Ever wonder how a simple stream got its name? Foley Stream’s story is intertwined with the Foley family. Let’s dive in.
Foley Stream trickles its way through the landscape. It’s a small tributary feeding into the Kakamatua Stream. But it carries a history bigger than its size. The Land Information New Zealand knows it well. They recorded its coordinates. Foley Stream sits at -36.976829 latitude and 174.596564 longitude. Its origin lies beneath the Parau Track.
The Foley family’s story begins far away. Edmund Foley and his wife Winifred O’Shanassy hailed from County Tipperary in Ireland. In 1837 they boarded the Andromache. They sought a new life in Sydney, New South Wales.
Edmund first set foot in New Zealand in 1839. Later, he returned with his family. Their destination was Cornwallis. This was a planned settlement on the Manukau Harbour in Auckland. The grand plan for 3,000 acres never materialized. Settlers moved on. But Edmund managed the Bird in Hand. This was Cornwallis’s licensed hotel.
By 1843, the Foleys relocated to Auckland. Edmund became a butcher. By 1849, he ran Foley’s Flagstaff Hotel in Ōtāhuhu. He then became the publican of the Sir George Grey also in Ōtāhuhu by 1851. From 1859 to 1861, Edmund served on the Auckland Provincial Council. During the Waikato Land Wars he had commissariat contracts for the troops. It was even said that he was at the Battle of Gate Pa in Tauranga in 1864.
Edmund’s sons, James and Denis, became storekeepers at Maketū in 1864. Some say they managed the military canteen. The Foleys’ time in Maketū is uncertain. They possibly sold their business to Emile Joseph Borel, a Te Puna Frenchman around 1866.
In May 1866, Edmund Foley sought a hotel license for Te Papa. However, the Bench did not accept Foley’s application.
Later, Foley and Harley started running boats twice a week from Te Papa to Bowentown. Here they kept saddle horses for travellers on the overland route. James operated the Green Harp Hotel in Katikati.
James Foley was a pioneer Katikati settler. He sold his property to W A Clarke in 1875. James returned to Auckland. Sadly, he died in a train accident in 1878.
Denis Foley operated the first hotel at Maketū called the Travellers Rest. In 1870 Edmund Foley took over the hotel. Denis married Jane Russell also known as Heni Te Kiri Karamu in 1869. In 1870, Denis and Jane moved to a farm at Rereatukahia, Katikati. Denis died by drowning in 1900.
So next time you pass Foley Stream remember Edmund Foley and his family. Their entrepreneurial spirit echoes through time. The stream carries their name. It’s a reminder of their contributions to this land.