Our suburb of Welbourn stretches south along the eastern side of State Highway 3 from the Boys High School, and includes localities on the western side as well to the site of Highlands Intermediate School.
On the west of the highway for most of its length is the New Plymouth Racecourse and Pukekura Park.
Further west again is the suburb of Brooklands, named after the farm in the area which was owned by the King family in the nineteenth century. The homestead area of the farm is now Brooklands Park. The house was burnt down many years ago and only the chimney survives.
Here is my sketch of the site drawn from a park bench at about the spot where forty years ago Margaret and I were married, on a beautiful May morning. Behind the chimney one could almost see the Brooklands Bowl over the brow of the hill.
Both the King boys grew up in this house. Newton founded the stock and station agency which bore his name, and Truby was the founder of the Plunket Society.
In Coronation Avenue just south of here is this impressively maintained house where one of our friends was brought up.
One day last week, grandson Spencer asked me to teach him to sketch by drawing the house across the street. Here is the result:
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