This matched pair of buildings sits on Sections 14-15 Block LXXV on Tay Street in Invercargill. Section 14 was first granted to saddler George Goodwillie in January 1875. Goodwillie transferred the land to Invercargill contractor John Ramsay in May 1877. 1890 saw the mortgagee sale of the property to John Thomson. The property was transferred to Thomson and Beattie Limited in 1903.
Section 15 was first granted to sailmaker Nicholas Burrows in 1875. In October 1877, Burrows transferred the title drapers James Beattie and John Thomson. Thomson and Beattie began their enterprise with a store in the small Southland town of Flint’s Bush (1869). Hearing that Winton was more go-ahead, they sold up and opened in Winton (1871). They opened a store in Invercargill (1875) next to the Colonial Bank, then on the south side of the Athenaeum, and then on Tay Street – their building known as ‘The Exhibition’. They also opened Gore (1876) and Otautau (1902) branches. Thomson died in 1916, and Beattie in 1935.
Architect Frederick Burwell invited tenders for Thomson and Beattie’s ‘warehouse’ in late 1880. Contractor David Stewart won the tender. The Southland Times described the progress on the building ‘now beginning to show its proportions above the footpath on the south side of Tay street’ in March 1881. The main elevation was designed in ‘New Queen Anne’ style, ‘the first of its kind here.’ The basement was 120 feet long, providing a dray entrance to Wood Street. The basement was lit by footpath level windows on Tay Street. The ground floor had a sixteen foot stud, and was to be occupied by the sales department at the street front and by the fitting rooms and office at the rear. A five foot wide ‘semi-circular’ staircase provided access to the first floor and its ‘handsome showrooms and dressmakers’ workrooms’ and a 12 foot stud. The centre of the building was lit by a large cupola, constructed as a gallery, allowing light to penetrate to the ground floor. Employee access through the building was provided by a secondary stair. The reporter concluded that the building ‘marks an era in the business importance of the south side of Tay street such as it has not known since the great fire in 1864.’ Six months later, a reporter described the warehouse as a ‘sight of itself and excites astonishment that it should be designed for the accommodation of one class of good only in a town of the dimensions of Invercargill.’ Of course, the article continued, ‘it has been built for the future, and we have little doubt that the future will justify the sagacious anticipations of the owners.’
Thomson and Beattie further extended their premises in 1891. They purchased the adjacent property – Ramsay’s Hall and converted it for their own purposes. Contractor John Ramsay had built the hall in 1877. Nearly complete in October of that year, the building was two-storeys and built of brick and stone. Facilities consisted of a main hall with stage, side wings and rooms to the rear. There was a gallery with a raked floor and a shop with a double front below the gallery on the street front. Access to the main hall was by two front doors at either corner of the building. The hall accommodated some 500 people. The hall had been a venue for concerts and public talks.
Thomson and Beattie’s closed in the late 1960s, and the building saw various commercial tenants. Sections 14 and 15 were owned by Thomson and Beattie Limited until 1993, when both sections were sold to H and J Smiths Limited. In 2017, the building is home to Classic Motorcycle Mecca.
Section 15 was first granted to sailmaker Nicholas Burrows in 1875. In October 1877, Burrows transferred the title drapers James Beattie and John Thomson. Thomson and Beattie began their enterprise with a store in the small Southland town of Flint’s Bush (1869). Hearing that Winton was more go-ahead, they sold up and opened in Winton (1871). They opened a store in Invercargill (1875) next to the Colonial Bank, then on the south side of the Athenaeum, and then on Tay Street – their building known as ‘The Exhibition’. They also opened Gore (1876) and Otautau (1902) branches. Thomson died in 1916, and Beattie in 1935.
Architect Frederick Burwell invited tenders for Thomson and Beattie’s ‘warehouse’ in late 1880. Contractor David Stewart won the tender. The Southland Times described the progress on the building ‘now beginning to show its proportions above the footpath on the south side of Tay street’ in March 1881. The main elevation was designed in ‘New Queen Anne’ style, ‘the first of its kind here.’ The basement was 120 feet long, providing a dray entrance to Wood Street. The basement was lit by footpath level windows on Tay Street. The ground floor had a sixteen foot stud, and was to be occupied by the sales department at the street front and by the fitting rooms and office at the rear. A five foot wide ‘semi-circular’ staircase provided access to the first floor and its ‘handsome showrooms and dressmakers’ workrooms’ and a 12 foot stud. The centre of the building was lit by a large cupola, constructed as a gallery, allowing light to penetrate to the ground floor. Employee access through the building was provided by a secondary stair. The reporter concluded that the building ‘marks an era in the business importance of the south side of Tay street such as it has not known since the great fire in 1864.’ Six months later, a reporter described the warehouse as a ‘sight of itself and excites astonishment that it should be designed for the accommodation of one class of good only in a town of the dimensions of Invercargill.’ Of course, the article continued, ‘it has been built for the future, and we have little doubt that the future will justify the sagacious anticipations of the owners.’
Thomson and Beattie further extended their premises in 1891. They purchased the adjacent property – Ramsay’s Hall and converted it for their own purposes. Contractor John Ramsay had built the hall in 1877. Nearly complete in October of that year, the building was two-storeys and built of brick and stone. Facilities consisted of a main hall with stage, side wings and rooms to the rear. There was a gallery with a raked floor and a shop with a double front below the gallery on the street front. Access to the main hall was by two front doors at either corner of the building. The hall accommodated some 500 people. The hall had been a venue for concerts and public talks.
Thomson and Beattie’s closed in the late 1960s, and the building saw various commercial tenants. Sections 14 and 15 were owned by Thomson and Beattie Limited until 1993, when both sections were sold to H and J Smiths Limited. In 2017, the building is home to Classic Motorcycle Mecca.
