15/09/2026
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Despite his advancing years, Samuel Nutt was still expanding. In May he bought nineteen and a half acres of land adjacent to the hotel at a cost of Β£831 ($181,000). The property was well developed, with a five-roomed house, a four-roomed cottage and various outbuildings. Things had been a little quiet at the hotel, the road being closed due to flooding and slips. The water level was such that the Council had ordered skiffs to be brought from Christchurch, so that the outflow of the lake could be reached. May also saw another inquest at the hotel, into the death of Tamata Waka, who, it was determined had βdied from the effects of a gunshot wound inflicted by his own hand while temporarily insaneβ.
Times were changing, and November 1st, 1903, was a milestone date. The first motor car journey from Christchurch to Akaroa was undertaken, the trip being completed in an astonishing 5 hours, even allowing for refreshment stops at every pub along the way. From the Forsyth Arms to Hilltop took a mere 25 minutes. Itβs hard to say what Nutt, a diehard horseman, would have thought of this turn of events, although at this early stage the horseless carriage would have been considered faddish. But the fact remains that Nutt had ruled the Forsyth Arms through a period of great economic and social change, and while the timber-rich economy of Wairewa, and its relative isolation, may have shielded him from the full impact of those changes, the future was knocking at the door. Coopβs mill at Springvale closed in 1904 and was then moved to Kaituna. Having exhausted that supply, it would later be moved back to Springvale, chasing the ever-receding timber line. But the simple fact was that the timber was running out, and once the trees were gone there would be only farming.
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**Image: Postcard of old Hilltop Hotel on Summit Road, Christchurch-Akaroa Highway c1920
