Elm Grove Farm Complex in Greytown, comprising a homestead and an assortment of outbuildings, been resided in by successive generations of the Kempton family since it was built in 1865. It has historical significance as the home of one of the first Pākehā families to settle in Greytown, and represents the early development of a working farm comprised of a substantial homestead and the ancillary buildings essential for its running. The buildings are good representations of typical rural architecture of the nineteenth century and reflect the development of the farm complex over time.
Māori first settled in Wairarapa during the late 1300s. The first peoples had moved away by the 1600s and Rangitāne, Ngāti Ira and Ngāti Kahungunu then settled in the area. In 1821 Ngāti Whātua and Ngāti Maniapoto, followed by other Taranaki tribes, invaded the region but Ngāti Kahungunu resettled the area in the 1830s. In 1853 40,000 acres of land was purchased by Donald McLean, the Crown’s Chief Land Purchase Commissioner, from Manihera Te Rangitakaiwaho of Ngāti Kahungungu and Ngatuere Tawhirimatea of Waiohine. This land was purchased and surveyed by the Small Farms Association in 1853-54, who in turn sold it to Pākehā settlers. Greytown was formally established on 27th March 1854 by a group of these settlers which included Thomas Kempton and his son. The Kemptons were allocated a one- acre section in the township and a 40-acre piece of farmland and in around 1860 they set about establishing the farm eventually known as Elm Grove Farm.
The original Elm Grove homestead was built around 1865 of locally milled tōtara with four rooms and a shingle roof. It was added onto as the Kempton family grew and their farming operation prospered. In 1868 an upper storey was added to the homestead and a pantry, washhouse, cellar, milk room and bakehouse added to its side. In 1876 a major two-storied wing with hipped roof, double hung sash windows and five extra rooms was added onto the homestead. Like the original structure, the exterior is clad with weatherboards but has decorative timber quoins, an architectural style using timber to mimic the look of stone buildings. The worker’s cottage was built in 1878, the tool shed in 1895 and the woolshed in 1915.
When Thomas Kempton (junior) died in 1910, the farmland was divided between his thirteen children; one of these, Frank Kempton, inherited the block with the homestead. He bought other blocks from his siblings. The woolshed was built in 1915 to replace an earlier one that had burnt down. In 2008 alterations to the homestead shifted the living areas from a southerly to a northerly aspect and a garage was added on to replace the existing lean-to. The 1970s lean-tos on the eastern and southern sides of the nearby tool shed were also removed and a deck and rear extension were added as it was then converted to new use as short-term accommodation. The former tool shed, which is believed to have been previously moved in the 1930s, was moved closer to the road in 2021. It was renovated and re-opened as accommodation known as Elm Grove Cottage. In 2012 Elm Grove Farm Complex was awarded the New Zealand Century Farm and Station award, acknowledging more than a hundred years of ownership of the property by one family.
Māori first settled in Wairarapa during the late 1300s. The first peoples had moved away by the 1600s and Rangitāne, Ngāti Ira and Ngāti Kahungunu then settled in the area. In 1821 Ngāti Whātua and Ngāti Maniapoto, followed by other Taranaki tribes, invaded the region but Ngāti Kahungunu resettled the area in the 1830s. In 1853 40,000 acres of land was purchased by Donald McLean, the Crown’s Chief Land Purchase Commissioner, from Manihera Te Rangitakaiwaho of Ngāti Kahungungu and Ngatuere Tawhirimatea of Waiohine. This land was purchased and surveyed by the Small Farms Association in 1853-54, who in turn sold it to Pākehā settlers. Greytown was formally established on 27th March 1854 by a group of these settlers which included Thomas Kempton and his son. The Kemptons were allocated a one- acre section in the township and a 40-acre piece of farmland and in around 1860 they set about establishing the farm eventually known as Elm Grove Farm.
The original Elm Grove homestead was built around 1865 of locally milled tōtara with four rooms and a shingle roof. It was added onto as the Kempton family grew and their farming operation prospered. In 1868 an upper storey was added to the homestead and a pantry, washhouse, cellar, milk room and bakehouse added to its side. In 1876 a major two-storied wing with hipped roof, double hung sash windows and five extra rooms was added onto the homestead. Like the original structure, the exterior is clad with weatherboards but has decorative timber quoins, an architectural style using timber to mimic the look of stone buildings. The worker’s cottage was built in 1878, the tool shed in 1895 and the woolshed in 1915.
When Thomas Kempton (junior) died in 1910, the farmland was divided between his thirteen children; one of these, Frank Kempton, inherited the block with the homestead. He bought other blocks from his siblings. The woolshed was built in 1915 to replace an earlier one that had burnt down. In 2008 alterations to the homestead shifted the living areas from a southerly to a northerly aspect and a garage was added on to replace the existing lean-to. The 1970s lean-tos on the eastern and southern sides of the nearby tool shed were also removed and a deck and rear extension were added as it was then converted to new use as short-term accommodation. The former tool shed, which is believed to have been previously moved in the 1930s, was moved closer to the road in 2021. It was renovated and re-opened as accommodation known as Elm Grove Cottage. In 2012 Elm Grove Farm Complex was awarded the New Zealand Century Farm and Station award, acknowledging more than a hundred years of ownership of the property by one family.
