A list of key events in Mt Albert’s history, with references and links to stories.
This timeline will continue to grow and develop over time.
Jump to:
Pre-1841 1840s 1850s 1860s 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s
1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s
PRE-1841
c12-13th century: Wairaka establishes her pa on the slopes of the mountain now bearing her name READ MORE
1720: Waiohoua (of Tainui descent) had Pa in this area, probably including Owairaka READ MORE
1741: The latest permanent Māori occupation of Ōwairaka: Ngati Whatua overtook the area READ MORE
1820: Samuel Marsden climbs Owairaka, escorted by Apihai Kawau (Scott, p.16)
1820s: Ngati Paoa and Ngati Whatua abandon the area under atack from Nga Puhi READ MORE
1835: Thomas Mitchell buys most of Auckland, including Mt Albert from Apihau Kawau (Scott, p.16).
1840s
1841: George Clarke bought 13,000 acres from the Ngatiwhatua which included Owairaka on behalf of the crown for 200 pounds, 4 horses, 30 blankets, 10 cloaks, 1 tent and a sealing box (Alberton and its family). Deed of Sale (Scott, p.17)
1842: 13 small farms offering in Mt Eden/Mt Albert – only one sold
1844: Speculator Thomas Henry buys land on the north-eastern slopes
1845: Robert Hunt buys 24ha at Ferndale
1845: The first quarrying of the mountain occurs READ MORE
1846: Glenmore Lodge built 289 New North Road Kingsland. Thomas Cassidy bought 55 acres in 1844 (Scrapbook McGehan Collection – Mt Albert Library)
1849: Newly arrived Allan Kerr Taylor bought 500 acres at Mt Albert READ MORE
1850s
1852: Glenmore Lodge bought by Auckland Chief jailer George McElwain (Scrapbook McGehan Collection – Mt Albert Library)
1853: First Electoral Roll prepared for the Auckland. Provincial Council – Mt Albert population 200 (Scott, p.21)
1853: First Church built. Wesleyan Scott, p.21)
1853: St Lukes Anglican Church consecrated by Bishop Cowie (scrapbook p46 McGehan Collection – Mt Albert Library)
1853: Cabbage Tree Swamp School opened by Presbytarian Church (Scott, p.43).
1855: James Gribble purchased land both sides of Sandringham Road for his 100 acre farm
1860s
1860: Name of Sandringham changed from Cabbage Tree Swamp to Edendale (and later, in 1887) to Kingsland
1861: Edward Allen buys 99 acres of land to build Allendale (Scott, p.27).
1862: Edward Allen begins to build Allendale READ MORE
1862: First school in Mt Albert, Cabbage Tree Swamp School, established in Whau Rd (Asquith Ave) READ MORE
1863: Allan Kerr Taylor starts building Alberton READ MORE
1864: Martha Kerr Taylor (Allan Kerr Taylor’s first wife) died 20th February READ MORE
1865: Tonson and Jane Garlick’s home Fern Villa was built. It would be renamed Ferndale in 1879 READ MORE
1865: Alan Kerr Taylor’s estate known as Morningside sold – 30 acres, divided into 120 lots READ MORE
1865: Allan Kerr Taylor married Sophia Davis READ MORE
1866: Local settlers meet in Edward Allen’s home Allendale to set up the Mt Albert Highway Board. The meeting was held in September, and the Board was established in October. READ MORE
1866: New Mt Albert Methodist Church erected READ MORE
1867: Local Government began at 5pm Tuesday January 8th. Thirteen settlers met in the Whau Road school room to strike the first rate and elect the first board of trustees (Scott, p.27).
