Grey Lynn by any other name?
The area we know as Grey Lynn today has had many names over the years. Māori called the area around Cox's Creek Opoutuheka or Opou, while Western Springs was referred to as Waiorea or 'eel water'. The Surrey Crescent ridge was Te Raeokawharu, 'Kawharu's brow' commemorating the spot where an invading chief rested.
The Grey Lynn and Westmere area was bought from Māori by the Crown as a block of 13,000 acres for the sum of £200, 4 horses, 30 blankets, 10 cloaks worth £25, one tent and one sealing box. Settlers wishing to buy land in the area were best advised to travel to Cox's Bay by boat as there was little land access.
The area bordered by Great North Road, Surrey Crescent, Ponsonby Road and Richmond Road was purchased by James Williamson and was called the Surrey Hills Estate after his home county in England. In 1883, he sold the land to a company, who subdivided the land into sections advertised as the ‘Surrey Hills Estate’. The first allotments were sold for between £10 and £40 per foot. The borough was renamed Newton in 1885 and eventually named Grey Lynn, after Sir George Grey, in 1901.
Do you live in Stanley Street ... or Livingstone Street?
Grey Lynn streets have also changed their names over the years:
Livingstone Street was once Stanley Street
Scanlan Street - Surrey Street
Northland Street - Northcote Street
Larchwood Street - Greenwood Street
For more information see the Auckland City Street Names database.
|
