NAME:
The upper part of Alberton Ave was known as Rob Roy St until the 1920s, when the whole road was renamed.
Allan Kerr Taylor owned 1000 acres of land in Mt Albert. Alberton was the name of his farm, and of the house on it. The lower part of Alberton Ave from New North Rd to the corner at School House, follows the line of the original driveway between New North Rd and Alberton House, known as The Avenue.
“This avenue follows only part of the route taken by the original three quarter mile drive called The Avenue by the Kerr-Taylor family which led up to their home Alberton. The rest of the drive ran through what is now the grounds of Mt Albert Grammar School. Alberton Ave was formerly shown on maps as Rob Roy Road, after the famous rebel Scotsman (1671- 1734), a member of the MacGregor Clan. Between 1603 – 1661 an Act was in force in Scotland prohibiting use of the name MacGregor because of some of Rob Roy’s activities. Some MacGregors then took the name Taylor. It is not yet known exactly why and when the name of this street was changed to Alberton Avenue. It appears on a 1933 map but it may have been done when the first house there was moved into by a Mr and Mrs V. Williamson in 1923 or when Mt Albert Grammar School was opened in 1922.” [MAHS, 2010, p.7].
There was an immigrant ship called the Rob Roy, of the Shaw Saville Company, which made three voyages between London and Auckland (1860, 1865 and 1866) [Brett, p. 126]. It is possible that this ship influenced the name of the street.
DESCRIPTION:
Alberton Ave runs between New North Rd and Mt Albert Rd.
Taylors Rd, Alexis Ave, Willis St and Lloyd Ave run off it.
On the western side run numbers 1 to 109. On the eastern side run numbers 2 to 80.
FACTS ABOUT THIS STREET:
1922, 25 March. The house on the corner of Lloyd Ave was being built. (Auckland Star p.9)
SOURCES FOR THIS PAGE:
Brett, Henry. (1924). White Wings. Auckland: Brett Printing Company Limited.
MAHS. (2010, April). Our streets. Mt Albert Historical Society Newsletter, 12, p.7.