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Danube Street is below the Home of Compassion on the left side as you enter Island Bay from Berhampore. The street, like many in Island Bay, is named after a river, the Danube.
From early plans of the Department of Lands of Survey of Melrose Ward, dated November 1905, Danube Street was to be situated between Rhine Street and Eden Street (which had been originally an extension of Derwent Street). But if you refer to a recent plan, Rhine Street actually stopped at Seine Street. There are 11 houses numbered ‘5 – 15’. The first occupant in the 1911 Stones Directory, (which listed houses, businesses and their inhabitants), was Graham Angus Mathieson, a motorman, but we are unsure as to what house number he occupied. In the 1913 Stones Directory, there were two people listed in the street: John William Redditt, a hospital attendant, (house number not stated) and, at 11 Danube Street, Dan Coyle, a letter carrier. In the Wellington City Archives, 13 Danube Street is briefly described at this time as “Applicant F J Summerhays, Owner Self; Legal Description Section 18 dated 9 July 1906”.
Danube St from the Home of Compassion
Top of 13 Danube Street garden – John, Annie, Margaret (Peg) & Alice Lawlor
The five-room houses were built under the Workers’ Dwellings Act 1910 at an estimated cost of £400. The sections were small – for example No. 13 is 324 m2.
From the Wellington City Council Building Plan, I note that the water supply was connected in 1907, suburban drainage 1910; and street lighting in 1912. A clay bank was removed in 1914.
There were eight families in the Stone Directory by 1914, being Hobbs No. 5; Loughnane No. 6; McKay No. 7; Henderson No. 8; Linde No. 9; Stothers No. 10; Coyle No. 11 and Hearn No. 14. Mr Stothers received a letter dated 1 June 1914 stating, “that the Council have decided to form a low-level footpath and carry out repairs to the extent of 20 pounds”.
Until recently a number of homes were occupied by the same family for some generations. The first entry for the Pudney family of No. 11 is 1921 and a family member was there until the late 1990’s. Many of the households were Catholic families. There was a very active community. The Holden children were friendly with the Tunley children, who lived at No 5. John O’Connor played cricket with David Nicol, Ray Henderson and Kevin Holden (Kevin and David are still friendly). When I first visited in 1983 Bernice and Gerry Ruston would come over for a drink on special occasions.
Quentin and Annette Tahau who purchased No. 11 Danube Street in July 2002 gave an interesting story to me. “When we moved in, the previous owner left a framed photo of one of the early Wellington rugby rep teams. It was found by another previous owner in the attic without any knowledge of what the photo’s history was. The photo was sent into the Wellington Rugby Football Union and to their delight it was the earliest photo on record of any representative Wellington rugby team. One of the members of the team was an early resident of 11 Danube Street. This was J Pudney in 1892. It also included the captain, Thomas Ellison, the first ever captain of a New Zealand representative rugby team. He is also credited with proposing the famous black jersey with silver fern.”
Below I will concentrate on No. 13, where my husband John’s family lived from about 1921 when Margaret Lawlor (Peg) moved in aged about 18 months. Peg sold the family home about 75 years later.
John Lawlor was born in 1872 in Lixnaw, Ireland and immigrated here in 1874 on the “Cathcart”, which had a mutiny during the voyage. The Lawlor family farmed in the Timaru area. John married Alice McGowan on 12th May 1909. Their first daughter, Annie Catherine, was born on 2 October 1911. They farmed at Green Hill Road, Ma Waro. World War I started in 1914 and by April 1916 John had decided to sell the family farm and volunteer to join the First Battalion of the Canterbury Regiment. John did not state his correct age. He was 44!
Before leaving for Europe in January 1917, John moved his family Alice and Annie to Wellington. John was injured and in 1918 was permanently discharged as being unfit for active service.
Margaret Mary Lawlor (Peg) was born on 14th August 1919, and at this stage the family was living at 3 Smith Street, Kilbirnie. Eighteen months later, John and Alice had purchased 13 Danube Street. Like all the houses in Danube Street, it was a workman’s cottage.
Alice’s father Joseph McGowan and brother Joseph McGowan lived with them at No. 13. Alice’s brother Joseph died on 13th October 1923, he never recovered completely from injuries suffered during WW1. Then on 25 August 1927 Alice’s father Joseph McGowan died. They were both buried from No. 13.
The Home of Compassion was very much part of their lives with different family members helping. Peg mentioned about her father doing a lot of maintenance work. Peg remembered the funeral cortege when Mother Suzanne Aubert died in October 1926.
Margaret (Peg) with Nephews Francis and John Boon on steps to top garden
Ronald "Ron" Holden, Frederick C Holden, Margaret "Peg" Holden (née Lawlor), Annie Boon (née Lawlor), Stella Commerford at 13 Danube Street
As you can see in the photo, Alice enjoyed her grandchildren. She died from cancer on 13th June 1937.
There were many happy family celebrations. Annie married Tom Boon on 23 March 1931 and Peg married Frederick Holden on 20 February 1943. Their wedding breakfast was held in the front room at No 13. Peg and Fred had three children. Kevin John was born in 1944. John Joseph was born in 1954 and Margaret Alice in 1955.
Kevin remembers a horse and cart delivering milk to Danube Street. Fred would have Kevin out in the street straight away to scoop up any horse manure for the garden. He also remembers how the Millman family of 7 Danube Street built a boat, which came out their front window.
On the 5th February 1947 John sold his home at 13 Danube Street to his daughter Peg and her husband Fred for £901.11. (Peg mentioned when she moved in 1995 that it was hard to find a home after WW2). John carried on living with Peg and Fred until his death on 10 May 1949.
Fred loved his vegetable garden, John reminisces: “… he especially liked the peace and quiet. The vegetable garden was so productive that he provided vegetables for the neighbours in Danube Street.”
Peg; Kevin; Fred; Margaret & John Holden
Peg, Margaret & Patrick Holden sell 13 Danube Street after 75 years. Photo via Penelope Holden 1995©
Of the present residents, the Easts and the Ruston’s are the longest there. Gerry and Bernice Ruston purchased 15 Danube Street in December 1971. The asking price was $15,000 but they paid $13,000 cash. In January 1972 they moved in. Their three sons attended the Home of Compassion school for their first year and then St Madeleine Sophie’s in Avon Street. (The HOC School was across the road on the bottom field – so very handy. Their first teachers were – Sister Raymond – Simon; Sister Kieran – Paul and Natalie Brockie – Sister Matthew.
This historical snapshot of Danube Street, Island Bay, captures in many ways the nature of life and families for a 100-year period. It shows what it was like to live during these times, how families spent their time and how people contributed to society. It could apply to any street in the Wellington South area.
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