On 30 April 1895 a petition by 54 Swanson residents (see appendix in Rugged Determination p.165) was presented to the Commissioner of Crown Lands for five acres to be set aside for a cemetery. The land, gazetted in 1896, was situated a short way up what is now known as O’Neills Road. Trustees were appointed in 1897: John Moul, Edwin Read more...
The garage and house behind were built by Doug G Mattson in 1947 with the business called Mattson’s Garage. In the late 1950s Mr Linton took over the garage and house until 1962 when the property was split into two titles. The garage, renamed Swanson Motors, was bought by Clevan Holdings Ltd. During that time it was leased by Bill Read more...
Swanson residents bought land after a statutory meeting on 11 December 1926 by raising money through selling shares in Swanson Hall Ltd. The total cost of land, building and preliminary expenses for the hall was £377 and the hall was completed by 23 May 1929. In 1945 the hall was taken over by the RNZAF for training and recreation purposes. Read more...
In 1926, 16 year old Milan Babic Yozin came to New Zealand from the coastal village of Padgora in Dalmatia, a poverty-stricken area. An uncle with an orchard at Oratia paid his passage over; Milan worked for two years to repay him. After this he went to work on a dairy farm in the Waikato, preferring to find work with Read more...
Started in 1948, the art-deco style house at 710 Swanson Road is a single storey square form building finished with cement render. A square bay is utilised at the front with a centred entrance and vertical and horizontal bands deco the walls. The concrete blocks are hand-made. Read more...