Winter set in and the wet, cold weather made the going tough for the surveyors.
In his reports to the company Carrington outlined some of the difficulties facing a small surveying party in lining out large numbers of town sections. "It is impossible to theodolite without cutting our way through the scrub - some 10 feet to 20 feet high".
The first six suburban sections were available to settlers on October 6, while the town sections were not to be available until November 15.
"Carrington obviously wishes eventually, to teach us virtue of patience" wrote one disgruntled settler.
Half starved and depressed
Rumours had been circulating among coastal traders about the dangerous coast along New Plymouth, so ships had been avoiding the little settlement.
Other rumours about the destitution of New Plymouth were reaching the ears of intending settlers and many went instead to Port Nicholson. As a result, while Wellington had unemployment, New Plymouth simply did not have enough employers, leaving hundreds of labourers who had been promised work before leaving England unemployed.
Drunkeness was rife among the labourers as depression sank in.
The settlers' problems were compounded by the shortage of food
Carrington's extra purchase of food had helped, but seed potatoes being planted by local Maori (expecting many white people to arrive) were not yet ready to dig, wheat, turnip and other seedlings were just tender young shoots. Hens and stock brought by the settlers were too precious to kill. So the settlers looked to the land to provide for them, curlews, pigeons and other forest birds along with the occasional wild pig.
The Amelia Thompson
The arrival of the Amelia Thompson off the coast in November brought a sigh of relief to the half starved settlers - but she sat offshore for seven weeks due to bad weather before unloading of cargo began.
The Amelia Thompson's baggage ship the Regina arrived shortly after but while unloading was blown ashore onto a reef. Her crew landed safely and the remaining luggage was unloaded, but the ship was a wreck. She was the first of many vessels that fell victim to the surf until the breakwater was built 40 years later. This just emphasised the need for a harbour, and caused the conscientious Carrington more anguish.
Carrington's final town plan, finished in November, covered 550 acres, but instead of being in a tight knit community the new town's citizens found themselves scattered around with vacant sections in between belonging to absentee owners.
Mapped: An early copy of the New Plymouth survey map drawn by Fred Carrington in 1842.
[+] Click here for larger image.
An overworked and stressed Carrington was often on the receiving end of the settlers' complaints and criticisms - he had after all, been the one to chose a site without a harbour. Meetings were held at which the ever-present issue of starvation was brought up - and arguments over the lack of a harbour had brought the little settlement to within a hair's breath of having to move to another location. But Carrington had the support of the majority of the settlers. It was only the persuasiveness of those who believed in the remarkable fertility of the area that won the day.
Pompey
As there was no other form of transport the surveyors had to make their way around the district by foot. Travelling was rough going as they had to ford rivers and scramble through fern and scrub. In 1842 a horse was bought in Australia and shipped over for the chief surveyor to use. Having been stabled and fed after the voyage, the horse, Pompey, was presented to Carrington for his first ride. The surveyor climbed into the saddle only to have the horse buck and turf him onto the ground. Three times he tried, and three times he was unceremoniously thrown from Pompey's back. After the third attempt Carrington abandoned the horse and returned to using his feet to get him around the district.
Waitara/Raleigh
The survey teams had moved out to mark the suburban and rural areas of Waiwakaiho, Bell Block and on to Waitara which was to be named Raleigh, marking out land for farming.
A new agent for the New Zealand company arrived in the town to take over from an injured Captain Liardet. John Wicksteed and Carrington did not get on.
The company had ruled that one tenth of the land at Waitara would be set aside for "Native Reserves". But Wicksteed was against having the Maori interspersed with the settlers and gave orders that it be quashed - compensation to be given in the form of one block of land away from the settlers.
Carrington was aware how highly Te Atiawa valued Waitara and had promised them two favourite spots as reserves when the balloting took place. However, when the selections for the rural lands took place, the reserves were not mentioned. Wicksteed had disregarded Carrington's promise and allowed the settlers to choose any sections they liked.
The special constabulary were sent out from New Plymouth, a volley of shots was fired and the land was taken from the Maori.
Carrington later remarked that "Wicksteed's action was a breach of faith of the type from which has arrived all native wars."
Financial problems
The Plymouth Company had run into an embarrassing amount of financial difficulties. Since its inception the failure of its bankers had resulted in its amalgamation with the New Zealand Company. Now it faced further difficulties - reports of the dangerous coast discouraged many from making their homes at New Plymouth, the company did not sell as much land as they had envisaged. The company was also hampered by lack of support from both the home and colonial Governments. Wicksteed began cutting back savagely.
