to Taranaki in those days? Think, pair and share your ideas with a classmate.

There is no mention of the brothers using the rivers in the way Maori travellers would have. Check out this map together and decide on a possible non - river route.

New Zealand bound

The next part of the story tells of more Richmond and Atkinson family members travelling to New Zealand. Read, "Stormy start for love and life" and find out how long the voyage took from Gravesend, to Auckland, New Zealand. The usual time for the journey in the 1850s was four months.

Check out the picture here to get an idea of shipboard life and try this interactive activity from Puke Ariki. It's all about packing your bags for the big journey. Click here.

Where was this cottage?

Tides of Change: This is what New Plymouth's foreshore looked like in 1870. Beach Cottage (marked with arrow) is right on the seafront, with clear views of Paritutu and the Sugar Loaf Islands. The water seen left of centre is the Huatoki Stream. The hill behind is where Puke Ariki now stands.

The photo above shows just where the cottage first stood. The photo below was taken 134 years later and a well known building now stands on the cottages first section. Read the next part of the story, "Rocks for the Richmonds" to find out which building stands on the first cottage site now. Find it in the photo.

What if you were a property investor 134 years ago? Investors were around way back then but what if you had seen into the future? You could visualise the photo above. Make a "high five" list of properties you would have tried to buy.

Rock on!

Imagine Nathaniel mining the stone for the cottage. Kawaroa Reef rocks are incredibly hard so it must have been a tough job. Get together with a classmate and make a list of tools and equipment that Nathaniel would need for the job. No power tools in those days remember.

Do a quick sketch that shows how Nathaniel shaped a rock.

Moving in, moving out

The next three parts of the story tell you about the first people that lived in the little cottage.

Read through to the end of "Breathing sea air" and find the one thing that tells us that this little cottage was very well built.

As you read, find the answers to these questions.

How many of William Richmond's family lived together in the cottage?

What was the value of the cottage when it was first finished? (There are $2 to a pound)

Which event made many women and children leave New Plymouth?

Nice climb!

The story tells us Jane Atkinson was the first Pakeha woman to reach the summit of the mountain they called Mt Egmont. She climbed it in 1855. What do you think? Was it harder to climb the mountain then than now? Talk it over with a classmate.

Good school!

Beach Cottage had a new use 1873. The next two parts of the story show what it was used for next. Read on and find out.

What if Henry had put an advertisement in the Taranaki Herald of 1873? Write the words he could have used to encourage families to send their boys to his school.

Rebuild by numbers

Finish the story now and find out about the campaign to save the cottage. Quite a few historic buildings in towns across New Zealand were being demolished around this time so the campaigners did really well to save this one. Read on and take special note of these things.

Who helped pay for the big shift?

What helped the stonemason put it all back together again?

What made Howard Richmond the ideal man to reopen the cottage as a museum?

Want to visit?

Check the last part of the story and pop in next time you are in town when the cottage is open. It's well worth a look.

Protect the past

This week's story mentions the Historic Places Trust. Click the link below to find out all about it and then see if you can find one of Taranaki's historic buildings on its register. You could try buildings like St Mary's Pro Cathedral or the Hawera water tower.

Here's the link.

Fast forward to 2004

Immigating to New Zealand is quite difficult now. 1840s immigrants could get their fares paid for if they showed they were skilled workers, healthy and prepared to work hard.

Jay Burston is skilled, healthy and prepared to work hard and he wants to immigrate now. He lives with his family in Wales but after a year of trying his goal is still just a dream.

These days immigrants have to have a certain number of points. Skilled migrants get points. That's because New Zealand needs certain skilled workers. Last year Jay discovered that his skills left him just two points short of the number he needed. He enrolled for a university degree to increase his points tally. He shot up to 125 and that was over the pass mark.

Jay has IT skills now but unfortunately the pool of migrant workers is so high that only those with 160 points are able to apply. What's worse is that his 125 points only count if he has a job offer and those are hard to get. The Government has tightened the immigration rules after a flood of immigration applications last year. They're hoping that the new rules will see New Zealand get the exact skilled workers the country needs.

Jay has used his new skills to set up a website where people can comment and ask questions about immigration. He says people are getting tired of trying to immigrate to New Zealand because they are getting messed around so much.

P, M or I?

Should New Zealand have a points system like this? Form a group of four and draw three columns on a big sheet of paper.

Print the words "Plus" "Minus" and "Interesting" at the top of each column and then jot down your ideas about the question.

The interesting column may include new ideas that don't fit into the P or M column. 

Answers

Rewind

1. True. Before 1840 it is thought that there were only a few dozen plants and animals introduced by European settlers but by 1870 there were more than 300.

2. False. Sheep were. By 1858 New Zealand had 1.8 million sheep and only 115,000 humans.

3. False. New Zealand was being governed by Governors appointed by the British but by 1853 a system was in place which would lead to an elected government.

4. False. The actual goldrush began with Gabriel Read's discovery in 1861.

5. True. Grey didn't want to give the power to govern to the settlers. The settlers called him the "great dictator".

Click to go back to the questions.