The Hermit of Island Bay was a well-known personality, and somewhat of a tourist attraction, at the end of the 19th century in Wellington, New Zealand.Evening Post, Volume XXVIII, Issue 133, 2 December 1884, Page 3
His name is recorded as "Persse" by several newspapers of the time,Star, Issue 6248, 4 August 1898, Page 1Star, Issue 6215, 1 August 1898, Page 3 and as "William Persse" by a biographer.The Hermit of Island Bay / by Pat Hutchison
The Hermit lived for 17 years in a cave beside the southern coast, in Island Bay, close to Houghton Bay. The cave had a single opening, through which smoke from his fire exited.Charlie Mitchell, "Hermit made way for coastal tour," Stuff, August 29, 2014
Many tourists approached his cave and interacted with the Hermit, who is reported to have been neither pleased nor unhappy with the attention.Colonist, Volume XXVIII, Issue 4261, 6 October 1885, Page 4
His cave was boarded up and partially destroyed when Queens Drive was built in 1894.Charlie Mitchell, "Hermit made way for coastal tour," Stuff, August 29, 2014
An oil painting depicting the Hermit in his cave beside his fire is held in the collection of the national museum of New Zealand, Te Papa Tongarewa.Petrus van der Velden, The hermit of Island Bay, Te PapaAndrea O'Neil, "Island Bay Hermit's Cave a Worldwide Attraction," Stuff, May 18, 2015
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