Finer Place (Hāwera)

Finer Place is a short cul-de-sac in Hāwera celebrating the town’s longest-serving mayor.

Frederick (Fred) William Finer was born at Maxwell in 1899 and at the age of eight his parents Frederick and Matilda bought a farm near Waverley. Fred worked on the farm throughout World War One and in 1922 married Mary Johnston.

After their marriage, Fred and Mary moved onto a 2,500 acre block of land at Tuhua, near Taumaranui. As for many others, low prices for agricultural produce made life financially impossible and after 18 months they packed up and moved to Whanganui to run a dairy. Proving that Fred would give anything a go, over the next twenty years he worked variously as a baker, shearer, milkman and life insurance salesman.

After World War Two (during which Fred joined the National Military Reserve) he started an auctioneering business in Pātea, later moving to Hāwera to set up a similar business near the White Hart Hotel.

However, it was local body politics in which he would make his mark, first in Pātea as a borough councillor and then as a member of the Hāwera Borough Council. In November 1952 Fred stood for the mayoralty in a three-way contest against Fred Horner and Laurie Clapham. Coming out victorious, Fred would go on to serve 18 years as mayor, a record which still stands today.

In an interview with the Daily News Fred recalled the pride he felt in 1970 when he received his MBE from Queen Elizabeth II who was in New Zealand on tour at the time.  

After he stood down as mayor, Fred kept busy serving as a Justice of the Peace as well as fishing, gardening and indoor pursuits such as tapestry and rugmaking.

Fred died in 1997 at the age of 97, survived by his second wife Loeta, two daughters, ten grandchildren, 33 great grandchildren and five great-great-grandchildren.

This story was originally published in the Taranaki Daily News.