Who would have thought a stone store could become the theatrical heart of South Canterbury? This is exactly how the Theatre Royal got its start.

Richard Turnbull was born in 1826 in Oxford, England. He came out to New Zealand in 1851 and farmed near Christchurch for 11 years. He then moved to Timaru in 1864 to partner with David Clarkson and establish Clarkson and Turnbull - General Importers, Drapers, and Clothiers a general store. It was known as ‘The Corner’ and stood where the Oxford building stands today. This was the first building to be built there on the corner.

ABOVE: Turnbull and Clarkson’s wooden shop ‘The Corner’ on Stafford St and George St around 1862-68 before the Great fire. – South Canterbury Museum CN 201904932

Back then, people used British coins, including gold, silver, and bronze, along with foreign coins as money. Copper coins were rare, so Turnbull, Clarkson, and other retailers issued their own tokens worth a penny or half-penny. These tokens were like advertisements and profitable because they cost less to make than their value, and many were never exchanged because they could be easily lost. This practice continued until 1881. New Zealand didn't have its own currency until 1933.

ABOVE: 1865 “New Zealand Timaru” Token , by Clarkson & Turnbull. The reverse shows a ship in harbour, behind a breakwater. The business was the first to export flour from Timaru. The harbour at Timaru was unsafe for vessels in high winds until the construction of a breakwater, a project that did not begin until 1879. – Courtesy Te Papa (NU005401)

The Turnbull and Clarkson token design is intriguing. It shows a harbour, even though it was issued two years after Timaru became a port in 1861, before a breakwater was constructed. Timaru had landing services for ships to trade during this time. This reflects their forward-looking approach to encourage business and gain support, although it was more of a hopeful idea at the time.

Things were going well until the ‘Great 1868 Fire’. It burned down their shop and three quarters of the central business area in the new town. The partnership between Clarkson and Turnbull ended. David went back to Christchurch and concentrated on his Dunstable House drapery shop, which he started in 1854. He sold it in 1872 to John Ballantyne, and it was renamed Ballantynes. John later opened a branch in Timaru in 1883, almost next door to where the Theatre Royal is today.

ABOVE: Photo taken in 1899 shows the Ballantynes branch in Timaru (established here in 1883). A sign reads “J Ballantynes & Co Victoria House” almost next door to the Theatre Royal. Ballantynes moved to its present site in 1913. Section of a photo. Section of a photo by William Ferrier. - Courtesy of the South Canterbury Museum 1415

Richard chose to re-build the shop on the corner and continue his career as a businessman and politician (Richard would have to rebuild for a third time due to fire - but let's leave that story for another time). Richard then constructed a new stone store further uphill, for his merchant and auctioneer business. This spot was previously occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Byrne's residence, which was also destroyed in the 1868 fire.

ABOVE: The intersection of Stafford and George Streets, Timaru, circa 1864 to 1868. Clarkson and Turnbulls store over the road on the right. And up the hill you can see houses including Mr. and Mrs. Byrne's residence on the sites where the Criterion and the Theatre Royal are today. – Section of a photo by William Ferrier. South Canterbury Museum CN: 6108

ABOVE: 1870 photograph of what was then known as South Road, Timaru (present day Stafford Street) showing construction underway of Richard Turnbull’s Stone Store up the hill on the left.  On the corner is Richard Turnbulls shop that was rebuilt in stone after the 1868 fire. – Alfred Charles Barker, Canterbury Museum ID 13/57.

Richard's new two-story bluestone store, was 23 meters long and 11 meters wide. He used it to store his grain and rented space to others for their wool, flax, grain, and other goods.

Richard, like many others in Timaru, saw the opportunity to improve landing services on the shore and wanted to build a port. His penny token was part of his plan to promote the idea. He became a councillor and in 1873, he organized a meeting with six hundred people in his stone store to discuss the town's future. In this building, they voted to establish a committee of twelve to explore building a harbour breakwater. This was a really pivotal moment in Timaru’s story, and it happened right where the Timaru Theatre Royal is today. Richard later helped to secure £100,000 for the harbours development and served on the Timaru Harbour Board. Eventually, Timaru's port was built, becoming one of just two independently owned ports in the country. This became a significant asset for the local community.

ABOVE: c1877 The Roadstead in Timaru before the breakwater was constructed. Courtesy of Private Collection. - Illustrated Australian News (Melbourne, Vic. : 1876-1889) Wed 3 Oct 1877. P155

ABOVE: Timaru Harbour, Province of Canterbury : general chart of Timaru and adjoining coast by Sir John Coode showing works recommended by Sir John Coode, August 1875. (from Patiti Point to Washdyke Lagoon). The proposed works are shown in red. – Courtesy of South Canterbury Museum.

ABOVE: Sketches and plans entitled "Timaru breakwater and harbour", showing the construction of the breakwater begun in 1878 and completed in November 1886. Produced to celebrate the completion of the project. Image courtesy of the South Canterbury Museum CN 2010/153.01.

Soon after the meeting the stone store was converted into a meeting hall and theatre, known as Turnbull Hall. In 1877 the Timaru Herald rated it as “one of the prettiest little theatres in the Southern Hemisphere”.

John L. Hall brought his Dunedin based troupe to Timaru. He leased the premises, and found the money for the conversion of Mr Turnbull's hall into a theatre. He engaged Maurice Duval, a French architect and engineer to draw up plans for a conversion of the building. It was rebuilt in local brick to accommodate 150 people.

In 1882 the mayor at the time Moss Jonas bought the building, made more alterations and renamed Turnbull’s Hall, the Theatre Royal.

The theatre has been rebuilt and modified several times being used as a sports arena, movie theatre, and home of numerous stage shows. Now known as the Theatre Royal the building was purchased by the Timaru City council in 1963 and is on the verge of having a major renovation.

Richard Turnbull passed away in 1890 at the age of 64 due to Bright's disease, which is kidney inflammation. His obituary highlighted his involvement in representing Timaru in the Provincial Council and later in the House of Representatives, where he succeeded Sir Edward Stafford (who Stafford St was named after).

He was married to Mary Hephzibah Watts and they had ten children, six sons and four daughters. One of his sons, James, became a prominent architect in Timaru designing the Chalmers Presbyterian Church (1903-04), Aigantighe (1906) and Grosvenor Hotel (1915).

Richards eighth son, David Clarkson Turnbull started his business in 1894 as a grain and seed merchant. His brother James was the architect. Exporting grain led to an expansion into shipping as owners, agents and stevedores. He bought the brick store behind the business to export wool, and continued the family interest in the Port of Timaru as a member of the Harbour Board from 1900 to 1913. Remarkably, the business still operates at the foot of Strathallan Street after 129 years.

ABOVE: South Canterbury Jubilee dinner at Timaru, 1909. Shows guests at a dinner held in the Drill Hall, with men and women seated at long tables. Flags hang along a wall. A banner compares import, export, mutton, and wool statistics of 1859 and 1909. – Courtesy National Library CN: 338563

When the token was created, the Port was just a dream. This was before the fire and the major rebuild. Richard's dream inspired him to build his bluestone store, contribute to the port's expansion, and promote its progress. Even now, we can observe how his business and political efforts impacted Timaru's story. Many of these themes remain relevant, spanning from earlier times to the present, including the Theatre Royal – which is on the cusp of another major renovation.