The McLarens of Motatapu
The Motatapu Valley is well known these days as part of the location of the demanding 49km 3 to 4 day tramping track and for the annual Motatapu Trail Marathon.
Originally, Motatapu Station was at the backend of the very large Glencoe Run until it was split up and was an important track for access to Arrowtown/Queenstown from Wānaka for the early gold miners. Gold was also extracted from the river in the early days before the miners sought more productive fields.
But two brothers, Hugh and Archibald (known as Archie) McLaren, decided that there maybe still some gold left in the valley.
Information about them is rather sparse, a comment made by others who lived in the Motatapu area as well. There are no official record of their birth but an associated Family Tree indicates Archie was born about 1867 in Pelorus Sound, Marlborough. Nothing is known of their early life and the Electoral Rolls start mentioning them in 1890 as miners. One source stated they had been in Arrowtown before 1890 but that cannot be confirmed. Hugh’s residence in 1890 was Albertown (how it was spelt in those days) and Archie’s location is unreadable. In 1893 both are definitely living in Albert Town and by 1899 were living in Pembroke (Wānaka). But a new face had appeared – Colin McLaren who initially was working as a labourer at Matukituki (milling timber). In the 1902 Electoral Roll, all three brothers gave their residence as Matatapa(sic).
Gold had been discovered in the Motatapu Valley early on (1860s?) so it should perhaps be of no surprise that Hugh, Archie and Colin should try their hand up the valley.
Winter in the Motatapu! The McLaren’s house in the background and possible Hugh’s hut in the foreground. Maybe c1900-1915.
In July 1912, Archie and Hugh individually applied to the Otago Land Board to lease 100 acres each. They must have already been located in the Valley as their occupation and address was given as “Miner, Motutapu”.[1] They would have supplied a map of the area where they wished to lease and the hearing was set down for 11 September 1912.
However, the proceedings appeared to be very slow as the next report in the newspapers was dated 19 January 1914. At meeting, the land “marked off” cannot be granted, but the board will grant 100 acres adjoining north boundary of run, subject to survey regulations; rent to be considered after survey.” Hugh, likewise had his application approved.
Maybe coincidence, but maybe Archie visited Dunedin to support the applications and met a Margaret Russell aged 48. They married in April 1914 and they returned to Motatapu.
Colin appears in the 1919 Electoral Roll that shows him as being a station hand with residence at Pembroke. He died on 10 Aug 1937 aged 78 and is buried in an unmarked grave in the Wānaka Cemetery.
The house where Archie McLaren lived with his wife Margaret and the footbridge Archie and Hugh built over the Motatapu River. The photo is dated 1916.
But their story is best told by a neighbour, even if he was just a young boy at the time of the events – Arthur Scaife of Glendhu.
“In my boyhood days[2] they owned about 300 acres of the terraces across the river from the gorge. They grazed a small flock of sheep and milk cows.
Archie and his wife lived in a house close to the river while a few hundred yards away lived Hughy in an old tin hut. Most of their time was spent gold mining in the river bed and surroundings in search of the gold which the Chinese and other miners left behind many years before. Nobody knows what their success rate was but obviously they made more profit than from the few stock on the farm.
From the time the Wanaka Bowling Club opened about 1926 the brothers became very keen and would drive past Glendhu every summer Saturday in horse and gig, immaculately attired. With white trousers and well trimmed beards, they were scarcely recognisable from the tough looking old codgers whom one saw from time to time across the river. Except for bowls day they tended to live an almost hermit type of life and the “beardy boys” as they were known actually didn’t trouble to seek out people to chat with.
I only recall seeing Mrs Archie McLaren once or twice on trips across the river but according to my parents and others who were acquainted with the rather strange behaviour of the family, not many other people saw her either. I understand she was never taken off the property.”
Editors note: Mrs McLaren was taken to Cromwell in 1924 seriously ill and she died aged 58 on 1 September 1924. She is buried in the Cromwell Cemetery.
Archie McLaren. The only known confirmed photograph of any of the brothers.
Returning to Arthur’s writings – “About the same time the brothers bought a 3 seater car with a folding hood and their trips to bowls from hence forth was even more impressive. The old gig horse was probably the greatest beneficiary as it was, after all, a 30 mile return journey.
There was in fact a third brother, Colin, who was really a recluse and lived in the bush about opposite the present Mt Aspiring homestead. He was seldom seen other than on the days when stores were to be picked up or posts floated down the river. Cutting posts from the bush seemed to be his full time occupation.
Returning to the Motatapu McLarens, it is interesting and perhaps a little sad that only one feature remains that still bears their name. That is the face of End Peak immediately behind the present Mt Aspiring Homestead. Still known as Mclaren’s Face. Before the road was formed and the bridge was built over the gorge into Motatapu Station, the gorge it self was known as “’McLarens’, there was of course Mclaren’s Farm and until a major flood took it away there was a footbridge just in front of the old home and known as McLaren’s Bridge.”
Editor’s Note: Thanks to Sally Mackay, Arthur’s daughter, and a previous owner of Motatapu Station along with her husband Don, for allowing us to copy the excerpt from Arthurs’ book “From the Cradle to the Mountains”, published 1991.
In the 1919 Electoral Roll, Hugh is recorded as being a farmer at Glendhu. Archie is till at Motatapu as a miner and later both are described as being at Glendhu. In 1926 they asked the Council for “…a day’s grading of their road” which was approved.[3] However, the next reference to the brothers is in The Lake Wakatip Mail on 14 August 1928. They objected to the Otago Land Board to the transfer of Glencoe Run from Dickson Jardine to William Aitken on the ground that a former holder (George S Edie) in March 1921, had granted them the right to use a certain piece of land on the run until 1932. It was resolved that no action be taken. To clarify, Glencoe Run, in simple terms, originally stretched from the Crown Terrace between Arrowtown and the Crown Range Road and on the other side of the mountains to the Motatapu Valley.
Thought that it maybe a photograph of one of the McLaren brothers on the road from Glendhu
In 1935, given that they still seem to team together, Hugh and Archie appear in the Timaru Electorate at Luxmore Rd as farmers. However, they are getting on in age for this period of time and Luxmore Road is a residential road right in the middle of Timaru itself. Maybe they were reaching retirement?
But they were not there long it would appear, as they next appear to be in Nelson. They were at separate addresses, Hugh living with other people with the McLaren surname and Archie at another address. There were a number of McLarens living in Nelson at the time and one wonders if they were all related, hence, Archie and Hugh’s shift to that location.
Hugh passed away on 14 May 1938 aged 73 and Archie passed away on 5 January 1942 aged 75. They are both interred in the same grave at the historic cemetery named Wakapuaka on the outskirts of in Nelson – together to the end!
[1] Advertisements Column, Cromwell Argus, 12 August 1912, p4
[2] Arthur Scaife was born in 1919
[3] Lake County Council, Lake Wakatip Mail, 1 Jun 1926, p3; The road starts at Glendhu Bay
