Kete New Plymouth

With the majority of early English settlers to New Plymouth hailing from Cornwall and Devon, their descendants often looked to those regions when naming roads in the city later on. Doone Street in Lynmouth was inspired by the heroine of the celebrated Victorian novel Lorna Doone, set in Devonshire.

Written by Richard Doddridge Blackmore in 1869, Lorna Doone is an historical romance about farmer John Ridd and his love for the beautiful Lorna. Blackmore (1825-1900) was not born in Devon but often described himself as a Devonian after a childhood spent in the region. The son of a clergyman, his

This attractive bungalow residence was constructed for plasterer George Knight in 1924 - it was originally located at 269 Courtenay Street and relocated to its present site in 1971.

A permit for the construction of a house on Town Section 2058 Courtenay Street, was granted to George Knight by the New Plymouth Borough Council on August 20th 1924 - Jones and Sandford were listed as the builders and the estimated construction cost was £1500. It seems likely George completed the exterior stucco plastering himself.

George Knight is listed as residing in the house until the early 1940s,

Culzean Grove runs off Glamis Avenue in Bell Block and was named after an opulent castle in Scotland.

In 1975 the Totara Park Development Company created a subdivision in the area called Kingsdown with the slogan “Not just a place to live, but a way of life”. The company was a subsidiary of M.S.D. Speirs, now known as the Speirs Group, who had pioneered fast food restaurants in New Zealand with their Big Tex chain.

The name Kingsdown was chosen to incorporate that of prominent local family the Kings, who had previously owned the land. In keeping with the royal

2015 View

This attractive villa residence was constructed during the early 1900s and was originally located near the present site of 15 Ngaio Street in Strandon, New Plymouth. Based on its style Frank Messenger was likely the architect.

The house was relocated to its present site during 1970 to enable the construction of flats on the Ngaio Street site.

See: Taranaki Daily News, 5 December 2015 

2017 View

This attractive villa was originally constructed in 1905 as a rental property for well-known New Plymouth businessman Walter Morey, who resided next door at the now demolished villa 'Noradene'.

A permit for construction of this villa was granted to Morey by the Borough Council on the 1st of August 1905; the estimated construction cost was £504, and although Morey is listed as the architect, based on the style of the house, Frank Messenger seems the