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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. The gold rushes on the West Coast began in 1865 with quartz lodes or reefs (hence the name "Reefton") being discovered in the Inangahua district in 1870. By mid 1872 fifty quartz mines were registered. There were two types of gold in the region - the usual creek bed gold or the gold locked in layers of hard cemented conglomerate bedded among coal deposits. This has to be crushed with stamping batteries in order to separate out the gold. The central location of Reefton meant that the town rapidly grew and by 1873 the thriving town had a bi-weekly newspaper, two banks, telegraph communication with Westport and Greymouth, a coach service to Greymouth and three religious denominations. By 1900 the population of the district exceeded 4,000. The town prospered until 1914 then went into gradual decline. By this stage the Reefton mines had produced over a million and a quarter ounces of gold. The Reefton School of Mines was the centre for mining education in the Inangahua District. It was established in 1886 to promote a more scientific and less speculative approach to quartz gold mining and later coal mining. As well as the School of Mines, Reefton was also renowned as the first place in the Southern Hemisphere to have commercial power and electric lighting. Most of the surviving buildings associated with Reefton's gold mining past are located in a compact area where the three main roads entering the town converge.

Reefton Historic Area. School of Mines building. Image courtesy of www.flickr.com | PhilBee NZ - Phil Braithwaite | 30/01/2012 | PhilBee NZ - Phil Braithwaite

Reefton Historic Area. St Stephen's Church. CC Licence 3.0 Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org | Mattinbgn | 29/11/2011 | Mattinbgn - Wikimedia Commons

Reefton Historic Area. Reefton Courthouse (Former). CC Licence 3.0 Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org | Mattinbgn | 29/11/2011 | Mattinbgn - Wikimedia Commons

Reefton Historic Area. Oddfellows Hall. Image courtesy of www.flickr.com | Derek Smith - travelling-light | 17/11/2011 | Derek Smith

Location

List Entry Information

Overview

Detailed List Entry

Status

Listed

List Entry Status

Historic Area

Access

Private/No Public Access

List Number

7050

Date Entered

4th April 1995

Date of Effect

4th April 1995

City/District Council

Buller District

Region

West Coast Region

Extent of List Entry

This historic area consists of an area of land that contains a group of inter-related historic places. The identified historic places that contribute to the values in this historic area are the Reefton Courthouse (Former), Clerk of the Court and Survey Office House (Former), Oddfellows Hall, School of Mines, Masonic Hall (Former), Consolidated Goldfields of New Zealand General Manager's Residence (Former), Horse Trough (Former), Sacred Heart Church (Catholic), St Stephen's Church (Anglican), War Memorial Obelisk and Convent of the Sisters of Mercy (Former) [the Convent of the Sisters of Mercy building was demolished following a fire in 2007 and no longer contributes to this Historic Area]. The area of land that encompasses these historic places, includes part of the land described as part of Sec 236 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/443), Sec 237 Town of Reefton (RT NL20/34), Sec 238 Town of Reefton (RT NL122/122), Pt Secs 244-246 Town of Reefton (RT NL12/252); Secs 368-370 Town of Reefton, (RTs NL2D/360, NL2D/388, NL2D/408); Secs 381-382 and Pt Sec 383 Town of Reefton (RTs NL2B/60, NL2B/59), Secs 384-385 Town of Reefton (RT NL2B/61), Lot 1 DP 5876 (RT NL154/97), Sec 450 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/394), Secs 451-452 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/372), Sec 453 Town of Reefton (RT NL3/31), Secs 459-460 Town of Reefton (RT NL9/74), Secs 454-455 Town of Reefton (RT NL2B/67), Sec 1382 Town of Reefton (NZ Gazette 1979 p.1710), Pt Sec 1342 Town of Reefton (NZ Gazette 1989 p.4870), Lots 1-2 DP 517963 (RTs 810705, 810706) and Legal Road, Nelson Land District. Refer to the extent map tabled at the Heritage List/ Rārangi Kōrero Committee meeting on 29 October 2020. [Note that the Convent of the Sisters of Mercy building was demolished following a fire in 2007 and no longer contributes to this Historic Area].

