Letters from George B. Parker: Folder 5 (Christchurch, Westport, Timaru, Dunedin, Melbourne and Sydney, Irawaddy, Parthia, San Francisco, Australia, Canterbury, Marseilles, Mentone, Melton Mowbray, New York. (116p.), 1874-01-09 - [1896?]-06-08

Component identifier:

Item Folder 5

Content Summary:

Subjects include:

Plans to return home, 'the hope [of returning to England] deferred makes good colonists'; Sir James Fergusson 'a capital Governor'; cruise on west coast; Milford Sound; floods in Christchurch; his involvement in Legislative Assembly and Provincial Council; Harry's affairs; farming; planning new house; trip to Queenstown 'well worth seeing'; American expedition at Queenstown, [Transit of Venus]; Professor Peters; poor American instruments; differences between the American and English parties 'the English Party was drilled at Greenwich for about a year'; clouds prevent observation (letter of 14 January 1875); Stafford's speech about him (press cutting); trip home in 1876 via Australia; friends in Melbourne; voyage on Irawaddy 'very good food'; return to New Zealand via USA, 1878; other passengers on Parthia to New York; train trip from Niagara to San Francisco; voyage across Pacific on Australia; gales; other passengers 'a cosmopolitan widow…then there is the inevitable bore - a New York banker'; selling his land 'I was not to know that everyone would go mad about land and I could only put it at a price at which sane men might be expected to buy'; birth of daughter to Ned; possible fraud on sale of his land; return to England in 1878; visit to France, 1879; visit to Ned and Fanny in Christchurch in 1880; visits to France; family affairs.

Processing information:

M2990

Access and use