Story: Irish

Napoleon Hill, Ahaura, 1866

Napoleon Hill, Ahaura, 1866

The gold rushes attracted many Irish immigrants during the 1860s, first to Otago and then in larger numbers to the West Coast. West Coast Irish were predominantly male, Catholic and from Munster. This remarkable image shows a street in the gold-mining settlement of Napoleon Hill, Ahaura, on the West Coast.

Using this item

Alexander Turnbull Library
Reference: 1/2-148337; F

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Jock Phillips, 'Irish - Migration 1850–1870', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/27/napoleon-hill-ahaura-1866 (accessed 30 March 2024)

Story by Jock Phillips, published 8 Feb 2005, updated 1 Mar 2015