In 1868 the Government purchased 741 acres of land for the town site of Gisborne which was surveyed into sections two years later. Settlement had begun in the area with Captain Read who, in 1852, was invited by local Maori chiefs to establish a trading store. For thirty years this enterprising pioneer shaped and influenced the development of Poverty Bay, establishing Gisborne's first hotel (the Albion) and the courthouse as well as introducing his own early currency system involving £1 notes that only he could cash. At the time of his death in 1878 it was estimated that he had created three quarters of the town's business property. From the early 1870's through to WWI Gisborne flourished due to the trade generated by a farming boom. Original timber buildings were replaced with masonry structures in the early decades of this century reflecting the town's confidence in the future. The majority of the buildings within the Peel St/Gladstone area are former banks or commercial premises that have had a variety of uses over the years and are significant for their streetscape value. The Masonic is an early hotel in the area that has been rebuilt several times. The site of the first Masonic Hotel fetched the highest price of £51 when the first Gisborne sections were auctioned in 1870. As Gisborne's most prestigious hotel it provided the "Royal Suite" for the 1954 tour. Another significant building is the Gisborne Herald's offices which have been in Gladstone Rd since the paper was established in 1915. Crowds often gathered outside the Herald on election night to watch election results being posted up across the windows and proclaimed from the balcony.