1868: Mt Albert Methodist Sunday School was established READ MORE
1870s
1870: Mt Albert School opened in Whau Rd then moved to School Rd. Alexander French was master READ MORE
1870: Gravel pit opened on north west side of the mountain bu the Mt Albert Road Board READ MORE
1870: Mt Albert Mutual Improvement Society formed
1872: St Lukes Anglican Church built and dedicated READ MORE
1874: St Lukes Vicarage built
1874: George Bray and Walton Pell killed in an accident in the Mt Albert quarry READ MORE
1878: Ballast Line being constructed READ MORE
1879: Tonson and Jane Garlick’s house Fern Villa was renamed Ferndale
1880s
1880: Auckland to Helensville Railway opens. Mt Albert Station is established READ MORE
1880: Original Mt Albert School removed and replaced by a larger two roomed building READ MORE
1881: Tonson and Jane Garlick’s house Ferndale was substantially extended READ MORE
1882: William Winstone purchased a large block of land from Edward Allen READ MORE
1882: Foundation stone of new Mt Albert Methodist Church laid READ MORE
1882: Roganville Estate subdivision READ MORE
1883: Construction work done on Whau Rd (now Asquith Ave) READ MORE
1886: James Gribble dies in his Aroha Street home
1887: Gladstone Road Primary opened (known initially as Pt Chevalier School) (Scott, p.77)
1887: Cabbage Tree Swamp name changed to Kingsland.
1888: Toll gate on New North Road and what is now Sandringham Road, removed
1889: George Fowlds built his house Greystone Knowe in New North Rd READ MORE
1890s
1890: Sudden death of Allan Kerr Taylor READ MORE
1892: Edward Allen dies (Index Auckland)
1893: Women could vote for the first time. There was a strong Mt Albert suffrage movement READ MORE
1894: Mt Albert Lawn Tennis Club established at Ferndale READ MORE
1897: Kingsland Methodist Church officially opened (Index Auckland)
1897: Mt Albert Bowling Club established at Ferndale READ MORE
1897: Bridgens & Company shoe manufacturers in Kingsland begin operating (one of Auckland’s oldest shoe manufacturers) (Index Auckland)
1900s
1900: Andrew Caughey adds two storeys to his home, Rahiri, in McLean St READ MORE
1900: Mt Albert Industrial School was established READ MORE
1901: Mary Ann Gribble dies
1901: Mt Albert Road Board office erected in Morningside READ MORE
1902: The first Coronation Oak was planted to commemorate Edward VII READ MORE
1903: Eden District Cricket Club formed (Index Auckland)
1903: Auckland Savings Bank gives Ratepayers Board sixteen thousand pounds at 4 and half percent for its water scheme
1903: Tram service between city and Page’s Store, Kingsland started. Horse-drawn busses took travellers further
1903: On 24 December 1903 three are killed and several injured in a tram accident at Kingsland READ MORE
1905: Mt Albert Domain created.
1906: Volunteer fire brigade established (Scott, p.59)
1908: Mt Albert Bowling Club moved to Allendale Rd READ MORE
1908: Mt Albert Station was destroyed by fire READ MORE
1909: Mt Albert Station signal box built READ MORE
1909: Edendale School opened (Edendale School Golden Jubilee Brochure, McGehan Collection Mt Albert Library)
1909: Penman House, on the corner of Woodward Rd and Carrington Rd, was built
1910s
1910: Eden Park begins as a sports ground
1910: The second Coronation Oak was planted to commemorate George V READ MORE
1910: Connons Bakery opened (Index Auckland)
1911: Mt Albert Road Board became Mt Albert Borough Council READ MORE
1911: Michael John Coyle elected Mayor (1911-1914) READ MORE
1911: Mt Albert Council opened a pumphouse to supply water from near Oakley Creek READ MORE
1911: Wagons derailed on Ballast Line READ MORE
1912-1913: Mr Richard Collins opened a shop that closed about 1968 (Index Auckland)
1912: Tramline extended from Page’s Store Kingsland to Morningside rail crossing READ MORE
1912: King George’s Hall opened in Mt Albert READ MORE
1912: Greenlee, 103 Richardson Rd, was built by A.H. White
1913: Mt Albert Children’s Home and Orphanage (later Wesley Home) established READ MORE
1913: Morningside railway bridge opened READ MORE
