This historic place was registered under the Historic Places Act 1980. The following text is the original citation considered by the NZHPT Board at the time of registration. Designed by Penty & Blake Carrigafoyle was built in 1903 for Elizabeth O'Connor, daughter of the Hon John Martin, a member of the Legislative Council. The name derives from Carrigafoyle Castle, ancestral home of the Irish chieftain, O'Connor Kerry, in County Kerry, Ireland, and recalls the ancestry of Elizabeth's husband Robert O'Connor. John Martin founded the township of Martinborough and became one of the largest landowners of the Wairarapa. The early Edwardian residence built of timber throughout is on the grand scale with four floors and more than 9000 sq ft. The rooms and hallways are spacious and generously proportioned. Unique stained glass windows, carved woodwork, moulded ceilings and brass fixtures decorate the interior. The stained glass ranking with the best three examples of domestic work in New Zealand, was designed and executed by Charles Carter, a former apprentice of Charles Groves of London. Carrigafoyle once housed New Zealand's largest private native bird collection, now in the Canterbury museum. Its unique value lies in the fact that it is one of the very few private residences of any consequence left in Wellington. It stands as a splendid Edwardian example of a large family home in Central Wellington.