William Gilbert Rees (6 April 1827 — 31 October 1898) was an explorer, surveyor, and early settler in

Central Otago Central Otago is located in the inland part of the Otago region in the South Island of New Zealand. The motto for the area is "A World of Difference". The area is dominated by mountain ranges and the upper reaches of the Clutha River and tributa ...

, New Zealand. He and fellow explorer

Nicholas von Tunzelmann Nicholas von Tunzelmann (also known as Nicholas Paul Balthasar Tunzelmann von Alderflug or Paul Nicholai Balthasar Tunzelmann von Alderflug, with his surnames often Anglicised as Tunzelman, 1828 – 31 July 1900) is famous as one of the first two E ...

were the first Europeans to settle the Wakatipu basin. Rees is regarded as the founder of Queenstown.

Biography

Rees was born in Haroldston St. Issell's,

Pembrokeshire Pembrokeshire ( ; cy, Sir Benfro ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county in the South West Wales, south-west of Wales. It is bordered by Carmarthenshire to the east, Ceredigion to the northeast, and the rest by sea. The count ...

, Wales in 1827. His father was a commander with the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

. Rees was educated at the

Royal Naval School The Royal Naval School was an England, English school that was established in Camberwell, London, in 1833 and then formally constituted by the Royal Naval College Act 1840. It was a Charitable cause, charitable institution, established as a board ...

. Rees emigrated to New South Wales in 1852, where he became a sheep farmer. He returned to England in 1858 to marry his childhood sweetheart, his cousin Frances Rebecca Gilbert (born November 1838). He established a high country farm in 1860 close to the current location of Queenstown's town centre. His homestead was located near the mouth of the

Kawarau River The Kawarau River is a river in the South Island of New Zealand. It drains Lake Wakatipu in northwestern Otago via the lake's Frankton Arm. The river flows generally eastwards for about and passes through the steep Kawarau Gorge until it joins L ...

, at the site of the present day Hilton Hotel. Some historic buildings have been preserved. The Queenstown suburb of Frankton was named after his wife Frances.

Cecil Peak Cecil Peak is a mountain in the Wakatipu Basin, New Zealand and reaches a height of 1,978 metres. It is on the south side of Lake Wakatipu south-southwest of Queenstown, and is highly prominent from around this area. Vegetation is mainly gras ...

and Walter Peak were named after the first given names of his son. Gold was discovered not far to the northeast two years later, at which point Rees converted his wool shed into a hotel named the Queen's Arms, now known as Eichardt's. Today, Rees is considered the founding father of Queenstown. Rees was an early New Zealand exponent of the sport of

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

, having been born into a family with prominent links to the sport. He was a member of the

Grace family The Grace family was an English cricketing family. Fourteen members of the family played first-class cricket, with brothers W. G., E. M. and Fred Grace (sometimes called the "three Graces") all going on to play Test cricket for England Members ...

, and related as a cousin to

W. G. Grace William Gilbert Grace (18 July 1848 – 23 October 1915) was an English Amateur status in first-class cricket, amateur cricketer who was important in the development of the sport and is widely considered one of its greatest players. He played ...

, an early star of the game. He appeared in one

first-class match First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

for New South Wales in 1857; his cousin

William Lee Rees William Lee Rees (16 December 1836 – 18 May 1912) was an English-born New Zealand cricketer, politician and lawyer. Early years Rees was born in Bristol in 1836, the son of James Rees, a surgeon, and Elizabeth Pocock. Rees' father died when ...

played for

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

in the same match. Rees was a devout Anglican and helped with the building of St Peter's Church in central Queenstown, which was completed in 1863. The

Rees River The Rees River (Māori language: ''Puahiri'' or ''Puahere'') is a headwater tributary of the Clutha River / Mata-Au that drains eastward of the main divide of the Southern Alps / Kā Tiritiri o te Moana in New Zealand. The river runs 41 km, ...

in Central Otago is named after Rees, and his statue stands on Rees Street, Queenstown, near the town pier. There is a hotel called "The Rees" on Frankton Road in Queenstown which bears his name and a bridge on named in his honour. He died in Blenheim, New Zealand, on 31 October 1898, and was buried at

Omaka Cemetery Omaka Cemetery (also known as Blenheim Omaka Public Cemetery) is a historic cemetery in Blenheim, New Zealand founded in the 1850s. It consists of over 10,000 burials and is the largest cemetery in Marlborough due to its proximity to the region's ...

Gallery

File:William Gilbert Rees.jpg, Statue of William Gilbert Rees by Minhal Al-Halabi File:William Gilbert Rees Plaque.jpg, Plaque on statue of William Gilbert Rees

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rees, William Gilbert People from Queenstown, New Zealand 1827 births 1898 deaths Settlers of Otago New South Wales cricketers Welsh emigrants to Australia Welsh emigrants to New Zealand Welsh cricketers People of the Otago Gold Rush Burials at Omaka Cemetery Grace family

Biography

Gallery

See also

References