1913: Tramline extended to Mt Albert Terminus
1913: Mt Albert Croquet Club established in Allendale Rd READ MORE
1914: Murdoch McLean elected Mayor (1914-1917) READ MORE
1914: Eden Park becomes official home of Auckland cricket
1914: Eden Park is divided into two ovals
1914: Rugby Union leases Eden Park
1915: Tramline from Auckland extended from Morningside to Mt Albert shops (“The Terminus”) READ MORE
1915: Mt Albert Baptist Church established READ MORE
1916: Springleigh Farm is subdivided around Phyllis St READ MORE
1917: Thomas Clay elected Mayor (1917-1921) READ MORE
1917-18: Mt Albert Borough Council sent condolence notices to families of men killed in WWI READ MORE
1918: Influenza epidemic impacts Mt Albert READ MORE
1919: The Mt Albert Gymnasium Club was formed, meeting at Presbyterian Church READ MORE
1920s
1921: Population of Mt Albert 11,345
1921: The Theatre Royal, Kingsland, built (Index Auckland)
1921: Alfred Ferdinand Bennett elected Mayor (1921-1923) READ MORE
1921: Sections in the Prince of Wales Estate go on sale. READ MORE
1921: First international rugby game between NZ and South Africa
1921: Mt Albert Lawn Tennis Club opened new courts at Mt Albert Terminus, leasing the land READ MORE
1921: The dreadful state of Mt Abert’s rubbish tip made national headlines READ MORE
1922: Typhoid Epidemic strikes the district READ MORE
1922: Methodist Church purchases Hilfont for an orphanage. Renames it Epworth Home READ MORE
1922: Kowhai Intermediate School opens, the first junior high school in the country
1922: Mt Albert Grammar School opens
1922: The Mt Albert Gymnasium Club moved to King George Hall READ MORE
1922: Sadgrove’s Hillside Estate was auctioned in July
1922: Mt Albert Presbyterian Church is relocated by steamroller along Mt Albert Rd
1923: Leonard Edgar Rhodes elected Mayor (1923-1931) READ MORE
1923: Andrew and Lucy Caughey donated their house Rahiri to the Plunket Society for a Karitane Hospital. Renamed Caughey House READ MORE
1923: R & W Hellaby open their butcher shop on the corner of New North Rd and Mt Albert Rd
1923: Everetts Pharmacy established (Index Auckland)
1923: The Kosie Theatre opened in Mt Albert. Most shops were built and opened 1923-24 READ MORE
1925: L.E.Rhodes elected Mayor for second term (Scrapbook McGehan Collection. Mt Albert Library)
1925: Mt Albert Council rejected the idea of amalgamating with Auckland READ MORE
1925: Mt Albert Croquet Club moved to Lloyd Ave behind Ferndale READ MORE
1925: The Mt Albert Gymnasium Club started a Girls’ Club READ MORE
1925: Rugby Union officially makes Eden Park its home
1926: Brixton Road school opened (Edendale School Jubilee Brochure, McGehan Collection, Mt Albert Library)
1926: Population of Mt Albert 17,000 (Scott, p.74)
1926-27: The first block of shops at Martin Ave constructed READ MORE
1927: Mt Albert Grammar’s School House opens, in former Mt Albert Industrial School READ MORE
1927: Marist Sisters Primary School opens
1927: Mt Albert Borough Council chambers open READ MORE
1927: Extensive re-numbering of street addresses undertaken by Mt Albert Borough Council READ MORE
1927: Tennis courts at 36 Margaret Ave opened READ MORE
1928: Marist Sisters High School opens.
1928: The Kosie Theatre in Mt Albert was renamed the De Luxe Theatre READ MORE
1928: Quarrying on Mount Albert ended READ MORE
1929: Owairaka Primary School opened
1929: Ballast Line removed from across New North Rd at Mt Albert shops.
1929: Sandringham was given its name. Previously it was called Edendale and Cabbage Tree Swamp (Scott)
1929: Mayfair Theatre opened (Index Auckland)
1930s
1930: Population reaches 20,000 (Scott, p.74)
1930: The Mt Albert Post Office opens beside King George’s Hall READ MORE
1930: Richardson Road School opened (Edendale School Jubilee Brochure McGehan Collection, Mt Albert Library)
1930: Gribble and Hirst families donate land to Mt Albert Borough Council for a recreational park – Gribblehirst Park
1930: 400 Mt Albert ratepayers summonsed for failure to pay their rates.
