Early History There is little information about early occupation of the St Bathans area by Māori; current archaeological records reveal no evidence of occupation, and early histories consulted provide no oral or documentary tradition of occupation. Land-locked and not immediately near awa (river) for travelling, or gathering of resources and kai, may indicate why there is little archaeological or other evidence of early settlement by tangata whenua. Māori place names between Central Otago and the Rangitātā drawn by Rāwiri Te Maire in 1898 do not reveal any Māori names in the specific area. North of St Bathans is Te Poho-o-Rakitāmau / Mount St Cuthbert, east of Te Ao Mārama (Lake Benmore). Te Poho-o-Rakitāmau was an ancestor on the Ārai-te-uru waka that capsized near Matakaea (Shag Point) on the Otago coastline who was transformed into this maunga. West of St Bathans lies the Dunstan Range over which the Māori Pass / Thompson Pass crosses. Early Māori used this passage between Moeraki and Makarora. South of St Bathans lies Ōmakau / Blackstone Hill. The name has also been applied to the wider region, and the nearby settlement located between Alexandra and Ranfurly on the north-west bank of the Manuherikia River. The awa flows into Mata-au / Clutha River and is a recorded kāinga nohoanga and kāinga mahinga kai where tuna, pora, weka, pārera, pūtakitaki, and kōareare, were gathered. Weaving its way from mountains to the sea, the Mata-au has been used as an ara tawhito by successive iwi from the earliest, Hāwea and Rapuwai; then Waitaha and Kāti Māmoe before Kāi Tahu became the dominant iwi in the late 18th century. Early Māori had settlements in other areas in Central Otago – there were six settlements at Lake Hāwea (Te Taweha o Hāwea, Mahaea, O tū Purupuru, Turihuka, Te Taumanu o Taki and Pakituhi) and one near Cromwell (Wairere). The moa-rich area was known for camps where moa were butchered and cooked (for example there were large sites in the Hawksburn and Happy Valley areas, as well as the Nevis Valley, and there were quarries used for stone tools in the region of Tiger Hills and Mount Benger. The swampy plains in the Maniototo provided eels and other food resources. These seasonal activities continued through multiple generations prior to a change in land tenure when the controversial sale of land occurred during early colonial-Kāi Tahu encounters. Once colonists found their way to the interior (ironically assisted by Māori) these activities were curtailed, especially once European colonists ‘discovered’ gold. Though Māori are known to have joined the gold rushes, nothing is known about their participation in the gold rush at Dunstan / St Bathans. The resulting mining works devastated the landscape beyond recognition and any evidence of early occupation by Māori is unlikely to have survived. From Dunstan Creek to St Bathans Gold mining began in Central Otago with Gabriel Read's discovery of gold in Gabriel's Gully, near present-day Lawrence, in 1861. Gold discoveries in 1862 pushed into inland Otago, with bustling settlements springing up to service the miners. In 1863 there was a rush at what would become St Bathans, leading to the birth of the town. First known as Dunstan Creek, the name was changed to St Bathans in 1866 by John Turnbull Thompson, Chief Surveyor, after a place of the same name in Berwickshire where his maternal grandfather lived. At the height of the gold rush, the population in the area numbered around 2,000, with thirteen hotels catering to local demands during the 1860s. The town had two banks, a police station, courthouse, jail, hospital and many businesses. The first Post Office, forming an important part of the infrastructure of such Central Otago towns, opened during the gold rushes of 1864, operating from storekeeper John Campbell's premises. An 1873 Survey Office Plan records that a plot of land (Section 11 Block I, Town of St Bathans) was reserved for the site of a Telegraph Station. In 1874 a purpose designed Post and Telegraph Office was built on the present site. Its location did not please the townspeople. On 14 March 1874 the Mount Ida Chronicle reported that the new post office was, ‘situated on the rise at the east end of the street, just beyond Murray's old bakery and a more inconvenient site can hardly be imagined. It is quite outside the township, and in winter can only be approached through a sea of mud.’ The construction of the 90-kilometre-long telegraph line between Naseby and Clyde, with a loop line to St Bathans, was started in June 1874. The telegraph office at St Bathans was opened in October of the same year, and a money order and savings bank department in 1876. Prior to coaches running to St Bathans in 1879, mail was carried on horseback. In 1898, 20,020 letters and postcards were dispatched from the office, and 22,563 letters and postcards delivered; 2,946 telegrams were dispatched and 2,626 received. The St Bathans people were fervent Liberal Party supporters and in 1906, when Joseph Ward (1817-1892) became Prime Minister, there was much rejoicing. Ward was Postmaster General in 1891, and in 1899 when he was Deputy Prime Minister he also held the portfolios of colonial secretary, industries and commerce, to which were soon added railways and public health. Sometime after 1906 Ward, who had introduced