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Clay Cliffs
Pre-European History
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The Maori name for the area is
Paritea, meaning white or light coloured cliff. It is said to be the name
given by the Araiteuru whose canoe is famous in Maori legend for bringing
the kumara from Hawaiki, the canoe being wrecked on its return journey by a
violent storm at Shag Point, south of 0amaru. The first people at Clay
Cliffs were probably moa hunters who had villages in the Waitaki Valley, now
covered by Lake Aviemore, and who came to hunt on the Omarama and Mackenzie
Country plains. Plentiful birdlife - moa, Paradise Duck, weka, quail - and
eels and fish would have attracted many to venture inland.
The cliffs would have provided a natural shelter for a hunter or village in
peacetime, with exits devised up the rock faces in emergencies. On the river
terrace opposite the cliffs, several ovens indicate that the area was one of
the camp sites frequently used by Maori travelling to and from the West
Coast in search of the coveted pounamu or greenstone. The area is known as a
battleground for a number of conflicts involving the Ngati Mamoe, early
residents of the region, and the Ngai Tahu from the North Island. |
Recent History
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The Clay Cliffs were originally part of some 128,000 hectares of land taken
up in 1857 to form Benmore Station, between the Ahuriri and Ohau Rivers and
extending to Lake Ohau in the west. The station came to employ 100 men at
shearing time with 20 regulars all year, and 100,000 sheep were put up for
sale when the property was eventually subdivided by the government in 1916.
An 8,484 hectare block incorporating the cliffs was turned into 15 Returned
Soldier Settlements, some as small as 180 hectares. The scheme was
disastrous both for the land and the new owners, most of whom were forced to
walk off within a few years. The Clay Cliffs block was sold in 1919 to Mr W
E Aubrey, grandfather of the present owner. Successive generations of the
Aubrey family have appreciated the historical, scenic and geological values
of the Clay Cliffs. In order to ensure that the remarkable landscape feature
is preserved for future generations to enjoy, the Aubreys initiated a Queen
Elizabeth II National Trust open space covenant to protect the Clay Cliffs
in perpetuity.
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