The following text is from the original registration report considered by the NZHPT Board at the time of registration. Joseph Senior White (1834-1905), Merchant, came to Canterbury from Australia about 1856. He established a prosperous business in North Canterbury, owning a chain of stores known as the Beehive Emporiums. In the early 1860's he started to buy the farm which he called Ohoka. He is believed to have been farming the land before he was given the Crown Grant in 1867-68. There he planted 100,000 imported trees, some of which still survive and made a kiln of fire bricks for his grand homestead. Ohoka Homestead was built about 1872 and it would appear that the stables and dovecote were built at the same time. In 1880 White gifted 3/4 acre of land to the Kaiapoi Borough to be held as public reserve. This forms the north part of Darnley Square. Since White's death in 1905 Ohoka has had eight owners. Because horses were in general use on New Zealand farms until well into the twentieth century, stable buildings have been maintained in many parts of the country. Dovecotes, while found on a number of stable buildings such as Mayfield (c.1860s) and Galloway Station Stables, Central Otago (c.1860) do not seem to have been particularly common.