Legal description

Sec 236 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/443), Sec 237 Town of Reefton (RT NL20/34), Sec 238 Town of Reefton (RT NL122/122), Pt Secs 244-246 Town of Reefton (RT NL12/252); Secs 368-370 Town of Reefton, (RTs NL2D/360, NL2D/388, NL2D/408); Secs 381-382 and Pt Sec 383 Town of Reefton (RTs NL2B/60, NL2B/59), Secs 384-385 Town of Reefton (RT NL2B/61), Lot 1 DP 5876 (RT NL154/97), Sec 450 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/394), Secs 451-452 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/372), Sec 453 Town of Reefton (RT NL3/31), Secs 459-460 Town of Reefton (RT NL9/74), Secs 454-455 Town of Reefton (RT NL2B/67), Sec 1382 Town of Reefton (NZ Gazette 1979 p.1710), Pt Sec 1342 Town of Reefton (NZ Gazette 1989 p.4870), Lots 1-2 DP 517963 (RTs 810705, 810706) and Legal Road, Nelson Land District

Overview

Status
Listed

List Entry Status
Historic Area

Access
Private/No Public Access

List Number
7050

Date Entered
4th April 1995

Date of Effect
4th April 1995

City/District Council
Buller District

Region
West Coast Region

Extent of List Entry

Legal description

Detailed List Entry

Significance

Cultural Significance

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. Spiritual: There are several structures within the area that have spiritual significance to some of the citizens of Reefton. The historic Catholic and Anglican churches are still used by their congregations. The convent which is now used as a private residence is a reminder of the strong Catholic presence in the West Coast at the turn of the century. In 1900 the Convent housed ten nuns who taught a total of 190 pupils at the local school. Cultural/Social: The collection of public buildings, churches, lodges and the War memorial represent the values of a thriving community at the turn of the century. Many of these structures now have new uses.

Historic Significance

Historical Significance or Value 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. For the last three decades of the nineteenth century Reefton was a major mining centre on the West Coast. Of special historical significance to the district was the School of Mines and the first installation of electric light in a New Zealand public building - the Oddfellows Hall. The variety of turn of the century buildings in Reefton give a good indication of the major role in played in the history of mining on the West Coast. The buildings, though simple, are architecturally interesting and the location has an aesthetic charm

Physical Significance

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. Architectural: When many of the Reefton buildings were erected circa 1870-1900 the future of the town was uncertain, therefore the buildings were simple, small and functional. They were built by locals with local materials, mainly timber. The public buildings (the Courthouse School of Mines, Oddfellows Hall etc.) for example, were simple but had impressive Classical facades. Many of Reefton's buildings have lost much of their architectural integrity due to the use of fibrolite cladding in later years. Aesthetic: The area within this now small, quiet West Coast town located on the banks of the Inangahua River is surrounded by densely wooden hills has aesthetic appeal.

Reference

Information Sources

Nolan, 1981

Tony Nolan, Gold Trails of the West Coast, A H & A W Reed, Wellington, revised edition 1981.

Historic Places in New Zealand

Porter, 1983

Frances Porter (ed), Historic Buildings of Dunedin, South Island, Methuen, Auckland, 1983.

Report Written By

The Convent of the Sisters of Mercy (Former) was destroyed by fire on 9 September 2007. A copy of the original report is available from the NZHPT Southern region office. Please note that entry on the New Zealand Heritage List/Rarangi Korero identifies only the heritage values of the property concerned, and should not be construed as advice on the state of the property, or as a comment of its soundness or safety, including in regard to earthquake risk, safety in the event of fire, or insanitary conditions.

Further Information

Former Usages

General Usage:: Accommodation

Specific Usage: House

General Usage:: Civic Facilities

Specific Usage: Masonic Lodge

General Usage:: Commemoration

Specific Usage: Memorial - World War One

General Usage:: Law Enforcement

Specific Usage: Administration Office

General Usage:: Law Enforcement

Specific Usage: Courthouse