The lakes region of interior Central Otago including Arrowtown was traditionally important to Kai Tahu whanui who travelled to sites throughout the region to mahika kai (food and resource gathering sites) to gather resources for their own use, as well as for trade. The hunting of moa, weka, eels, ducks, the digging of fern root and ti root, gathering of taramea, and precious stone resources such as pounamu and silcrete, were a main focus of activity. Numerous ara tawhito (traditional pathways) passed through the area and a number of sites of permanent residence were located near lakes Whakatipu-wai-Maori, Wanaka and Hawea. Ka-muri-wai (the Arrowtown Flat) and the Haehaenui (Arrow River) area were particularly noted as hunting grounds for weka. The Kawarau River which drains Whakatipu-wai-Maori to the south of Arrowtown was part of the major ara tawhito linking the interior with the east coast of Te Wai Pounamu by way of the Mata-au (Clutha).
The land in the Arrowtown area was alienated through the 1848 Kemp’s purchase for the Crown and subsequent declaration as part of the Otago goldfields. Today tangata whenua for the area retain strong connections to the land, and this is borne out by the names and stories of the area.
Gold was first discovered on the Arrow in 1862 by William Fox. In the same year the goldfield was opened and miners poured into the region, many from Victoria, Australia. During the goldrush years the total population of the Shotover and Arrow districts was estimated at about 3000.
The Arrow township (originally called Fox's) was established and Fox remained in the district as proprietor of the 'Golden Age' hotel. Like other goldfield towns in Central Otago, Arrowtown grew rapidly. In the early years accommodation for the miners consisted merely of calico tents, but this gradually changed with the erection of more permanent structures of timber and iron, and later in stone. At the end of 1864 Arrow contained 19 wholesale and retail stores, 10 hotels and several private dwellings. Arrowtown was constituted a borough in 1867 and was declared a municipality on 14 January 1874.
When the goldrush ended the town's economy centred on wheat and cereals grown in the vicinity. Today the town is a popular tourist attraction providing information on its goldmining past.
Opened in July 1873, St John’s Presbyterian Church was the second church in Arrowtown. The first, St Paul’s Anglican Church, opened on the opposite side of Berkshire Street in 1871. Presbyterianism arrived in New Zealand with settler communities, particularly those of Scottish descent. Reflecting the Scots Presbyterian origins of the Otago province, Presbyterian communities grew in mining settlements around the Wakatipu goldfields as the population became more permanent. A Presbyterian minister had preached in the Wakatipu District since 1865, with the visit of the Reverend Andrew Hamilton Stobo, first minister of the First Church, Invercargill.
Otago and Southland presbyteries abstained from participating in the first general assembly of regional presbyteries held in 1862, and subsequently resisted amalgamation into a national church. In 1866 a Southern Synod (council) was formed for the area south of the Waitaki River to administer church endowments, properties and to oversee church affairs. In 1867 the Synod sanctioned an application for Queenstown to be made a ministerial charge. The parish was served intermittently until 1869 when the Reverend Donald Ross was appointed minister for the Wakatipu parish, remaining in the position until 1891.
The Wakatipu Parish covered a broad geographical area including Glenorchy, Frankton, Gibbston, Skippers, Macetown and the Crown Terrace, in addition to Queenstown and Arrowtown. A timber church was erected in Ballarat Street, Queenstown in 1869, with services held in schools at Arrowtown, Gibbston and the Crown Terrace. At Ross’ request, in 1871 a manse was built at Frankton, believing this to be a central location in the parish. However, Ross was inconvenienced by the distance between the manse and the Queenstown church and a new manse was built in Queenstown.
A church at Arrowtown was first seriously proposed in 1871 and an Arrow Church Committee was formed of Arrowtown locals with the Reverend Ross as Chairman. The committee commenced fund-raising immediately among the local congregation and wider community. In September 1873 freehold title for four adjacent sections fronting Berkshire Street was acquired by the church, issued to William Paterson, a member of the congregation and church committee. However, it seems likely that a lag occurred between securing of title and the land transfer as by November 1872 sufficient funds had been raised to encourage the parish committee to proceed with building. Tenders were invited in mid-November 1872 for the construction of a stone church to specifications by notable Invercargill architect Frederick William Burwell (1846-1915). The contract was awarded to Queenstown builder Mr Walker at an agreed price of £550. The church was thought to be built by Chinese labour - miners who remained in the district following the decline of the initial gold rush.
