1905: Murchison Madmen

July 14, 2021

By AHNZ

Today in history, 14 July, 1905, a frustrated South-Nelson settler ignited his dynamite vest. For Joseph Sewell it was instakill but everyone else gathered around Murchison Courthouse survived.

The Sewell family had been going tough on their block since the 1880s. Migrating to New Zealand was no sweet deal and the life ended up killing one of the 7 children (“died suddenly…dropped dead whilst milking..” (1900)) and then Mrs Mary Ann Sewell herself (“died suddenly…no particulars (1901.))

Adding to this pain, an aggravating neighbour named Walter Neame. This man had been a bankrupt and was a known cattle thief, having been arrested and convicted of stealing and disposing of 5 head as recently as 1902. My feeling is that Neame had been trolling and triggering Sewell for about 17 years. A real psychological fusion situation of on-going enmity which even included Sewell blaming Neame for killing his wife…

“Yes murdered poisoned by you. He killed her. For 17 years I have been annoyed by the wretch. I will blow him to blazes.”- Grey River Argus (1905); Papers Past

“Neil Gibbs Walter Neame lies in an unmarked grave in Murchison cemetery next to my great grandfather who was his brother in law. Interestingly his mother was a committed lunatic so maybe there was some “madness” in the family”- Comment on social media of this article, Facebook (2020)

“My Great Aunt, Florence Betts nee Downie, told the story that as a 10 yr old, she was spreading raspberry jam on the scones for morning tea for guests at her family’s hotel next to the courthouse. Suddenly there was a loud explosion and body bits came flying over the fence. Aunty Flo never forgot the sight and never ate raspberry jam again!” – Kay Walsh (2021)

When the two Englishmen came to the Murchison Courthouse to settle their dispute it was the culmination of a long psycho-drama. Sewell literally considered that the country wasn’t big enough for both of them and had resolved to detonate a dynamite suicide vest he had been wearing in court. Unwilling to kill anyone else, Sewell allowed himself to be ushered outside to the street where he let the explosives drop a smoking crater in Murchison in exchange for his children’s father.

A week short of 12 months later, Neame himself would also kill himself in an accident with his horse and trap. He was no better’a man than feuding neighbour but despite the memorial plaque from the Mercheson Lions Club I’m certain he was no “gentleman.” I think they must have both been madmen.

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Image ref. Murchison Courthouse the day after the suicide bombing in 1905, supplied to Stuff (2016); Modified by AHNZ for more flame

Image ref. Murchison’s old courthouse, AHNZ Archive (2020)

Ref. Coroners Inquest – Joseph Sewell, Archives New Zealand; Flickr

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