East Coast oral tradition states that the honoured ancestor Maui-tikitikia-Taranga fished up the North Island of New Zealand. Two Maori ancestral canoes are associated with this region; Takitimu, which made landfall in this region around 1450AD and Horouta. The area is thought to have been extensively cultivated and utilised by Maori, with the plains and rivers both an excellent food source and transport link. Abundant bird life and tidal flats yielded a wide range of protein sources. The nearby grasslands and swamps provided food as well as materials for weaving and construction. Large villages or pa were built on strategic points on the rivers and hills. In 1769 Captain James Cook on his ship ‘Endeavour’ made landfall at what he named Poverty Bay. This was the first contact between European and Maori. When Cook arrived in the area, it was occupied by four main tribal groups; Rongowhakata, Ngai Tahupoo (later known as Ngai Tamanuhiri), Te Aitanga a Mahaki, and Te Aitanga a Hauiti. Although there was no planned European settlement, by the 1830s traders and whalers had ensconced themselves in the region, and trading posts established by settlers such as Captain Read led to further European settlement. Captain Read is often described as a pioneer of European settlement at Gisborne, transforming the village into a colonial township. As per The Telephone in 1884, ‘It was undoubtedly Captain Read’s spirit of enterprise that led to the astounding progress that of late years has been witnessed in the town of Gisborne and in the rural districts of Poverty Bay.’ The Opou Station Stables (Former) are located adjacent to Opou Homestead on Whakato Road, Manutuke, about 15 kilometres south of Gisborne. Both buildings sit in a spacious garden with a number of mature trees and a sweeping driveway. Opou Homestead is the oldest grand home in the district still standing. The stables are contemporary with the homestead, and are an essential utility building which supports the lifestyle and work of those who lived there, sharing architectural elements with the grand home. The land on which Opou Homestead and Stables stand was included in the Tahuniorangi Block purchased from Maori owners in 1839 by Thomas Halbert, who on sold the land to Captain George Edward Read in 1852. A prominent and prosperous businessman and pastoralist, Read is reputed to have been unscrupulous and to have acquired land by questionable means. As historian J.A. Mackay notes, when Read died on 23 February 1878, the Poverty Bay Standard estimated that three quarters of the business property in Gisborne had been created with his financial help, and his estate was valued for death duties at £130,000. The link with Read is not an intimate one, as he died before the homestead was built. The homestead and stables do, however, owe their existence to the wealth accumulated by Read. Captain Read's tomb is located near the property. It is notable that in his will Read made provision for several of his old farm hands who received a pension of £1 per week for life; the first old age pensions known to have been awarded in Poverty Bay. Captain Read’s will left his estate equally to the sons of his brother Thomas, with a life interest in the Tahuniorangi Block given to the eldest son, Thomas Edward Read Bloomfield (?1859-1890) who subsequently built Riverslea homestead and stables there in 1882-1883. Bloomfield's previous family home, a substantial two storey house at Matawhero was razed by Te Kooti when he raided the area in 1868 and laid waste to all but one of the European buildings in the settlement. Although not as prominent in public affairs as his uncle, Bloomfield was also a well-known local figure as a result of his relationship to Read and his social status. Bloomfield was a committee member of the Poverty Bay Agricultural and Pastoral Society. For a short period of time he was the captain of the Matawhero cricket club. He also kept racehorses and was a member of the Waerenga-a-Hika Jockey Club. The homestead, named Riverslea by Bloomfield, was rapturously described in the Poverty Bay Standard in March 1883. ‘Built upon a choice portion of the Arai, a mansion, unequalled in the Bay, if in New Zealand, has been erected by Mr W.O. Skeet, to the order of T.E.R. Bloomfield, Esq. Of course, at present, the grounds and approaches are not sufficiently advanced to report upon, but on Thursday we had the pleasure of going through the building, which is creditable to all connected with it – the owner for the taste and liberality he has displayed; the architect, Mr Finneran, for his admirable design; the builder for the faithful manner in which the work has been carried out; and Messrs Houghton and Hall for the skilful execution of the painting and paperhanging.’ Opou Homestead and Stables reflect the short lived prosperity of the owner through his inheritance from Read, in having this utility building architect-designed to reflect the style of the homestead. Large homes such as these were aspirational on the part of the owner, reflecting not only their status in the community, but the standing to which they aspired, and how they wished to be perceived by their community. Large estates and homesteads were the sole province of the upper classes or wealthy citizens within the United Kingdom and estates such as Riverslea were an attempt at recreating a British society in New Zealand. Despite the ‘show off’ grand houses which were built on these estates, the land was at essence farming land and these farming estates were to become the agricultural and pastoral backbone of New Zealand’s economy. The land in the Tairawhiti area was considered to be challenging terrain with difficult access due to the few and poor quality roads in the district. Much of it had to be extensively cleared of native trees and bush before it could be farmed. Horses were essential for rural development, communication and socialising at a time when roads were either non-existent or in poor condition. Horses were also an excellent way to gain access to the uneven terrain on farm estates and are still used today in high country farms. The large distances between estates meant that social functions usually involved having houseguests, and it was essential to not only provide guest accommodation, but stabling for their horses. Draft horses did the heavy