The church was officially opened on 6 July 1873, by the Reverend Stobo. Unusually, the foundation stone was laid on the completion of the building and the day before its dedication and opening on 6 July 1873. An aperture was left beneath the church’s porch for the foundation stone to be laid. As part of the ceremony a bottle was embedded behind the stone containing a document detailing the background to the church’s construction, a copy of the Presbyterian newspaper, the Evangelist, other local newspapers and current coins. The church was opened in debt, but continued to fundraise until all debts were cleared.
On the completion of St John’s Church the Warden H. A. Stratford, described the ‘handsome stone church’ among a number of stone stores and a public library that were completed in the same year and contributed to the greatly improved appearance of the town. The construction of the building in stone and its architectural style and detailing further contributed to the architectural character of the Queenstown lakes district. Rather than the wood, iron and canvas of earlier years of settlement, the erection of buildings in stone attested to the permanence and ‘importance’ of the district. In contrast to Queenstown’s timber Presbyterian church, St John’s stone church was considered ‘of much greater importance’. St John’s was commended for the choice of English gothic revival style and traditional architectural elements such as the belfry and buttresses. A contemporary news report noted that the stone walls were finished in Portland cement on the exterior and plastered on the interior with an exposed timber ceiling.
An unusual, possibly unique, feature of St John’s is a fully-equipped bedroom within the timber vestry that was added to the rear of the church around 1880. Given the distributed nature of Reverend Ross’ parish, a bedroom was required to allow for overnight stays in advance of Sunday morning services. The bedroom was also used to accommodate visiting missionaries and students. The Reverend Ross’ son, Charles Ross, recalled that the vestry included a small sitting room and separate bedroom that was ‘fully and well-equipped’ with a four-poster double bed, ‘cosy mats’ on the floor and other furniture and fittings all prepared and maintained by the women of the congregation. Synod minute books indicate that the vestry was funded by a grant from the Southern Synod, awarded in September 1879. Outbuildings to accommodate the minister’s horses were also included on the church property.
The Reverend Ross resigned from his position in late 1890 and in 1891 was replaced by the Reverend Thomas Paulin. In 1895 the Reverend Paulin was called to the North Taieri congregation and he was replaced in 1896 by the Reverend R H Blair. The Reverend Blair held the position until 1901 when he was called to the Clinton district, at which point the Arrowtown congregation sought independence from Queenstown as a separate Parish. In April 1901 the division was approved by the Synod and the Arrow Parish was formed, serving Arrowtown and the surrounding area including settlements at Macetown, Crown Terrace, Gibbston, Skippers and Speargrass Flat.
The separation from Queenstown required that a manse be secured in Arrowtown. An existing house was acquired for the purpose, near the Chinese Settlement on the street now known as Manse Road, funded by a grant from the Synod. Once the manse was secured a call was made to the Reverend D K Fisher who was inducted at Arrowtown in December 1901.
The next major changes to the church property occurred in the 1930s and 40s. In 1934 a manse was erected on the church’s land at Berkshire Street, designed by W A McCaw of Invercargill. The manse was completed and dedicated in 1935. In 1939 the bell tower was removed from the roof of the church - following concerns for its stability - and remounted on the ground adjacent to the church. Some internal modifications were carried out in the 1940s, including the installation of electric power in 1945.
In 1959 the timber church at Speargrass Flat was gifted to St John’s Church for use as a church hall and Sunday school. The church was originally built at Malaghan Road, Millers Flat (Wharehuanui) in 1871 and had been relocated to Speargrass Flat Road in 1950. The building was relocated again to Arrowtown and was installed perpendicular to the vestry, extending from the northern wall. The church was removed from the site in 2010 to allow for the restoration of the vestry and the development of a new church hall and community centre, and relocated to the Buckingham Street historic area.
In February 2011 a new hall and ancillary facilities were opened at the rear of the church, designed in sympathy with the existing buildings. The modern building was designed by Arrowtown architect Jackie Gillies who also oversaw restoration of the church and vestry at the same time. In accordance with the church’s past history of independence, the improvements were funded and managed by the congregation, with grants from the Central Lakes Trust, the Community Trust of Southland and the Otago-Southland Presbyterian Synod, in addition to a public fundraising appeal.
