011 Nigel St Hastings, Sign
Reason for the name
Nigel McLean was a local man from a well-known Havelock North family. He fought and died in World War I. Nigel Street comes off Duart Rd, the location of his family’s homestead known as Duart House.
Nigel Street runs between Duart Road (where Duart House, which was the family home, is located) and Chambers Street (named for his mother’s family) in Havelock North. It sits very close to Duart House. It is likely that this development is on land that was formerly part of Duart. There are strong family connections here as Duart Road is named for the family homestead, originally just known as Duart, and Chambers Street is named for the Chambers family (Nigel’s mother Hannah was a Chambers) and Gillean St is a Scottish reference to McLean.
Nigel had two service numbers: 3337 New Zealand Mounted Rifles, 6th contingent, 17 company and 11/864B Wellington Mounted Rifles.
Author: Helen Gelletly HDC
About Sergeant McLean
Nigel McLean was born in Havelock North on April 27th 1884, his father was Allan (Tuki) McLean and his mother was Hannah McLean, nee Chambers, daughter of John and Margaret Chambers. He resided at Duart House with his family; the house was built in 1882 by his father Allan McLean and is one of the last colonial–style grand mansions in Havelock North.
Nigel Mclean was the youngest of nine children. His father died in 1898 when Nigel was 14 years old. Hannah McLean sold 150 acres of the property for town sections in November that year. His mother Hannah lived until 1914, and with her children helped develop the landscaping around the house.
After his discharge from the army in 1902 Nigel became an apprentice maritime engineer and served his apprenticeship with S Luke & Co in Wellington. After he completed his apprenticeship he returned to the Hawke’s Bay where, as a qualified engineer, he helped his brother establish the first garage for motor car repairs at Duart. He later worked as an engineer for the Union Oil Company of California.
While he was young, handsome and from a wealthy family, Nigel never married, so there are no direct descendants. There is an apocryphal story that one glove from a pair of mittens was found in his effects after he died, the other half having been kept by a "young lady" back home in Havelock. This girl, if there was one, has not been identified. His next of kin and contacts listed appear to be sister Mary Hannah McLean, sister Margaret Alison (Alice or Elsie) who married Albert Ernest Woodhouse and brothers Allan Hugh McLean and John Chambers McLean. The identity and relationship of Miss Stark is unknown.
Most of his siblings did not marry either, and there are very few descendants from the marriage of his father Allan McLean (1833-1898) and mother Hannah (1849-1914).
South African (Boer) War 1899-1902
On the 12th of January 1901 at the claimed age of 17 Nigel McLean enlisted in the New Zealand Army and became a Bugler in the Mounted Rifle Brigade Company No 17. His discharge from the army was confirmed in May 1902 at age 18 after serving for 1 year and 27 days abroad. On his discharge papers it was recorded that he was of very good character.
First World War 1914-1918
Nigel McLean enlisted in the New Zealand Army on the 14 March 1915 at the Zeltoun Camp near Cairo in Egypt. The attesting officer recorded on the form was Nigel’s cousin Major Selwyn Chambers (who was killed in Gallipoli and is also commemorated with a road in Havelock North). In his medical history, it notes he was a Marine Engineer.
Initially he was a trooper in the Wellington Mounted Rifle Brigade and he was promoted to Sergeant on the 2nd of June 1915. His promotion took place at the Dardanelles Walkers Ridge.
Nigel himself was wounded at Anzac Cove on 27 August 1915 and on 30 August 1915 embarked for England from Mudros a small Greek port on the island of Lemnos. On 11th of October Nigel McLean was reported dangerously ill and was admitted to hospital in Gibraltar.
In 1954 his nephew Mr Peter McLean wrote to the David Bruce Military hospital in Malta requesting information on his uncle’s death. A letter was sent from the commander of the Malta hospital to the War Office in London as Nigel McLean had not been in hospital in Malta. A brief letter dated 2nd April 1954 was sent from the Brigadier Director-General Medical Services Army advising Peter McLean that his uncle was “wounded in action in Anzac Cove, Gallipoli on 27th August 1915 and embarked for England 30th August 1915, unfortunately he became dangerously ill and was admitted to the General Hospital in Gibraltar where he died of his wounds on 20th October 1915.
Nigel Alexander McLean is buried in the Gibraltar (North Front) Cemetery. The cemetery was used throughout the 1914-1918 War for the burial of sailors and soldiers who died on ships passing Gibraltar, or in the Military Hospital. The 1914-1918 War Graves are scattered in the different divisions of the cemetery. Sgt. N McLean of the Wellington Mounted Rifles, is in Plot grave no. D.3154.
There is a family grave memorial at Havelock North cemetery and Nigel is also listed on the plaques at Saint Luke’s Church in Havelock North, Saint Colomba’s Church in Havelock North, the Havelock North War Memorial and at the Memorial Chapel at Hawke’s Bay Fallen Soldiers Memorial Hospital.
The war records of Nigel McLean state his medals were sent to his sister Mary Hannah McLean who was executrix of his estate. The stamp on the records notes “1914 15 Star, 14-12-20, 11 Nov 1921 British War Medal, Victory Medal 12 Sep 1922.” He was also issued the Gallipoli Medallion.