farm work, and lighter breeds were used for riding or pulling buggies or carts. Horses were an investment that had to be appropriately housed and looked after, and the design and size of stables were an indication of the horse’s value to their owner. The development of horse racing as a leisure pursuit occurred in Gisborne from the 1870s onwards with the establishment of several jockey or turf clubs in this decade. The Opou Station Stables (Former) were a very necessary building as we know that Bloomfield was the owner of several racehorses as well as at least one buggy mare in 1882. On several occasions Bloomfield used the stables as a business, in that he had a stallion in his stables and advertised for mares to be covered. The stables are a well preserved example of colonial classical architecture, generous in both its dimensions and details. Like the homestead, the stables are built from kauri shipped from Northland. They form, along with the other outbuildings, a most impressive homestead complex and are the most outstanding example of W.P. Finneran's work and a rare surviving example of his utilitarian architecture. Finneran commenced practising architecture in 1868 at Gisborne. He was responsible for the alterations to the Holy Trinity Church completed in 1880. He designed many notable Gisborne buildings, the Poverty Bay Club and the Masonic Lodge, as well as some of the district’s stately homes, including Whataupoko homestead. The builder, William Oswald Skeet, established the City Timber Yards in Gladstone Road in 1880. Skeet worked with W. J. Finneran as builder on several of his projects, including the Makaraka Racecourse Old Grandstand. The Poverty Bay Standard described the stables, which were part of the grand tour in March 1883. ‘Descending again, we were shown a most convenient wash-house and coal shed, and a large and well ventilated stable. The latter is 36 x 39, with a 16ft. stud, and fitted up with loose boxes, stalls, etc., and a saddle room. Then there is the coach-house, harness room, and grooms sleeping apartment.’ From 1884 Bloomfield suffered severe financial problems resulting in bankruptcy. He was not only a keen racehorse owner, but also bet substantially on horse racing. Mackay writes that upon inheriting Bloomfield ‘at once became a generous patron of the Turf, and, on that account, and as a result of bad investments, he found himself poorer to the extent of £26,000 within only four years.’ Unfortunately his love of horses and racing contributed to the bankruptcy. His horses, harness, bullocks etcetera were sold at public auction by assignees. Although some of the furniture was sold at public auction, Bloomfield was able to remain in residence at ‘Riverslea’ due to the fact that the title of the land was actually vested in his eldest son, William Swanson Read by the terms of Read’s will. Bloomfield died on 12 October 1890 and later that same month the Riverslea property was advertised for let. In 1893 the estate is advertised as occupied by JA Bradley Esq and up for lease. The homestead was leased by John Clark from 1911 to 1934, who in 1882 had secured the rights to the adjacent Opou station, and who renamed the house. John Clark was a prominent local businessman who was born in Scotland. He arrived in Gisborne in 1877, taking over the 40,000 acre Okahuatiu sheep farm at Ngatapa. He owned and leased several large estates in the Te Arai area, holding leases for Te Arai Station, Waipaoa and Papatu, and was considered to be one of Poverty Bay's most successful sheep farmers; at one point his properties had 47,000 sheep and 2400 cattle. He was a Justice of the Peace and served on Cook County Council and Gisborne Harbour Board. Like Bloomfield before him he was a keen horse breeder and kept racehorses; one of which was named Opou. In 1934 the property was purchased by William Clark, John’s son. It remains in the hands of the Clark family. In 2002 the stables were converted into guest accommodation. The house is a well-known local landmark in the Manutuke area, and in Tairawhiti area. The current owners have hosted well-attended charity fund raisers, tours and garden fetes. The Opou Homestead and Opou Station Stables (Former) are included in local historic and tourism publications.

Current Description The Manutuke area lies to the South-West of Gisborne. The nearby Te Arai River is a tributary of the larger Waipaoa River which lies between Gisborne and Manutuke and runs to the sea. The Opou Station estate consists of over seven hectares of spacious gardens and mature trees flanking the Te Arai River. The homestead is approached via the long tree-lined drive which sweeps to the left of the site. The drive continues past the homestead to Opou Station Stables (Former) which are set slightly to the right and are approximately 80 metres behind the homestead, surrounded with lawns and mature plantings. The Opou Station Stables (Former) is one and a half storeys high with rusticated timber cladding and a corrugated iron roof. The roof has boxed eaves and is supported by modillions. A one storey lean-to garage has been built onto the south elevation, using the same materials as in the older structure. The original part of the building has a strongly symmetrical façade. The central car sized entrance has on either side one timber four panel door with rectangular fanlight, and beyond that a two light double hung window. Above the centre entrance a small gable projects from the roofline (there is a matching gable on the rear west elevation). Below the gable is a vertical loft door with two triangular hinges. A post projects from the wall above the door, probably for use as a rope support when hauling items up to the door from the ground. The roof is surmounted by a weather vane that was on the Opou homestead tower before the tower was removed in 1949. The loft space was been converted into guest accommodation in 2002, and features a bedroom, bathroom, toilet and kitchen, accessed through stairs from the chaff room on the ground floor. The stairs were reused from the homestead’s now-demolished Italianate tower. The front elevation has two small windows either side of double glazed doors and a cantilevered balcony. The side elevations have skylights, and the rear elevation has two skylights, double glazed doors and a deck supported on posts