DESCRIPTION: The freehold of the block was acquired in 1877 by Sir Edward Chetham Strode, the father of Alfred R.C. Strode, Dunedin's first resident magistrate. After the former's death in 1886, his widow held the land until 1922. There were probably houses on this land from the early 1860s. From this time many leases were registered until a 99 year lease was granted to Daniel Haynes in 1886, backdated to 1874. In 1901 Haynes built the houses that stand there today. They originally held seven dwellings and two sets of doctor's rooms. The first inhabitants included a dentist, a music teacher, a surgeon and a music dealer. The lease, and freehold, were acquired by Riccarton horse trainer John William McCombe by 1922. Yoka Neuman established the Lesbian Mothers’ Defence Fund (LMDF) in Dunedin in 1979 where she was a prominent activist in defending child custody cases for lesbian same-sex households. The LMDF also provided support women leaving heterosexual marriages for lesbian relationships where they risked losing custody of their children. She was also a leading volunteer at Daybreak Bookshop, New Zealand’s first feminist bookshop. The bookshop at 207 Stuart Street specialised in feminist and alternative literature and was opened by the Dunedin Collective for women in 1980. It later closed in 1982. Whilst it was only open for a short time, the significance of this store as a feminist space is significant. The bookstore was founded by eight women; Denny Boothe, Jocelyn Harris, Pat Lawson, Andree Levesque, Judith Medlicott, Edith Mercier, Penny Moore, and Diana Strang. A succession of landlords have since held the property with the present owner buying the terrace in 1980. The houses have been restored and refurbished using period joinery and furnishings.
Location
List Entry Information
Overview
Detailed List Entry
Status
Listed
List Entry Status
Historic Place Category 1
Access
Private/No Public Access
List Number
4709
Date Entered
2nd February 1990
Date of Effect
2nd February 1990
City/District Council
Dunedin City
Region
Otago Region
Legal description
Lot 1-3 DP 6009 and Pt Lot 4 DP 6009 (RTs OT323/88, OT11B/1069), Otago Land District
Stay up to date with Heritage this month