the penny post in 1901, visited St Bathans and rewarded the town for its support by granting a permit to call for specifications and tenders for the erection of a new post office. A New Post Office The St Bathans Post Office (Former) was designed by Public Works Department architect John Campbell (1857-1942), first draughtsman (1889-1899), then architect from 1899 until his retirement in 1922. Campbell was responsible for the standardisation of the architecture of government buildings, particularly evident in the design of post offices. During a post office building boom between about 1900 and 1914 he was largely responsible for two major post office buildings of similar design (the Auckland and Wellington chief post offices), and many smaller post office buildings. In 1900 Campbell had also designed the post office for Naseby, another small town in the Maniototo region of Central Otago. Writer and architect Lewis Martin reported the design for the St Bathans Post Office displayed, ‘Light touches of Campbell's characteristic decoration transform domesticity into a modest public building’. In 1908 the postmaster, Reginald Noake (1877-1951), rented the premises of the former Bank of New Zealand, located some doors down Loop Road during the construction of the new building. Noake was Post Master at all three iterations of the post office, and apparently the best remembered of all the postmasters for his engineering and mechanical skills, as well as for the many practical jokes he liked to play on his customers. The post office was relocated to the former BNZ in January 1909, when the old building was demolished. The new post office was opened on 26 November 1909. The tender to build the post office was won by Jeremiah Drummery with a construction cost of £6,854 ($1,196,860), Drummey ran over time by six months and was penalised £3 ($526) per week. The new post office had public functions on the ground floor, with a mailroom and public space separated by the counter. Telegraph and telephone areas along with post boxes were also on the ground floor, with the post master's residence (two bedrooms, sitting room, kitchen, bathroom and scullery) on the top floor, accessed via a stairwell from the rear of the mailroom. The schedule of works describes the material used in construction including rimu for window and door architraves, sarking, stair treads, risers and stringers, TG & V panelling and rafters. All dados, architraves and skirtings and all woodwork in bedrooms, sitting room, passage and staircase were oiled, stopped and varnished with three coats ?. Pumice was used in the walls to provide sound proofing and Muranese glass at the public counter and privacy screens. The service rooms were painted and the hallway, sitting room and bedrooms were wallpapered in colours and designs typical of the period. The 21 private letterboxes were accessible from the porch, and kauri posting boxes for letters and newspapers were set in the east elevation of the building. A handwritten note in the schedule of works suggests the addition of snow strapping to the spouting. Outbuildings, originally identified as a washhouse, coal room and earth closet were also constructed. In 1915 Mrs Coffey obtained permission to add a room on to the building at her own expense and providing it was removable. She did and subsequently removed it in 1918. The building was later extended, with a small sunroom added on the west corner which was demolished in the 1980s. Rain damage in 1922 saw the removal of the water tanks and a new iron cover installed. It also required the removal of damaged scrim and wallpaper. On 15 March 1923 it was decided that the level of business at St Bathans no longer warranted a permanent Post Mistress. Mrs Coffey retired in November that year. Miss Gladys Nicolson took over in April 1924 (she became Mrs Garrett in 1932). A site inspection in 1927 noted severe smoke damage in the passage and kitchen, and damage to the wall papers in a bedroom and the sitting room. Two years later, a relieving postal cadet noted in his report that only one of the 21 private boxes was in use, and that by the police. He did note that school children collected mail after school. “This being an old mining town which is now worked out, there are no means of increasing the revenue from the office in any way.’ The Big Downturn Mining operations ceased after the 1930s and as the population dwindled, buildings were either demolished or moved elsewhere. St Bathans suffered a downturn. An infestation of bees in the post office was noted in 1932, their hive was later discovered in the wall beside the fireplace in the main bedroom. The following year, Mrs Sabina Nicholson (mother of Gladys) purchased the post office for £100 ($12,775). The St Bathans Post Office closed on 5 February 1937, the telephone exchange was removed at a cost of £76 ($8,618), and the business was transferred to the local store, owned by John Enright at the time who became an agent. His wife, Elizabeth Enright also became an agent in May 1942. The office closed permanently on 15 November 1952. Following Sabina Nicolson's death in 1952 the property was inherited by her daughters Gladys Nicolson-Garret and Hilda Nicolson. In 1971 it was transferred to Thomas Duffy, who acquired freehold title in the same year. The house remained in the family until 1981. Historic Reserve In 1981 the St Bathans Post Office was transferred to the Crown as an historic reserve, under the management of the then Department of Lands and Survey in order to, ‘protect the historic vista of the main street and for its intrinsic worth.’ The post office was described as containing, ‘most of its original fittings. The upstairs flat is much as it was when occupied by the postmaster. Original fittings and wallpapers remain.’ The management plan outlines the use of the building as an historic post office with the restoration of postal service, and the maintenance of the flat ‘in its present condition’. Community Support When the St Bathans Post Office became part of the Otago Goldfields Park, there was concern within the community about its future. At this time the building was somewhat dilapidated. There was particular concern about the plan to restore the building as the locals valued its ‘well weathered patina of age’ which gave it ‘the majesty it deserves in its position towering over the rest of the town.’ The proposed coat of paint and the demolition of the later sunroom addition caused much debate in the local paper and resulted in the Otago Goldfields Park Advisory Committee to mount a public defence of its plans. The Committee explained that they wanted to show the building as an ‘an authentic example of an early twentieth century post office’ and that it would be ‘unrealistic and historically inaccurate to present the site in a state of decay and disrepair. Buildings of this type and function were always maintained regularly throughout their working life.’ Sympathetic restoration followed in 1984, when the ground floor was refurbished as a post office of the 1915 - 1920 era. The building was re-piled and painted in 1984. ‘Despatches’ On 12 December 1995 local resident Sharon Hinds officially opened her retail business ‘Despatches’ in the St Bathans Post Office. The business operated successfully selling antiques and memorabilia, and providing postal services until June 2008. During this time the post office was repainted and repiled again. The post office was visited by thousands of people during this time. The many visitor books in Keith Hinds collection are testament to the enjoyment of access to the St Bathans Post Office, the ability to send post from there, the experience of the building and its ambiance were all greatly appreciated. Under the management of Sharon Hinds, the St Bathans Post Office saw thousands of visitors. From the collection of visitors’ books, a number of comments stand out in their reference to the use of the building, their sentiment often repeated throughout the years, ‘Great usage for the old PO’, ‘It’s great to see the PO open for business again’, ‘Wonderful to see new life in the old building’, ‘Great to see the Post Office open and in such a good state’, ‘A wonderful step back in time’, ‘Great to see history being cared for’, ‘Has an authentic, historic air to it.’ Several comments were written by former residents or descendants who expressed pleasure at seeing pictures of family, or the importance of visiting where ancestors lived and worked for example, ‘A happy nostalgic return of a nephew of Israel Jewiss who worked here in 1913’. Following the death of Sharon Hinds, ‘Despatches’ closed. The final entry in the visitors’ book for 2008 reads, ‘The end of an era. Always loved, never forgotten.’ Concessionaires A concession was applied for in 2010 to transform the St Bathans Post Office into boutique accommodation. There was an overwhelmingly negative response to the proposal – 190 submissions against, four in favour and one neutral. The refurbishment of the post office for this purpose would have meant a lack of public access to the building. More concerning for many in the community, it would have seen the mailroom converted to a bedroom, the conversion of a bedroom to a bathroom upstairs, changes to the kitchen and overall changes to fixtures and fittings and losses of heritage fabric. Jeremy Salmond provided an informed and passionate critique of the proposal in favour of retaining the important heritage fabric. There followed a period of inactivity; several small businesses used the space after this but until 2019 the St Bathans Post Office lay empty. In 2020 it was utilised by the St Bathans Area Community Association (SBACA) who obtained a short concession from the Department of Conservation Te Papa Atawhai to trial the space as a community museum. A feasibility study was conducted by the SBACA in 2019 which stated the purpose of the ‘Post Office Proposal’, ‘St Bathans is a growing community. It needs a space where it can continue to celebrate and showcase its history and heritage. The St Bathans Area Community Association aims for a vibrant space that attracts more people and activity to celebrate our heritage and landscapes, promotes local pride and visitor interest. We need to breathe new life into the St Bathans Heritage Precinct, so that it’s [sic] well-known as a visitor destination and celebrated more by locals. We also need to think about the kind of facility the community requires.’ The SBACA received a, ‘great response from the community in trialling this initiative’, have sourced collections for display, and ‘have welcomed visits from groups in the local community and further afield and have provided guided tours to explain the local history and gauge interest in this venture’. During this short period, the visitors’ book expresses the community, and visitors’ appreciation at the building being open, ‘Great usage for this old PO’, ‘Its [sic] great to see the PO open for business again.’ The SBACA successfully applied to DOC for a ten-year concession to develop the space as a museum, information centre and community hub. Their application to use the St Bathans Post Office and former Gold Office were supported by the community. Their application included letters of support from the community, one statement of support read, ‘I would be very happy to see the St Bathans Post Office building regain its place as a focal point in the community. It makes no sense to have a landmark building such as this effectively standing idle. Considerable care and expense went into its restoration in the early 1980’s. Some years later, Sharon Hinds operated a paper-themed business on the ground floor. This was a sensitive use of the building, celebrating its previous function. ... I wholeheartedly support this application as a way of returning the St Bathans Post Office to a useful role in the community.’ Their period of tenure began on 1 December 2020.

Current Description Setting St Bathans in Central Otago is a unique, small, historic gold mining town. Dramatically changed by mining activity, it is a landscape of extremes: flush with growth from the heritage trees in spring, blisteringly hot and dry in summer, awash in golden leaves and light in autumn, and in winter, freezing cold with drifts of snow. The St Bathans Post Office (Former) sits on a prominent site on Loop Road, the main street. It is the first and most prominent of the buildings. Other public buildings include the former Bank of New South Wales Gold Office (List No.331) and Public Hall (List No. 2256). Private buildings include the Vulcan Hotel (List No.2259), the former Vulcan Hotel billiards rooms and stable (List No.2255), the former jail and a number of residences. The Anglican (List No.2252) and Catholic churches (List No.3210) stand at either end of the town, and the stone ruins of the school (List No.3208) are located above the main street. The view from the post office is easterly, directly across the road to a reserve and a road that leads down to the Blue Lake formed by historic mining activity. The St Bathans Post Office is a two storied timber building clad in rusticated matai weatherboards with a hipped corrugated iron roof . The building is painted a light mustard yellow with dark green facing boards, window frames and doors; window sashes are painted the same colour as the weatherboards. Many of the windows feature decorative brackets beneath the sills. The east elevation facing the street has steps up to the main entrance, and at the northern end, stepped back, there is the entrance to the residence . There are two brick chimneys, a massive external chimney breast on the southern elevation set almost flush with the weatherboards, and the second, an internal chimney connected to the scullery and mailroom fireplaces. Both are finished in plaster above the roof each with two ceramic chimney pots. The majority of the ground floor space was allocated to the postal and telegraphic services, with a wing on the north side providing a staff entrance to the post office and stairs to the residence on the first floor. The main east elevation faces Loop Road. A double hung sash window with four panes in the upper portion sits adjacent to the main entrance. The main door is a four-panelled door with a six-pane light above it. A pair of six-pane double-hung sash windows are situated to the right of this beneath which are two mail slots; there is a flight of three concrete steps up to these slots. The second storey has a pair of six-pane double-hung sash windows above the entrance to the porch, and one six-pane double-hung sash window positioned symmetrically above the lower pair. Between these is fixed the ‘Post Office’ sign. Set back at the northern end of the elevation there is a four-panelled door with a side light covered by a porch – this was the private entrance to the residence; above this is a four-pane double-hung sash window. The north elevation has one small sash window to the stair landing and two windows on the first floor. The west elevation has two six-paned double-sashed windows in the mailroom and a four-paned double-sash window in the telephone exchange. The second storey has three windows; two six-paned double-sash windows flanking a four-paned double sash window. The south elevation is dominated by the large brick chimney breast set just proud of the face of the weatherboarding; either side of this there is a six-paned double hung sash window at ground floor level, with a small three-paned window through to the telephone exchange in the western corner. There are no windows on the second storey. Interior It is important to note that there is a high level of authenticity throughout the interior of the building in terms of the fabric, fixtures and fittings. This was ascertained more than a decade ago by Guy Williams in his 2009 Heritage Inventory, and this level of authenticity has largely been maintained despite some damage in