New Plymouth in 1843: Brougham Street (far left), Marsland Hill and Mt Egmont/Taranaki can be seen.
Image: Detail from lithograph from a work by Mrs Emma Wicksteed entitled The Town of New Plymouth in the Year 1843 / (From a Sketch taken by Mrs Wicksteed from the Residence of John Tylston Wicksteed ESQr. The Company Agent on Mt Elliot).
(Ref: A96.621)
He reduced the labourers wages by half, issued no more stores or rations and, in collaboration with Colonel Wakefield, decided to dispense with Carrington telling him his services would not be needed from 31 March 1844.
Carrington's men bailed and within a short time his work team had reduced from 80 to three men, his requests for necessary equipment went unanswered, his salary ceased and, eventually, he was told to stop surveying altogether. As he was paid on the number of sections he produced, Carrington was going to be out of pocket.
The surveyor was short of men, short of equipment, short of transport, food, money, and friends in high places.
He didn't wait until March, but left New Plymouth frustrated and disappointed along with his wife and five children (they had two more daughters) on 27 August 1843.
His brother Octavious took over the position of chief surveyor, without pay while Wellington, who had arrived the year previously, was left in charge of surveying the remaining Waitara land.
London
In London Carrington was met with a frosty reception. He eventually found work directing surveys and preparing models of railways, harbours and water works in England and Scotland. The excellence of his work impressed, and at the Great Exhibition of 1851 he was awarded a medal for his models..
From 1851 to 1856 Carrington travelled to California, Paris and Belgium where he carried out his surveying work.
While in New Plymouth Carrington had gathered together a large collection of native birds (he did his own taxidermy) and Maori artefacts including several waka. These he displayed in exhibitions around London.
Return to New Zealand
But the call of New Zealand and all it offered was too great and the Carrington family set out once more for the little colony in 1857. This time Carrington had plans to set up a business using the iron sand he had seen covering the beaches, make a survey of the area he planned for a harbour, and act as a real estate agent. His plans were put on hold when the Land Wars broke out shortly after the family's arrival back in New Plymouth. He was instead appointed Government engineer and surveyor of roads.
Many attempts had been made to compensate for the lack of a harbour at New Plymouth. Settlers had established a surf boat service, transporting passengers and goods from the boats lying offshore to dry land. But New Plymouth's unsheltered coast produced some large breakers, often making the trip from ship to shore or vice versa a treacherous one. Moorings were placed on the sea bed for ships to tie up to - but often captains were reluctant to do so in rough weather. A jetty had been built, but it soon succumbed to the ravages of the sea.
The lack of a harbour had bugged Carrington for years. He was keen to see his dream realised, and approached the Government with the idea of using convict labour to build a breakwater at the Sugar Loaves. The idea was shelved until after the Land Wars.
In 1869 Carrington was elected superintendent of the Province of Taranaki and held the position until it was abolished in 1876. For many years he represented the Grey and Bell district in the Hall of Representatives and was also chairman and treasurer of the harbour board.
Carrrington's Legacy
Carrington's main concern became getting a breakwater for the settlement.
"Nothing less than a harbour at the Sugar Loaves will enable us to have a fair share of the advantages administered to other provinces" he wrote to the premier Julius Vogel in 1872.
Finally, in 1881 he laid the foundation stone on New Plymouth's new breakwater. It was a moment in history he had been fighting for over 40 years and the crowning of his personal struggle to justify his choice of the site of the town. The first passengers disembarked on the newly finished breakwater in 1883. Later that year the first commercial cargo, coal for the New Plymouth Gas Company was landed.
At last: 7 February 1881, the foundation stone for the New Plymouth breakwater is placed by Frederic Carrington.
In 1888 the Moturoa wharf was completed and New Plymouth's harbour problems were over.
Carrington had retired from politics in 1881, at the age of 73, but he continued to keep an avid interest in the welfare of the province, "which he looked upon as a flower of his own," wrote the Taranaki Herald.
His wife Margaret died in 1883.
He died at the age of 93 in July 1901.
Carrington's legacy remains in the streets of New Plymouth. Over half the streets and rural roads that he planned are still in use. Copies of his brilliant map drawing are on display at Puke Ariki.