Biography

David Clarkson, his wife Esther, and sister Elizabeth Clarkson opened the business that would become Ballantynes as Dunstable House in 1854 from their cottage in Cashel St. In 1872 Dunstable House was sold to John Ballantyne with a Timaru Branch being opened in 1883.

Born in Dunstable, Bedfordshire England, Esther was trained as a milliner. After arriving in Christchurch she imported 2 cases of straw hats which she sold, along with items of clothing, from the front room of her home on Cashel St. Seeing how well she was doing, David built a small gabled shop for her, which extended out to the street frontage. This small business gradually expanded into Dunstable House.