Hempelman, George
Dates
- Existence: 1799 - 1880
Biography
Prussian born George Hempelman, master of the brig Bee, established a permanent whaling station at Peraki Bay in 1837. This was the first permanently inhabited European settlement in Canterbury. Captain Hempelman's wife Elizabeth was the first white woman to settle in Canterbury. At the time of Elizabeth's death in 1868 at the age of 76 Hempelman was described as a farmer. George Hempelman's name is sometimes spelt Hempleman, but in a Arch 628 and in an official letter of 1853 in Archive 24 he clearly signs Hempelman.
Found in 2 Collections and/or Records:
Akaroa and Banks Peninsula Land Settlement Letters
Two letters concerning Akaroa and Banks Peninsula land settlements.
The 1842 letter, in French, records the transfer of land in Akaroa from La Compagnie Nanto-Bordelaise to Joseph Libeau. Dated 4th October, it is signed by Libeau and by Pierre Joseph Sainte Croix Crocquer de Belligny, for the Compagnie.
The 1853 letter, dated December 15th, is an agreement on land claims in Banks Peninsula, written at the Land Office in Christchurch and signed by George Hempelman.
George Hempelman letter
Two photocopies of original manuscript letter from George Hempelman in Peraki Bay to Captain Rhodes in Wellington, 29 November 1840.