two upstairs rooms. Walls are a combination of TG & V boards fixed horizontally and painted, TG & V dados, and wallpaper. Ceilings are 12 inch boards with moulded battens and cornices. Ground Floor – public space The ground floor forms the public area of the post office and consists of a public area with a telephone bureau, two counters through to the mailroom, and a telephone exchange. On entering the building, the original private boxes would have been on the immediate right of the porch. This has been infilled with T G & V board.Ahead against the left wall are public writing desks with turned legs and glazed privacy partitions in two groups of three separated by a nib wall. The glazing is reeded/striated glass .To the immediate right is a door leading to the mailroom, and ahead on the right is the kauri service counter separated into two cubicles. Two double hung sash windows enable the counter to be closed off to the public. The star-spangled glass allows light through but would also have provided privacy. At the rear left of the room is the lush green baize lined telephone bureau with a double door for the purposes of sound proofing. A wall mounted Ericsson telephone with bakelite mouthpiece hangs on the western wall. The floors throughout the building are kauri and the ceilings are rimu. On the ground floor the ceiling timber is varnished. Remaining original joinery includes doors, skirting boards, tongue and groove lining on the walls in public areas and in the postmistress’s quarters upstairs. Switches are ceramic and bakelite, as are the power outlets. Above the dado, walls are clad in horizonal rimu boards painted a light green and beneath this is a varnished rimu dado which reaches to window sill height. Rimu window and door frames are thickly beaded with shellac. The original glass in the modesty screens separating the desks, and the internal sash windows into the mailroom from the public area diffuse and soften the light. The floor in the public area is covered in carpet tiles. Ground Floor – mailroom The mailroom is dominated by the expansive timber ceiling, timber dado and large kauri counter. Like the public area, the walls are clad in horizontal timers painted green. The telephone exchange is in the south west corner. A door in the north west leads outside. In the north east corner, a fireplace sits at an angle to the room, it has a cast iron coal fire insert and a timber mantlepiece with carved corbels. A significant fixture is the timber mailbox cupboard in the eastern wall. The floor in the public area is covered in carpet tiles. Much of this room is now used as a display area for local history material. Entrance and Stairwell The stairwell is located on the north side of the building. A doorway leads to it from the mailroom and another, private entrance, from the street. This door has two top panels of glazing, one with a relief leaf pattern and one with a mottled glazing. The side lights and light sashes are of star-spangled glass. The small hall space is atmospheric with light from the fan and side lights casting on the rich though fragile Japanese style wallpaper, in places sagging on its scrim, and the timber balustrade and stairs heavily beaded with dark stippling of shellac. A heavily patterned thick carpet is a contrast to the utilitarian areas adjacent. The timber dado flows up the stairs with a balustrade of delicate turned balusters and carved newel post. First Floor The first floor was built as a residence for the postmaster or postmistress. It consists of a sitting room, two bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, and a scullery. A long hallway bisecets the upstairs into kitchen and sitting room to the left facing the street, and two bedrooms either side of a small bathroom facing the rear of the section. First Floor – hallway The hall is narrow and the timber dado and Japanese style wallpaper over hessian (dating to 1922 when repairs were required after water tanks leaked) continue up the stairs and along the length of the hallway. Areas of wallpaper are damaged to the point that multiple layers can be seen down to the boards beneath, the original being red. A half round arch with turned corbels marks the transition from the top of the stairs to the adjacent doorways. The original fuse box hangs at the end of the hall to the right of the doorframe into bedroom 1. Kitchen and Scullery To the left is the kitchen which is clad in horizontal timbers from ceiling to floor, painted primrose. The ceiling of wide boards and architraves are painted white with a green trim, and the skirting, door and window frames are painted green. There is linoleum on the floor. A four-panel door through to the scullery is painted green with primrose panels. A Shacklock coal range firebox and wetback are set into a fireplace with a simple timber mantlepiece with carved brackets. The scullery floor is rimu boards, there are three original open shelves on the left wall, a bench with an enamel basin and doors with vertical panelling. Sitting Room The sitting room is the next room on the left off the hallway. The walls are papered (possibly dating to 1927) and the ceiling of wide boards and architraves is painted white. The skirtings are shellacked. There is loose linoleum on the floor overtop of rimu floorboards. There are three