ARCHITECTURAL DESCRIPTION: Standing at the north-east corner of the intersection of Queen and Wakefield Streets the house is a single storey corner bay villa built in an Italianate style. Clad in rusticated weatherboards, the house rests upon wooden piles, has brick chimneys and is sheltered by intersecting hipped roofs of corrugated iron. At the rear of the building a narrow gabled roof differentiates part of the service wing from the rest of the house. A slightly concave return verandah, supported by paired cast-iron columns made by Scott Bros. of Christchurch, wraps around the south-west corner of the building where it is terminated by projecting bay windows with hipped roofs. The principal decorative motifs of the exterior are the ornamental verandah posts, the bracketed eaves and window sills, and the sash windows which are framed by pilasters and crowned by arched fanlights and prominent keystones. Inside the house a central hall opens off the verandah through double doors on the western side of the building and provides access to the three bedrooms, bathroom and drawing room in the front of the house. A large door at the end of the spacious hall opens into what was once the service wing but which now accommodates an open plan dining and living area, another sitting room and a compact kitchen, pantry and laundry. The most distinctive feature of the interior is the stained and leaded glass which was especially imported from England. The fanlights above each large sash window, the sidelights, fanlights and door panels of the front and hall doors and the skylights which light the hall and dining area are all glazed with coloured glass arranged in geometrical and organic patterns. In addition to this generous use of stained glass the lower sash of the drawing room window which overlooks the verandah and both sashes of the south facing windows which light the adjacent bedroom are also glazed with stained glass, presumably to offer some degree of privacy to these rooms. Set within the larger stained glass windows are hand-painted illustrations of different birds, whilst the hall door bears a cottage scene at its centre. Another original feature of the house are the painted dark brown papier mache dados in the drawing room and hallway. These complement the ornate fireplace in the drawing room and the stained wood which is featured throughout the house. MODIFICATIONS: c.1968(?) Master bedroom subdivided to create a bathroom on the north side of the building. The bedroom fireplace was removed to allow for a small bathroom with a lowered ceiling and a recessed entrance off the hall to be installed. A small rectangular window was inserted in the north wall at the same time to light this room. c.1984 Conservatory erected and rear of house altered by Greymouth architect, Gary Hopkinson. Two windows on the north wall were replaced by the glass conservatory which opens out from the living room/dining area created by the removal of internal walls between the former kitchen and washroom. One of the windows taken out was inserted into the east wall to light the new kitchen. A replica of the second window was built to light the sitting room which was originally the maid's bedroom. The concrete floor of the washroom was levelled at this time and the house was also repiled and relined.