Julian Street (Eltham)

In the 1890s, the unfortunate William Lloyd was a builder living in Eltham. He was also one of the town’s early landowners. When he surveyed and subdivided an area beside the Mountain Road in 1901, he probably intended to build a few houses there.

A name was needed for the new no-exit road he was forming. Lloyd was friendly with ‘Atty’ Julian. Everyone in the small town knew ‘Atty’. So he suggested the name Julian Street and the Borough Council immediately agreed.

Arthur Julian was one of the district’s earliest settlers. He worked as a bushman, clearing the dense bush where the town was established, then areas where pasture was sown for farming. Later, when the bush was cleared and the axemen had moved away, Julian started a roading business. He laid out and constructed Stanners Street in 1909.

When he was too old for such exertions, Julian formed a transport business. His bullock team, carting settlers’ possessions around the district, was always recognizable because one of them was pure white. ‘Atty’ Julian died in 1932. It’s not known if he got to construct the road that was named after him.

William Lloyd didn’t get to do much more than complete the survey on his land and name the street. He died of Bright’s Disease in 1903, still only in his forties.

This story was originally published in the Taranaki Daily News.