1930: Government refuses Mt Albert a loan of 5000 pounds to provide relief for the district’s unemployed.
1931: Wilfred Foswell Stilwell elected Mayor (1931-1933) READ MORE
1932: Tramline extended from Mt Albert Terminus to Avondale READ MORE
1932: Kingsland Gully was renamed Glen Osborne. A proposal to change Kingsland to Beverley Hills was rejected in 1932 (Scott)
1933: Raymond Ferner elected Mayor (1933-1936) READ MORE
1933: Mt Albert Lawn Tennis Club purchases their land Mt Albert Terminus READ MORE
1936: Henry Albert (Harry or Andy) Anderson elected Mayor (1936-1959) READ MORE
1937: Government purchased empty sections Auckland-wide to build state houses READ MORE
1937: The third Coronation Oak was planted to commemorate George VI READ MORE
1936: Tramline reaches Owairaka
1938: Street re-naming programme begins
1938: Mt Albert School held a 68th anniversary reunion READ MORE
1938: Eleven state houses finished in Mt Albert
1939: Government’s Plant Diseases Division opens next to Alberton
1940s
1940: Mt Albert School relocates from School Rd to Sainsbury Rd READ MORE
1940: Hayes Lloyd became Pastor at Mt Albert Baptist Church READ MORE
1941: Home Guard for Mt Albert Sixth Battalion established READ MORE
1942: An anti-aircraft battery (ack-ack) was installed in Chamberlain Park READ MORE
1943: Mt Albert Kindergarten opens in St Margaret’s Church Schoolroom, McLean St READ MORE
1943: St Lukes Church takes over tennis courts at 36 Margaret Ave READ MORE
1944: Mt Albert sub-branch of the Plunket Society was formed READ MORE
1944: Methodist Church closes orphanage at Epworth Home READ MORE
1945: Architect Basil Hooper remodelled St Luke’s Church in Mt Albert READ MORE
1946: Arthur Richards becomes the first MP for the new seat of Mt Albert
1946: Owairaka Primary School Hall is built READ MORE
1946: Mt Albert Electorate established READ MORE
1947: Council buys Ferndale and renovates it
1947-49: Reservoir is built on Mount Albert
1947: Warren Freer (Labour) becomes MP for Mt Albert in a by-election
1947-48: November to April polio epidemic closes schools READ MORE
1948: Mt Albert Plunket and Mt Albert Kindergarten share Ferndale House READ MORE
1949: Owairaka Primary School Primers Block is built READ MORE
1950s
1950: Empire Games held at Eden Park in February
1951: Wesley Primary School opened (Edendale School Jubilee Brochure, McGehan Collection, Mt Albert Library)
1951: First St Luke’s Rover Scouts Den in Linwood Ave opened READ MORE
1953: 11 September – last Auckland tram runs through Mt Albert
1953: Baldwin Ave railway station opened
1953: Eden Park Trust Board formed (Index Auckland)
1953: New Mt Albert Baptist Church erected READ MORE
1953: Mountain Green Archery Club moved its base from Mt Roskill to Owairaka READ MORE
1955: Methodist Church closes orphanage at Wesley Home READ MORE
1956: Trams were replaced by trolly busses
1957: Mt Albert’s mayoral chain and robes were created READ MORE
1957: David Martin became Minister of Mt Albert Presbyterian Church READ MORE
1957: Mountain Green Archery Club clubhouse burned down and was rebuilt READ MORE
1958: Mildred Amy Kerr Taylor dies, 24 March (Scrapbook McGehan Collection, Mt Albert Library)
1958: The Catholic Church’s St Mary’s Church built.
