President Rita Stewart welcomed 15 members at 2pm. The theme for the meeting was Edwardian, so members were dressed in some kind of clothing from that era. Mel Sansom introduced our speaker, Barbara Chapman, who belongs to the Edwardian Society. Barbara has the shop called Nosey Parkers in Waimate’s main street, and it is known for treasures old and new. She is a descendant of the Spain family, who are part of the history of Central Otago.
Stephen Spain bought the 28ha Earnscleugh Station in 1902. He amassed a fortune through the shooting of the teeming rabbit population, so in 1919 the building of the magnificent Jacobethan-style Earnscleugh Castle was begun. A beautiful red brick building, with 21 rooms. Spain turned the rabbit plague into profit, and built a cannery in Alexandra, to process the rabbits for export and to World War 1 troops. However, as markets dwindled Spain was unable to finish the castle, so it was named "Spain’s Folly". With a dwindling fortune and family feuds, the station struggled, and it went into new ownership in 2022.
The new owners bought the castle and 12ha of the land, and are restoring the castle to its former grandeur. This featured on the TV series Grand Designs recently. Mel thanked Barbara for this very interesting story that is part of her family history.
Barbara judged Helen Lawrence and Gaynor Patterson as best dressed Edwardians. It was Joan Dennison’s lucky night, as she won both raffles. The movie fundraiser was well patronised, and an afternoon tea was held for friends who helped with cheese roll making.
As part of a Lions "Keep New Zealand Warm" project, our club will be making wheat bags, and knitting, to donate to groups in need. Our recent social outing was a lovely lunch attended by 10, at the Fishtail Restaurant in Waimate. Our afternoon concluded with a high tea of sandwiches, Devonshire scones and cakes. A lovely way to spend a cold, wet afternoon with our Lion friends. — Judy McRae
