Today in History

1864 Arthur's Pass 'discovered'

The summit of Arthur’s Pass over the Southern Alps between the headwaters of the Otira and Bealey Rivers marks the boundary between Canterbury and the West Coast.

The pass was known to Maori who used it to bring pounamu across the Southern Alps. It was crossed for the first time by Europeans in 1864 and was named after the surveyor Arthur Dobson.

In 1863 Thomas Cass, the Chief Surveyor for Canterbury, asked Arthur Dobson to find out if there was an available pass out of the Waimakariri River basin into valleys running to the west. In March 1864 he set out with his brother George. At Craigieburn they were joined by the third Dobson brother, Edward. Based on advice given to them by the West Coast chief, Tarapuhi, the Dobson brothers travelled up the Waimakariri and into the valley of the Otira River. When he returned to Christchurch Arthur made a sketch of the unnamed pass and included it with his report to Cass.

When the West Coast gold rush began a committee of businessmen offered a £200 prize for anyone who could find a better pass from Canterbury to the West Coast. George Dobson was sent to examine every available pass and concluded that ‘Arthur's’ pass was by far the most suitable for the direct crossing. In 1864 the Canterbury Provincial Government constructed a road from Christchurch to Hokitika and Edward Dobson was put in charge of the project. It opened to coach traffic in July 1866. The route ran over Porters Pass, through to Cass, and along the Waimakariri to Bealey, then went over the newly named Arthur's Pass.

In 1929 the Arthur’s Pass National Park was created.

In a tragic aside to the Dobsons' explorations, in 1866 the eldest brother, George, was murdered by the notorious Burgess Gang. He was working on a road in the Grey River area when he was mistaken for a gold buyer and killed.

Image: Arthur's Pass (Te Ara)