The following text is from the original Proposal for Classification report presented to the Board 1 July 1993. Belmont was built c1860 for Captain Thomas B Taylor, a wealthy landowner and one of the Principals of the shipping firm Taylor and Watt. This firm played a very significant role in the development of the Wanganui District during the early-mid 19th Century. The house is the sole surviving link with Captain Taylor and the firm of Taylor and Watt. Belmont homestead is built of rimu and matai timber and is an excellent example of the early New Zealand "functional tradition" house, displaying characteristic features of symmetrical design, rectangular form, timber frame and weatherboarding with a hipped roof in the Georgian/Regency style.