Thursday, November 27, 2008

Who's Graham?



This is Graham Reserve, a patch of corner green between St Jude's and Donegal Streets. I have no idea who the person named Graham is or was, and why the reserve was named in this way.

Now, folks could say "Who cares?" It isn't really much of an issue, just a heritage one: back in the 1930s, the City Council renamed Palmer Street to Donegal Street because of a eastern suburbs street also named Palmer. Fair enough -- but this was still James Palmer's land, and across from this reserve is the acreage Palmer generously donated to the Anglican Church in the 1870s.

Naming this patch "James Palmer Reserve" would be nice. A campaign project for the future, perhaps.

Update 19 June 2009: Seems this patch of land is a road reserve, dating from the 1926 McLiver subdivision. Auckland City Council tell me (via their call centre) that the reserve has no name, that it's just part of the streetscape. They had no knowledge of the sign -- which, as at today, has gone, making way for a metal track put through for the construction vehicles working on the rail double-tracking. The seat's still there, though.

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