Peter Cheal
Encyclopedia
Peter Edward Cheal was a prominent surveyor
in the settlement of New Zealand
during the mid-late 19th century.
, where he trained as a mining engineer and surveyor and joined the Middlesex Engineering Volunteers.
, assisting the Transport Corps during the Waikato campaign. He was licensed under the Native Land Act
in 1865, and gazetted in 1870, spending much of the late 1860s surveying in the Thames goldfield and in Native Land Surveys.
, where he was in charge of six survey parties, which consisted of 100 men each. Here Cheal and his parties came into conflict with Taranaki Māori under the leadership of Te Whiti
and Tohu
, who had Mr. Cheal and his staff placed in carts and removed from the plains. An Armed Constabulary unit numbering 800 men was sent to restore order, and with their protection the surveyors resumed their work.
, the founder of the Auckland Baptist Tabernacle
and the New Zealand branch of the YMCA
. Cheal himself was a devout Christian
, and would often hold evangelical services as part of his visitations to various surveying camps.
in the surveying of land on the eastern side of the mountain, surveying the town of Inglewood
in 1875, and laying out the town of Stratford
in 1879, where the nearby Cheal Road takes its name from the surveyor.
In 1881 Cheal took part in the march on Parihaka
as a member of the Hawera
Cavalry.
during the mining boom of 1895, and continued his private practice in Auckland until 1919.
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
in the settlement of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
during the mid-late 19th century.
London
Peter Edward Cheal was born and educated in LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he trained as a mining engineer and surveyor and joined the Middlesex Engineering Volunteers.
Auckland
He emigrated to New Zealand in 1864 aboard the “Eagle Speed”, and in 1865 joined the Survey Department in AucklandAuckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, assisting the Transport Corps during the Waikato campaign. He was licensed under the Native Land Act
Native Land Act
The Natives Land Act, 1913 was an act of the Parliament of South Africa aimed at regulating the acquisition of land by "natives", i.e. black people...
in 1865, and gazetted in 1870, spending much of the late 1860s surveying in the Thames goldfield and in Native Land Surveys.
Waimate Plains
In 1871 Cheal was appointed to the Waimate Plains in South TaranakiSouth Taranaki District
South Taranaki is a territorial authority on the west coast of New Zealand's North Island that contains the towns of Hawera, Manaia, Opunake, Patea, Eltham, and Waverley...
, where he was in charge of six survey parties, which consisted of 100 men each. Here Cheal and his parties came into conflict with Taranaki Māori under the leadership of Te Whiti
Te Whiti o Rongomai
Te Whiti o Rongomai III was a Māori spiritual leader and founder of the village of Parihaka, in New Zealand's Taranaki region.-Biography:...
and Tohu
Tohu Kakahi
Tohu Kakahi was a Māori leader and prophet at Parihaka, who along with Te Whiti o Rongomai organised passive resistance against the occupation of Taranaki in the 1870s in New Zealand....
, who had Mr. Cheal and his staff placed in carts and removed from the plains. An Armed Constabulary unit numbering 800 men was sent to restore order, and with their protection the surveyors resumed their work.
Faith and Family
Cheal was married to Eliza Shalders on January 3, 1876. Together they had four children; Ethel, May, Alfred and Ernest. Eliza was the daughter of leading Baptist minister Richard Barcham ShaldersRichard Barcham Shalders
Richard Barcham Shalders was a Baptist preacher, founder of the New Zealand branch of the YMCA, and founder of Auckland Baptist Tabernacle.-Childhood:...
, the founder of the Auckland Baptist Tabernacle
Auckland Baptist Tabernacle
The Auckland Baptist Tabernacle is a heritage-listed church located near the corner of Queen Street and Karangahape Road, at the edge of Auckland central business district in New Zealand.-History:...
and the New Zealand branch of the YMCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
. Cheal himself was a devout Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
, and would often hold evangelical services as part of his visitations to various surveying camps.
Taranaki
During the mid-late 1870s Cheal was involved with Edwin Stanley Brookes, Jnr.Edwin Stanley Brookes, Jnr.
Edwin Stanley Brookes, Jnr., was a prominent surveyor in the settlement of New Zealand during the mid-late 19th century.-Childhood and Emigration:...
in the surveying of land on the eastern side of the mountain, surveying the town of Inglewood
Inglewood, New Zealand
Inglewood is a town in the Taranaki Region of New Zealand's North Island. The population was 3,090 in the 2006 Census, an increase of 144 from 2001. Inglewood lies 200m above sea level....
in 1875, and laying out the town of Stratford
Stratford, New Zealand
Stratford is the only town in the central Taranaki district of Stratford District, New Zealand. It lies beneath the eastern slopes of Mount Taranaki/Egmont, approximately half-way between New Plymouth and Hawera, near the geographic centre of the Taranaki region. The town has a population of...
in 1879, where the nearby Cheal Road takes its name from the surveyor.
In 1881 Cheal took part in the march on Parihaka
Parihaka
Parihaka is a small community in Taranaki Region, New Zealand, located between Mount Taranaki and the Tasman Sea. In the 1870s and 1880s the settlement, then reputed to be the largest Māori village in New Zealand, became the centre of a major campaign of non-violent resistance to European...
as a member of the Hawera
Hawera
Hawera is the second-largest town in the Taranaki region of New Zealand's North Island, with a population of . It is near the coast of the South Taranaki Bight, 75 kilometres south of New Plymouth on State Highway 3 and 20 minutes' drive from Mount Taranaki/Egmont.It is also on State Highway 45,...
Cavalry.
Return to Auckland
In the 1880s Cheal returned to Thames where he was appointed in charge of the local Survey Office, and in 1886 he moved to Auckland where he established a private practice as a mining engineer and surveyor. He became a member of the New Zealand Institute of Surveyors in 1890. He was actively engaged in various parts of the Coromandel PeninsulaCoromandel Peninsula
The Coromandel Peninsula lies in the North Island of New Zealand. It is part of the Waikato Region and Thames-Coromandel District and extends 85 kilometres north from the western end of the Bay of Plenty, forming a natural barrier to protect the Hauraki Gulf and the Firth of Thames in the west...
during the mining boom of 1895, and continued his private practice in Auckland until 1919.