The town of Ashburton was first surveyed and partly pegged out in 1863, by Mr. Robert Park; and the survey was subsequently completed as the demand for sections and building sites arose.
In 1865 Mr. John Grigg took up the then little known but afterwards famous Longbeach run, and in 1867, and for several years following, he employed a large body of workmen to drain the swampy land and fence it. This property has been transformed into one of the best model farms in the world. Mr. Grigg's enterprise attracted a large amount of attention, and the fertile land of the surrounding country was soon taken up by energetic settlers.