Christ Church, Taita, is one of the oldest surviving churches in New Zealand and the oldest church still standing in Wellington.
The first Anglican church in the Hutt Valley was little more than a raupo whare located at the settlement of Aglionby, on the western side of the Hutt River in 1841. At that time the entire Hutt Valley was part of the Wellington parish and it was not until 1855 that the separate Hutt parish of St James was formed.
Christ Church predates this event however and was constructed through the efforts of early pioneering families (mainly farmers) in the district of Taita who wanted their own church in their midst. The land for the new church was donated by Algernon Tollemache, an early settler who owned a great deal of land in Wellington and in other parts of the country. It is believed that Octavius Bousfield (1830-1882) may have designed the plans for this simple Gothic Revival timber church. Bousfield was a surveyor who arrived in New Zealand in 1851 and who is known to have been a competent draftsman. The evidence for Bousfield's involvement is a newspaper notice in February 1853 calling for tenders for the new church, the plans of which could be seen at his house in Thorndon. The tender was awarded to Sidney Hirst, a carpenter and joiner from Yorkshire, England, who arrived with his wife and children in New Zealand in 1842. Remarkably Hirst, built the church without using any nails. The first service at Christ Church was held on 1 January 1854.
Christ Church functioned without incident as Taita's parish church until the late 1940s. During that time many parishioners were buried in the extensive churchyard. In the late 1940s a branch railway was constructed to the eastern Hutt and when it passed Christ Church access from the main part of Taita became difficult. In 1950 the Taita vestry proposed to move the church to Stokes Valley. In response, the Christ Church Preservation Society was formed by concerned parishioners, under the chairmanship of Sir Winifred Sim QC. The society built a memorial wall and lychgate (designed by the father and son architectural partnership of Clere and Clere), in order re-orientate the church to the eastern Hutt Road. In 1954 a new church - St Matthew's- was built in Taita and Christ Church lost its parishioners. The society took over management of the church and it has remained responsible for its care and maintenance ever since. The controversy over the church's future was one of the events that led to the formation of the New Zealand (then National) Historic Places Trust in 1955.
In November1989 the Christ Church was severely damaged by fire. Through a public appeal, money was raised to repair the church and it was re-opened in October 1991.
Christ Church, Taita, has great significance as the oldest surviving church in Wellington. It was built by some of the earliest Pakeha settlers to the upper regions of the Hutt Valley. It has been a landmark in Taita for nearly 150 years. Within its churchyard are the graves of some of these early settlers, including Sidney Hirst and members of his family, as well as a number of local Maori, including Te Atiawa chief Manihera Matangi and his wife Haana. It is also the last resting-place of the notable architect, Frederick de Jersey Clere and his first wife, Mary Goodbehere. The church has significant technical interest in that the method of its original construction did not require nails. The successful efforts to save the church in the 1950s provided some of the impetus for the formation of the Historic Places Trust. The esteem with which the community holds Christ Church was no better illustrated than in the determination to restore the building after the disastrous fire in 1991.
The first Anglican church in the Hutt Valley was little more than a raupo whare located at the settlement of Aglionby, on the western side of the Hutt River in 1841. At that time the entire Hutt Valley was part of the Wellington parish and it was not until 1855 that the separate Hutt parish of St James was formed.
Christ Church predates this event however and was constructed through the efforts of early pioneering families (mainly farmers) in the district of Taita who wanted their own church in their midst. The land for the new church was donated by Algernon Tollemache, an early settler who owned a great deal of land in Wellington and in other parts of the country. It is believed that Octavius Bousfield (1830-1882) may have designed the plans for this simple Gothic Revival timber church. Bousfield was a surveyor who arrived in New Zealand in 1851 and who is known to have been a competent draftsman. The evidence for Bousfield's involvement is a newspaper notice in February 1853 calling for tenders for the new church, the plans of which could be seen at his house in Thorndon. The tender was awarded to Sidney Hirst, a carpenter and joiner from Yorkshire, England, who arrived with his wife and children in New Zealand in 1842. Remarkably Hirst, built the church without using any nails. The first service at Christ Church was held on 1 January 1854.
Christ Church functioned without incident as Taita's parish church until the late 1940s. During that time many parishioners were buried in the extensive churchyard. In the late 1940s a branch railway was constructed to the eastern Hutt and when it passed Christ Church access from the main part of Taita became difficult. In 1950 the Taita vestry proposed to move the church to Stokes Valley. In response, the Christ Church Preservation Society was formed by concerned parishioners, under the chairmanship of Sir Winifred Sim QC. The society built a memorial wall and lychgate (designed by the father and son architectural partnership of Clere and Clere), in order re-orientate the church to the eastern Hutt Road. In 1954 a new church - St Matthew's- was built in Taita and Christ Church lost its parishioners. The society took over management of the church and it has remained responsible for its care and maintenance ever since. The controversy over the church's future was one of the events that led to the formation of the New Zealand (then National) Historic Places Trust in 1955.
In November1989 the Christ Church was severely damaged by fire. Through a public appeal, money was raised to repair the church and it was re-opened in October 1991.
Christ Church, Taita, has great significance as the oldest surviving church in Wellington. It was built by some of the earliest Pakeha settlers to the upper regions of the Hutt Valley. It has been a landmark in Taita for nearly 150 years. Within its churchyard are the graves of some of these early settlers, including Sidney Hirst and members of his family, as well as a number of local Maori, including Te Atiawa chief Manihera Matangi and his wife Haana. It is also the last resting-place of the notable architect, Frederick de Jersey Clere and his first wife, Mary Goodbehere. The church has significant technical interest in that the method of its original construction did not require nails. The successful efforts to save the church in the 1950s provided some of the impetus for the formation of the Historic Places Trust. The esteem with which the community holds Christ Church was no better illustrated than in the determination to restore the building after the disastrous fire in 1991.
