This historic place was registered under the Historic Places Act 1993. This report includes text from the original Recommendation for Registration considered by the NZHPT Board at the time of registration.

Nelson was the second New Zealand Company settlement following the successful settlement at Wellington. It was named after England's Admiral Lord Nelson (1758-1805). Nelson was established by Captain Arthur Wakefield (1799-1843) in 1841 landing at Wakatu (Nelson Haven) in early November of that year.

Wakefield pitched his tent on what became known as Church Hill. Before the arrival of Europeans Church Hill had been known as Pikimai and was the site of a pa. From its summit Captain Wakefield erected a pole which was used as a marker in the surveying of Nelson. From here the two main thoroughfares, Trafalgar and Nile Streets, were laid out. The New Zealand Company's buildings including storerooms and barracks were erected on Church Hill and following the Wairau Massacre in 1843, in which Captain Wakefield was killed, the site was fortified and named Fort Arthur.


In 1848 Bishop Selwyn acquired one acre of land on Church Hill from the New Zealand Company and the fortifications were removed. The first ecclesiastical building, Christ Church, was erected in 1851. From the Church Steps, Trafalgar Street runs almost due north. Trafalgar Street has remained one of Nelson's main commercial thoroughfares since the days of the New Zealand Company. The New Zealand Company went bankrupt in 1844. The town's fortunes improved following the discovery of gold at Collingwood in 1857 and in the 1860s there were developments in agriculture. By the 1880s many orchards had been established, forming a commercial base of primary industry on which Nelson continues to rely today.

The wide range in heritage buildings on Trafalgar Street, between Hardy Street and Trafalgar Square are testimony to its importance in Victorian and Edwardian times.