Bear Garden Wall

Bear Garden Wall
**by **Celia Walker
Some of the more curious heritage remains in the Devonport area are sections of what is known as the Bear Garden Wall. The so-called Bear Garden was a pleasure garden established in 1883 by an American businessman, George Quick, and was intended to attract patrons to his newly purchased ferries that he was operating in competition with the Devonport Ferry Company.

This venture failed pretty quickly and the lack of references in newspapers of the time to any wildlife suggests that the name more likely came from the colloquial use of the term ‘bear garden’ as something shambolic, rather than the presence of actual bears. The Auckland Libraries Heritage Collection mentions four brown bears but other sources say they never arrived. Nevertheless, Council erected plaques upon the Bear Garden Wall in 1994, stating a bear lived there, and real estate agents in the area continue retelling the legend, or myth.

Portions of this rough-finished wall are still visible along Garden Terrace, Queens Parade, Anne Street and at the end of Clarence Street. There are reports that it had glass shards embedded in the top to keep the 'bears' in.

Image Credits: Celia Walker