The Brunner Borough was a
borough
A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.
History
...
on New Zealand's
West Coast from 1887 to 1971. It was formed from an area that belonged to Grey County and, at disestablishment, merged back into Grey County.
History
In September 1887, some residents petitioned the
governor
A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...
, Sir
William Jervois
Lieutenant General Sir William Francis Drummond Jervois (10 September 1821 – 17 August 1897) was a British military engineer and diplomat. After joining the British Army in 1839, he saw service, as a second captain, in South Africa. In 18 ...
, to have
Brunner (at the time still commonly called Brunnerton) and some nearby settlements constituted a borough. The petition was granted and an election for mayor was called for 21 November 1887. Two candidates contested the election and Francis McParland was successful. Three days later, nine councillors were elected, with 21 candidates contested this second election. One of the successful candidates was
Joseph Petrie, who was simultaneously the
mayor of Grey
The Grey District mayor, often referred to as the mayor of Greymouth, officiates over the Grey District of New Zealand which is administered by the Grey District Council, with its seat in Greymouth. The current mayor is Tania Gibson. Two predece ...
mouth. The newly elected council first met on 26 November 1887 and with that meeting, the borough came into existence.
In early 1887, Grey County had committed itself to building a footbridge over the Grey River connecting
Wallsend
Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne.
History Roman Wallsend
In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...
and
Taylorville following a poll by its ratepayers for a
NZ£
The pound (symbol £, £NZ. for distinction) was the currency of New Zealand from 1933 until 1967, when it was replaced by the New Zealand dollar. Prior to this, New Zealand used the pound sterling since the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. Like t ...
2,500 loan. As the bridge fell into the Brunner Borough area, the borough council had the project transferred to itself.
Location and services
The Brunner Borough was located either side of the
Grey River / Māwheranui. South of the river, the land belonged to Westland. The river formed a provincial boundary until the dissolution of the provinces in 1877, with the southern side belonging to Westland and the northern side located in Nelson.
Brunner,
Wallsend
Wallsend () is a town in North Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England, at the eastern end of Hadrian's Wall. It has a population of 43,842 and lies east of Newcastle upon Tyne.
History Roman Wallsend
In Roman times, this was the site of the fort of ...
,
Dobson, and
Stillwater were included within the boundaries of the borough. There were four churches within the borough (Anglican, Presbyterian, Methodist, and Roman Catholic), three state schools (in Dobson, Taylorville, and Stillwater), and a private school run by Catholic nuns.
The size of the borough was .
See also
*
List of former territorial authorities in New Zealand
This is a list of former territorial authorities in New Zealand. "Territorial authority" is the generic term used for local government in New Zealand, local government entities in New Zealand. Local government has gone through three principal ph ...
References
{{coord, 42, 25, 57, S, 171, 19, 22, E, region:NZ, display=title
History of the West Coast Region
Boroughs of New Zealand