St. Patrick's Day in Geraldine, New Zealand

This article and poem appeared on the same date probably appeared in the Timaru Herald.
Seven in the morning was the time the church service. The Rev. Father Bowers was always at the church gate to welcome his flock. I used to watch them arrive - not in motor cars, but in traps, dog carts, waggoneetes, on horseback, and on bicycles. They were all there - those pioneering families: The Lysaghts, Brophys, Kennedys, Charles's, Buckleys, Earls, Gregans, Greshams, Kalaughers, Sugrues, Maloneys, the Burkes and the Caseys. They came to town for the day or rather they "went to town" for the day.

**Names mentioned in the article.**
The Arnest Bros, cyclists Don Bates Bruce Brien Alf Bonis Rita Burns Alec Cooper Les Coulter Llew Collins	Dave Devon Chris Gregan Bob Hardwick John Kennedy Lin Lewis James Lysaght Stewart McClymont	"Fat Jack" McKay Charlie McNab Jack Markham Miles and George Metcalf "Bill" Merrin Hanmer Morrison Jim O'Connell	Dick O'Neill Phil O'Shea Jimmy Rae Albert Stringer Denis Sugrue Con Voss "Jumbo "Wells" M.J. Wilson

Article and the poem "Geraldine" courtesy of Jenny B. who is researching the Sugrue, Scully, Colloty / Culloty, Duggan, Guldan / Gulden / Goulding, Kennedy families all from the Geraldine area. Denis SUGRUE mentioned -for his win he was given the option of a medal or £5 - he took the money!
Posted Jan. 21st, 2007. The cycling Arnst brothers. They were probably members of the ARNST family from Tai Tapu. Frederich Heinrich Arnst, born abt 1887 one of a family of thirteen, may have been one of those cyclists - if not him then his brothers or nephews. Fred Arnst married my maternal Lessie HAYNES. They farmed at Tai Tapu before moving to Ashburton Forks in about 1927.

What date was the article written? Please email if you know. Thanks.
I am trying to date the newspaper article. The writer refers to the late John Kennedy. Cemetery records show that John Kennedy died in 1934, so it has to be after this that the article was written. Father Bowers was at Geraldine 1886 to 1889 and then he came back from 1893 to 1921.

Record Details
Surname 		KENNEDY 
Forenames 		JOHN 
Age at Death 		58 Years 
Date of Death 		08/31/1934 
Date of Interment 	08/31/1934 
Cemetery 		Geraldine Cemetery 
Denomination 		CATHOLIC 
Section 		CATHOLIC 
Plot 			69

"Shamrock" the author of the St. Patrick's Day in Geraldine apparently was Billy Williamson, one time Mayor of Geraldine. His home was diagonally opposite the Catholic Church so he would have had a great view of all the Catholics arriving - he was not one of them. The church was on the diagonal corner of Hislop and Peel Streets. The horse paddock where the horses and drays etc. were kept (as in the article) was directly across the street from the Williamson house so hearing the songs until dawn would have been impossible not to hear! His wife Eulla wrote several books regarding Geraldine. Eulla now lives in a house, one of three, built on that very same horse paddock. Her house is directly over the road from the church, AND directly over the road from her & Bill's old home. Bill was one of the most respected men in Geraldine, and he would mow his lawns--and whistle. He was always whistling. Bill was the manager of Pyne Gould Guinness in Geraldine and everyone knew him. The Timaru District Council Cemetery database records Henry William Walter Williamson, death 31 August, 1971 at the age of 70, an Anglican - so if that is the case then he wrote the article prior to 1971 and was describing the 1920's in the article.

South Canterbury, New ZealandGenWeb Project

First held on Boxing Day 1875 in a paddock on which the Catholic St Patrick's Basilica stands today, Waimate's Caledonian games as they were known, have been a feature of life in Waimate. Today in 2023 now known as the Waimate Caledonian sports.