Hard times in early Warkworth

In the early days of the 20th century, on a site adjacent to Warkworth’s old Post Office, stood the township’s smallest house. There was one room, one door, no windows and the dimensions allowed space for a bed, a table, chairs and other sundry articles.

A feature of the interior, covering one whole wall of the quaint little cottage, was a large print depicting an English dragon on a galloping horse. The occupants of the cottage were two brothers named John and Jim Sink. No mention is made of their origins or nationality, but as they grew older there was concern for their welfare and they were taken to the Costley Home in Auckland.

Jim was moved to hospital where he later died but John, always reluctant to leave Warkworth, kept absconding and returning to his old home. He was frequently arrested for disorderly behaviour and was eventually threatened with imprisonment. Having no means of support, he agreed to settle in a home run by the Little Sisters of the Poor.

The house, which was described as being built in the early colonial style using shingles and kerosene tins, burnt to the ground in February 1921. At the time there were few regrets, but if it had survived it would have been an interesting example of a lifestyle in hard times.

Fire was both friend and foe to the early settlers. It was necessary for cooking, heating, clearing the land and in industry, but caused many disasters. Fine homesteads and humble cottages alike were razed to the ground, leaving only the brick chimneys standing.

In Warkworth’s main street, a number of serious fires destroyed the original shops, and others were demolished in the name of progress. Those that survive show true colonial character, and add to the naturally pleasant surroundings of the town.

The oldest of these, dating from the 1860s, would be the flour mill manager’s house (now the Cook residence) and parts of the Warkworth Hotel, which was opened on that site by John Southgate. It replaced an earlier hotel further down the river.

Charles Thomson built Broomfield House and Hinemoa House in the 1870s. The Masonic Hall followed in 1879 and the Courthouse in 1880.

The area occupied by the Bridge House is historically significant as the home of Warkworth’s founder John Anderson Brown. He did not live to see the town grow but he chose the location, laid out and named the first streets, began the first industry and donated land for a church, hall, cemetery and village green.

As we look back on 160 years of settlement, how relevant is the legacy left by early settlers in this changing world? They came to a new country with a dream of a better life for their families and began to build a town. Perhaps the story of the Sink brothers illustrates how far we have come.