1958: The second block of shops at Martin Ave were built READ MORE
1959: Edendale School celebrates Golden Jubilee (McGehan Collection, Mt Albert Library)
1959: Francis (Frank) Turner elected Mayor (1959-1968) READ MORE
1960s
1960: Mt Albert Borough Golden Jubilee
1961: Dick Scott’s book In old Mt Albert is published to mark the Borough’s Jubilee READ MORE
1961: Allendale Girls’ Home was established. It closed in 1988 READ MORE
1963: Mt Albert War Memorial Hall opened
1963: Owairaka School is damaged by a deliberately lit fire. READ MORE
1964: Four Square supermarket opened in Mt Albert Shops. Cheeseman Building erected beside it READ MORE
1964: Replacement buildings at Owairaka Primary School opened READ MORE
1964: Auckland reached half a million population. Mt Albert had a float in the Half Million Parade. READ MORE
1965: Mt Albert Baptist Church opens
1965: Frank Turner Stadium opened READ MORE
1965: The Mt Albert Gymnasium Club moved to Frank Turner Stadium READ MORE
1966: Sandringham Star ceases publication (Index Auckland)
1966: De Luxe Cinema in Mt Albert modernised READ MORE
1966: Railway line through Mt Albert was double-tracked READ MORE
1968: Francis (Frank) Ryan elected Mayor (1968-1989) READ MORE
1968: Black Hall Sandringham damaged by fire (Index Auckland)
1968-69: King George’s Hall in Mt Albert demolished READ MORE
1969: Mt Albert Grammar’s new School House opened READ MORE
1970s
1970: Miss Muriel Kerr-Taylor donates money to St. Luke’s Anglican Church towards a housing settlement for senior citizens, to be named after her parents (Index Auckland)
1970: Alberton House willed to the New Zealand Historic Places Trust by Miss Muriel Kerr-Taylor READ MORE
1971: St Lukes mall opened by Prime Minister Sir Keith Holyoake
1972: Mt Albert Grammar’s former School House in Burch St is demolished READ MORE
1973: A seven-storey concrete slab building erected next to Alberton for the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research
1974: Mt Albert Fire Station closed, and services were relocated to Balmoral Station READ MORE
1975: Mt Albert library opens. It was named after former Mayoress Clarice Anderson READ MORE
1975: New Post Office opened Mt Albert Shops on corner of Carrington Rd READ MORE
1978: Mt Albert Borough is granted City status on 22 August
1979: Mt Albert Council Building in Morningside renovated and major extension built behind READ MORE
1979: Edendale School officially opened after nearly 2 years of re-building (Information File, Mt Albert Library)
1979: The ARA started work on St Lukes Rd extension, linking New North Rd and Great North Rd READ MORE
1979: Hebron Christian College purchased Caughey House READ MORE
1979: Owairaka School celebrated its Golden Jubilee
1980s
1981: Mt Albert streets at the centre of Springbok tour protests
1981: Helen Clark elected MP for Mt Albert
1983: An enlarged edition of Dick Scott’s book In old Mt Albert is published READ MORE
1983: St Lukes Rd extension, linking New North Rd and Great North Rd, opened READ MORE
1984: Mt Albert Kindergarten moved to new space in Alexis Ave. Name now Ferndale Kindergarten READ MORE
1984: Restoration work done on Ferndale House READ MORE
1985: De Luxe Cinema in Mt Albert closed READ MORE
1988: Mt Albert Plunket moved to new space in Alexis Ave READ MORE
1961: Allendale Girls’ Home closed READ MORE
1989: Mt Albert City amalgamates with Auckland City in October
1990s
1992: Traffic service becomes part of the Police, not Council operations
1993: Women’s Suffrage centenary celebrated in Mt Albert READ MORE
1993: Mt Albert Ladies’ Rebus Club planted a white camelia in Alice Wylie Reserve READ MORE
1995: The old Spragg house, Turanga, is moved from 1008 New North Rd to Bombay READ MORE
1995: Christine Hellyar’s sculpture Owairaka was erected in Alice Wylie Reserve READ MORE
