Bone Crescent in Hāwera runs between Pacey and Reid Avenues. It was surveyed and subdivided in 1956 at the same time as Pacey Avenue and Sutton Place.
Leonard Alfred Bone was born in Manchester, England in 1869 and came to New Zealand with his parents in the 1870s. The family settled in Dunedin, a city booming from the excitement of the Otago gold rush.
In 1897 Leonard married Scottish-born Anne Bower, and the couple settled in Invercargill where he was employed by a drapery warehouse. Six years later they moved to Hāwera and Leonard entered into partnership with John Duncan McGruer, forming the drapery company McGruer, Bone Ltd. The business quickly flourished, earning a reputation as one of Taranaki’s leading drapery firms. Leonard remained with the company for the rest of his working life and played a key role in its success.
Leonard was elected to the Hāwera Borough Council in 1913 and a decade later was persuaded to put his name forward for mayor. In a closely contested election, he finished 77 votes ahead of local horse-racing identity Harry Spratt. Mayor for two years, Leonard stood down in 1925 claiming that due to his business interests and the rather mysterious “other work” that “the public knows nothing about” he was unable to devote sufficient time to the role.
As well as his contribution to local government, Leonard was chairman of the Hāwera Fire Board, the Hāwera Retailers Association, a director of the Hawera Star Publishing Company and was a senior elder at St John’s Presbyterian Church.
He was also an enthusiastic supporter of the Egmont A & P Association and, shortly before his death, donated a footbridge over the lake at the showgrounds. Although his health was failing, Leonard was able to attend the official opening in December 1956. The bridge later fell into disrepair and was replaced by the one seen today, now known as Betts Bridge in honour of long-time A & P stalwart Cyril Betts.
Leonard Bone died on 30 March 1958 and was survived by his two sons, Fred Bone of Hāwera and David, a solicitor living in Auckland.
This story was originally published in the Taranaki Daily News.
Related items:
Taranaki DP8069 Sheet 1 (1956), ICS Pre 300,000 Cadastral Index (Imaged by LINZ)
Cyril Betts Obituary (Taranaki Daily News 4 May 2011)
Please do not reproduce these images without permission from Puke Ariki.
Contact us for more information or you can order images online here.
The information on this website is provided for general research and reference only. While we try to keep content accurate and current, we make no guarantees about its completeness or correctness. It should not be considered a replacement for a LIM or a Property Report. Some content is supplied by third parties. Puke Ariki has not verified this content and users should check its accuracy before relying on it.The inclusion of a building on the website does not imply heritage status. See SCHED1 in the NPDC District Plan for a list of buildings that have rules about what can happen to or around them (administered by NPDC). See the New Zealand Heritage List for a list of buildings that are celebrated for their heritage significance but are not subject to rules (administered by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga). Should any corrections need to be made to the records or for more information please contact us.
