Destination Pendarves

On a recent trip to Christchurch, I passed a signpost with a very familiar Cornish name “Pendarves”.  How did the name of a historic estate located south of Camborne in West Cornwall, come to be used in the Ashburton district?"

Research shows the name originates from Cornishman William Henry Rule, who was born in Camborne in 1840.  Around 1880, William purchased 1,200 acres at Chertsey (between Rakaia and Ashburton) from Thomas Roskrige to establish a sheep station. He called the farm “Pendarves” after his former employer at the Pendarves Estate near Camborne.  In his youth he went to work as a gardener on the estate.   In 1858 he became head gardener and had charge of extensive plantations and shrubberies. 

William Henry married Sarah Ann Pinney in 1862, in Redruth, Cornwall. They arrived in New Zealand on the 24th December 1862 on the ship 'Echunga'. William was listed as a farm labourer.  During the trip William Henry kept a diary (now held at the Canterbury Museum) "The Echunga Diaries."

Pendarves Estate History

The Pendarves family were prominent landowners in Camborne for centuries. The family built their fortune primarily through landownership, tin and copper mining, and advantageous marriages. As major landowners in the Camborne area, they operated as "mineral lords," holding a strong grip on land used for mining and collecting royalties from productive mines, such as the Roskear and Wheal Grenville mines.

After the war the interior of Pendarves House caught fire, the shell survived but the building was demolished in 1955. There is no trace of the house now, and the 38-acre woodland, originally part of the estates ornamental gardens and parkland have been managed by Cornwall Wildlife Trust since 1976.