The murder at Deadman's Creek

At the aptly named Deadman’s Creek lay a body.
It lay partly submerged in the icy waters of the small river discovered by a Mr McKenzie on September 2, 1867
Robert Wilson was the murderer of James (Jem) Lennox. He had also been his friend.
Both had come to the West Coast in July that year along with others. And like them they had been after gold. They came on the Rifleman from Manukau Harbour.
The men had become friends and intended to prospect at Deadman’s Creek.
But a few days later Wilson turned up in Westport and said Lennox had gone off to look for gold elsewhere.
Wilson joined another prospecting party and headed out again.
After the body of Lennox was discovered, a search of the area turned up several items of Lennox’s. Nearby was clothing and a prayer book and a short way off a bloodstained tent.
Lennox had been bashed over the head several times. Likely with an axe.
Lennox had been born in County Cavan, Ireland. He was by trade a musician.
He had arrived in New Zealand from Queensland, arriving in Auckland before going to Whanganui where he worked for a while.
Wilson had boasted to several people that he had £30 on him, a great deal of money back then and was found with several pieces of Lennox’s clothing.
He told police Lennox had gone off with others and he did not know where he was.
A jury found Wilson guilty in an hour, on circumstantial evidence and sentenced to death. A petition was raised raising the possibility that the body found was not Lennox as no one who knew him had seen the body.
But on December 20, Wilson was hanged only saying that he had nothing to say. He had never admitted the killing. Wilson was one of the very few people buried in the ground at the Nelson jail.
And Deadman’s Creek had the name long before then - like a number of other landmarks in Otago - most often named because of miners who had died until tragic circumstances.
Photo by Rahul Dey.​