House

1033B Napier Road (State Highway 3), ASHHURST

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House, Ashhurst dates from circa 1878, which places it amongst the earliest remaining buildings from the initial period of European planned settlement in the Manawatu. This quaint timber double box cottage is situated in the rural area surrounding the Manchester Block town of Ashhurst, and was once the homestead of one of the original farms. After the resolution of Native Land Court cases in the 1860s the Government was able to sell a large block in the Manawatu to the Emigrant and Colonists' Aid Corporation Limited in 1871 in which they established their Manchester Block settlement. The third main town founded in the block was Ashhurst in 1877 and the same formula was implemented here as in Feilding and Halcombe before it, whereby the town was established and then when it consolidated immigrant settlers were prompted to branch out into the surrounding rural area. House, Ashhurst was constructed circa 1878 as a result of this expansion and continued to be used as a farm homestead until the end of the twentieth century. This is an unassuming modest residence constructed from timber and consisting of two gables with a lean-to spanning their width. As an initial residence from an early period of settlement the form of the building is reflective of the immediate practical preoccupations of the owners, who may also have been responsible for its construction. However, the verandah and front gable decorations indicate an awareness of fashionable architectural features and also a desire to raise the building above that of the purely functional. House, Ashhurst is an exemplar of a characteristic New Zealand building type from the late nineteenth century, the double box cottage. This house is noteworthy because of the original integrity demonstrated in its form, fabric, and context. As a building dating from the initial Manchester Block settlement around Ashhurst, this house also has significance as a one of the earliest remnants of planned European settlement in the Manawatu, and one connected to the important immigration policies promoted by Julius Vogel (1835-1899) in the early 1870s.

House | Karen Astwood | 01/10/2009 | NZ Historic Places Trust
House. East façade | Karen Astwood | 01/10/2009 | NZ Historic Places Trust
House. Lean-to section | Karen Astwood | 01/10/2009 | NZ Historic Places Trust

Location

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List Entry Information

Overview

Detailed List Entry

Status

Listed

List Entry Status

Historic Place Category 2

Access

Private/No Public Access

List Number

2813

Date Entered

4th April 2010

Date of Effect

4th April 2010

City/District Council

Palmerston North City

Region

Horizons (Manawatū-Whanganui) Region

Extent of List Entry

Extent includes part of the land described as Lot 1 DP 85311 (RT WN53A/974), Wellington Land District and the building known as House, Ashhurst thereon, and its fittings and fixtures. This extent excludes garaging and other utility structures on the property. (Refer to map in Appendix 1 of the registration report for further information).

Legal description

Lot 1 DP 85311 (RT WN53A/974), Wellington Land District

Location Description

When travelling southeast towards Palmerston North from Ashhurst along Napier Road/State Highway 3, this place is located on the northwest side just prior to the intersection with Raukawa Road, which is on the opposite side of the road.

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