Mr and Mrs James Shand (née Isabella Duncan)

James Shand was a very successful colonist who slipped off track in his later years and ended his life under a shadow. He was born in Inverurie in the Scottish Highlands to James and Barbara Shand in 1835. His mother’s portrait is to his left and two of his sisters are just to the right. The Shands came to Otago in 1850 on the Phoebe Dunbar. James was just 16 when his father died only months after their arrival. He had to work hard alongside his mother to develop their small Green Island farm enough to support their large family. Eight years later his mother repaid his assistance by setting James up in his own property in West Taieri.

Having learnt well from his mother’s knowledge and drive, Shand was a very successful farmer. He gradually extended his holdings and created a model farm called Abbotsford. By 1882 he was a wealthy man with over 31,000 freehold acres valued at over £150,000. He imported the latest agricultural machinery, build extensive farm buildings and employed dozens of workers. In 1873 the first trial of a reaper and binder was held on his property, which was also noted for its Clydesdale horses. James diversified into business, bought more land and entered politics. At the age of 40 he married Isabella Duncan, the New Zealand-born daughter of a prominent Dunedin businessman. They were to have eight children together.

In the 1880s Shand’s ambitious expansion overreached his means. He had borrowed heavily to finance his land purchases and his lavish lifestyle. When the economy soured, he struggled to repay his loans. He began to drink heavily and his drunken antics became the talk of the Taieri. He also gambled, further aggravating his financial difficulties. In September 1889 Shand went missing. His clothes were found on the river bank and soon afterwards his body was recovered from the Taieri River.

‘Abbotsford’ was cut up into smaller farms. Isabella’s family saved her from penury by buying her a house in Dunedin. For James, it was a sad end to what had been a spectacular colonial career.