windows casting light from the east and south. A fireplace surround in the south west corner is black painted timber and has a cast iron coal fire set in. Under the window facing the street, a bolt attaches a length of hemp rope to be used as a fire escape. The Victorian chaise longue and chair are original furnishings. Bedroom 1 Bedroom 1 is adjacent the Sitting Room, the walls are papered (possibly dating to 1927) and the ceiling of wide boards and architraves are painted a light green. There is loose linoleum on the floor overtop of rimu floorboards. Skirtings and the window frame are varnished with shellac. There is a window casting light from the west. A fireplace surround in the south east corner is pink painted timber and has a cast iron coal fire set in. Bathroom The bathroom is situated on the right side of the hall between the two bedrooms and like the other rooms in the building has a wide board timber ceiling and characteristic architraves. Significantly, this room has retained its original lead floor. The room is clad in horizontal timbers painted yellow. The bath was on the left side of the room, clearly discernible by difference in paint colour on the wall. A wood seated toilet is situated south west corner. A board with four coat hooks is situated on the western wall . Bedroom 2 Bedroom 2 is closest to the stairs on the right side of the hall. The ceiling of wide boards, the architraves and window frames are painted white. The skirting is varnished with shellac and the rimu floorboards are bare. The floorboards have suffered some damage. The walls are papered (c. 1927). A hemp fire escape rope is installed under the window . Outside Adjacent to the south west corner of the post office is a small mudbrick shed with corrugated iron roof. This is in poor repair. Behind the post office is a single height rectangular building comprising three spaces: a toilet on the left, and two storage sheds. Comparative analysis Heritage New Zealand has nearly 90 former post offices on the New Zealand Heritage List/ Rārangi Kōrero across Aotearoa New Zealand. They vary enormously in size, style and age. At time of writing there are a total of 19 listed as Category 1 historic places, and 69 registered as Category 2. Rural post offices from the stable of John Campbell varied across the country, though many tended to be small, single storey and constructed of permanent materials. The following post offices have been chosen as comparators with the St Bathans Post Office (Former) because they are most similar in age, form and style.   Post Office (Former), Collingwood (List No. 5111, Category 1 historic place) Completed in 1904, the Collingwood Post Office is a fine example of the Government post offices erected throughout New Zealand in the early twentieth century and like St Bathans Post Office, was designed by John Campbell in Imperial Baroque style and built using native timbers. Larger than the St Bathans Post Office, with the kitchen and dining room downstairs and four bedrooms and a sitting room upstairs. Like St Bathans Post Office, the public spaces retain their original post office counter, tongue-and-groove wall lining, doors, skirting and flooring and staircase. St Bathans Post Office however retains more of the original fabric of the building and the patina of age that creates an atmosphere of authenticity, and the exterior has retained traditional paint colours. Both post office buildings continue to serve their communities; Collingwood as an art gallery, and St Bathans as a museum and research centre. Kaeo Post Office (Former) (List No. 9519, Category 2 historic place) Like Collingwood and St Bathans, the Kaeo Post Office is a two-storey timber structure designed by John Campbell. The former Kaeo Post office was built in 1911, and is similar to St Bathans in layout, with the public spaces downstairs and all of the private spaces on the second storey. The front elevation of Kaeo is more similar to St Bathans that Collingwood with its stepped design, however a major deviation to the original design is an extension to the building. A further major difference is the significant interior renovation that has meant the loss of original wall linings and surface finishes. The design for Kaeo Post Office was based on one of two standard approaches for smaller post offices, which consisted of a two-storeyed block of three bays with a hipped roof. Unlike earlier examples of this type, which generally emphasised the middle bay by incorporating a central gable and front porch, it was more aligned with designs created in the second decade of the 1900s which provided an entrance in each of the end bays and paired windows in a central bay. At Kaeo, the design dispensed with visual symmetry, incorporating a public front door in the western part of its front elevation and a secondary entrance for staff in a set-back bay on the east side. Like many of the later examples, its appearance was simpler and less ornate than the earlier types. Its timber construction differed from Campbell’s general preference for more durable materials, although many Northland post offices of the period were similarly erected of wood. Its two-storey design contrasts with many of Campbell’s timber post offices, both in Northland and elsewhere, which were generally a single storey in height.