1997: Bridgens Shoe factory closes (Index Auckland)
1997: Tip Top Bakery burns down (Index Auckland)
1997: Kowhai Intermediate celebrates 75th anniversary
1997: Part of Allan Kerr-Taylor’s 4,000 hectare estate from 1867 is now for sale (Index Auckland)
1998: Bridgens Shoe factory one of Kingsland’s oldest buildings almost destroyed (Index Auckland)
1998: Shell of Stormonts Bakery sold for more than 2 million dollars to Dough Investments Ltd (Index Auckland)
1998: Kura Kaupapa School opens in Haverstock Road Sandringham
1998: Wesley Community Centre destroyed by fire (Index Auckland)
1998: Mt Albert Aquatic Centre opened next door to Mt Albert Grammar School READ MORE
1998: Warnock Watson, headmaster of Edendale School for 20 years dies aged 97 (Index Auckland)
1999: Helen Clark, Mt Albert MP (Labour), became Prime Minister. She served until 2008 READ MORE
2000s
2000: Mt Albert Grammar School opens its classes to girls
2001: Mt Albert U3A was formed READ MORE
2001: Athletics legend Peter Snell honoured as Old Boy of the Year and inducted into the Hall of Distinction by Mount Albert Grammar (Index Auckland)
2006: Mt Albert Historical Society was formed READ MORE
2008: Marist College celebrated its 80th anniversary READ MORE
2008: Ferndale Kindergarten celebrated its 65th anniversary READ MORE
2008: Melissa Lee, List MP (National) based in Mt Albert, enters Parliament READ MORE
2009: Helen Clark resigns as MP for Mt Albert after the Labour Government she led for nine years lost power in the 2008 general election
2009: David Shearer elected MP for Mt Albert
2010s
2010: The Auckland super-city amalgamation takes place READ MORE
2012: Alice Wylie Reserve was reopened after several months refurbishment READ MORE
2012: Mt Albert Grammar School celebrated its 90th anniversary READ MORE
2013: Mt Albert Presbyterian Church celebrated their 100th anniversary READ MORE
2013: Mt Albert Croquet Club celebrated their 100th anniversary READ MORE
2015: Mt Albert Baptist Church celebrated its 100 year Centennial READ MORE
2016: Deborah Dunsford’s book Mt Albert Then and Now, published by MAHS, was launched on 6 September READ MORE
2017: Jacinda Ardern (Labour) elected MP for Mt Albert after David Shearer (Labour) resigns to take up a senior post with the United Nations
2017: Jacinda Ardern, Mt Albert MP, became Prime Minister. She served until 2023 READ MORE
2017: Work starts on the $5m upgrade to Mt Albert shopping area
2019: The Tupuna Maunga Authority announced its plan to fell 345 exotic trees from Mount Albert READ MORE
2019: Honour the Maunga group formed to protest the felling of trees READ MORE
2020s
2020: The ‘Marist Cluster’ of Covid19 cases focused national attention on Mt Albert in May-June READ MORE
2020: Mt Albert Primary School celebrated its 150th anniversary READ MORE
2022: Christine Hellyar’s sculpture Owairaka was vandalised in Alice Wylie Reserve READ MORE
2022: Restoration work done on Ferndale House READ MORE
2022: Kowhai Intermediate School celebrated its 100th anniversary READ MORE
2022: Mt Albert Grammar School celebrated its 100th anniversary READ MORE
2022: ASB Bank gifted the ASB MAGS Farm to the MAGS Foundation READ MORE
2023: Ferndale Kindergarten celebrated its 80th anniversary READ MORE
2023: Helen White (Labour) elected as MP for Mt Albert
2024: Christine Hellyar’s sculpture Owairaka was re-cast and erected in Alice Wylie Reserve READ MORE
SOURCES
This timeline took as its starting point Mt Abert Local History Timeline by David Verran from Auckland Council Libraries, incorporating the additional items added by Bruce Morris on the Mt Albert Inc website. We thank David and Bruce for permission to use their work.
It had been expanded by gathering facts from the backfile of Mt Albert Historical Society Newsletters (2006- ).