Hocken Digital Collections

Queenstown Borough Council : Records

Details

Reference NumberARC-0332CreatorQueenstown Borough CouncilDescriptionThe earliest item in the collection is the minute book of the Queenstown Improvement Committee, which preceded the Borough Council. There is a complete set of Borough Council minutes from 1866 to 1969, and also some rough minutes. The collection also includes a large amount of correspondence, rates and valuation records and financial records. There are subject files on a variety of matters, mostly dating from the 1940s onwards. They include papers relating to council staff, elections and electoral rolls, the library, camping ground, electricity and water supplies, roads and transport, licences and land and buildings. There are a number of miscellaneous maps and plans. There are records of the Municipal Brass Band and the Urban Fire Authority, and a few miscellaneous records, including some personal papers of Town Clerk Michael Robertson. Finally, the collection includes photographs, mostly of scenes around the district.
Only a small part of this collection is digitised and available through Digital Collections. Information about other items can be found on the Hākena catalogue, through the Library Catalogues link above.History / BiographyEuropean settlement began at Queenstown in 1860, when William Gilbert Rees made the site of the future town the homestead for his sheep station. In 1862 a gold rush led to the formation of nearby Arrowtown, and later that year a large gold rush at the Shotover River turned Rees's home station into a town. The town was christened 'Queenstown', after that place in County Cork, Ireland, early in 1863. Later that year, after several public meetings, the community elected the Queenstown Improvement Committee, which functioned as 'a vigilance committee and a town council combined' (F.W.G. Miller, Golden Days of Lake County, p.122). In 1866 Queenstown was declared a borough, and the first Borough Council elected. Once the gold rush days were over, the town continued on as a rural service centre. Its stunning environment attracted visitors from around the world, and it is now a major tourism centre. In 1989 local authorities throughout New Zealand were rearranged. The Queenstown Borough Council, Arrow Borough Council and Lake County Council were amalgamated to form the new Queenstown Lakes District Council.

Photograph

'H. Campbell's old Wanaka Station House at Roy's Bay after removing from Albertown'

Plan / drawing

Plan of the Coronation Bathhouse, Queenstown

Depicts Or Relates To

SubjectsLocal government

Digital Collections

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Queenstown Borough Council : Records

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