New Plymouth Buildings
The architectural make-up of New Plymouth since European settlement stretches from the early cottages of the1840s to the shiny steel-plated exterior of the planned Len Lye Centre. In between has come the transition from timber buildings to concrete, the art deco of the 1930s and the modernism of the 1960s. While a few private residences remain from the early days of European settlement, the Central Business District looks nothing like early paintings and photos. The early wooden buildings have mostly been demolished or destroyed by fire to be replaced by larger reinforced concrete premises. Both commercial and domestic buildings feature in this topic, which can be searched either by the age of the building or its location.
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Explore New Plymouth Buildings on the map below - buildings in blue are still standing in their original location; those in red have been either demolished or shifted outside New Plymouth District/to an unknown location; those in purple have been relocated within New Plymouth District.
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This attractive early bay villa was constructed during the mid-1880s for accountant Paul Champion Morton and his wife Mary Lewis Morton.
The recently subdivided allotment at the corner of Devon Street West and Cutfield Road was purchased by Mary Lewis Morton during September 1886, with the present house constructed as the Morton's family home soon after.
The Morton's appear to have resided in the house until Mary's death in 1903, after which
Little is currently known about the history of this cottage, although it was probably constructed in the mid-1860s for Thomas Clare following the conclusion of the Taranaki Wars. There has been some suggestion that the cottage may be pre-1860, although this seems unlikley given Charles Clare's original two-storey home (probably on this section) was destroyed in 1860.
The original portion is the eastern section, mainly clad in plain weatherboard, but with some vertical board and
On the 3rd of November 1906, a permit was granted to the wife of prolific New Plymouth builder George W. Hartnell for the construction of a residence on the vacant western portion of Town Section 35, Hine Street - the architect/builder was George W. Hartnell, and the estimated construction cost was £277.
The house was constructed in the villa style and was nearly identical in appearance to the two villas at present 48 and 50 Hine Street, also constructed by Hartnell just a year later.
The villa at 46 Hine Street was either removed or demolished during 2005
This doctor's surgery was located at 131 Powderham Street, on the corner of Powderham and Dawson. Designed by architect Frank Messenger in 1901-2, with additions made in 1912, it has since been demolished and replaced by the offices of Nicholsons Lawyers.
2018 View
This large single storey villa appears to have been constructed in the 1890s, possibly for New Plymouth ironmonger Alfred Hughes Arnold and his family, although land ownership for the later decades of the nineteenth century is somewhat unclear.
Alfred’s wife, Emily, is first listed in electoral rolls as residing on the ‘Hospital Road’ (now Mangorei Road) from 1896, whilst Alfred is simply listed as residing at ‘New Plymouth’ until 1898, when he is listed as residing on the
National Bank of New Zealand (Puke Ariki collection, WD.017151)
The National Bank of New Zealand first opened a branch in New Plymouth in April 1873. These first premises were in Devon Street - where the Deare's Building is located - and in 1878 the bank purchased a section on the south-east corner of Brougham and Devon Streets.
Construction of the building
Located on the corner of St Aubyn Street and Egmont Street, this Lion Tavern opened for business on 6 August 1970. It was described as catering for the "discerning drinker" with the private and lounge bars offering "comfort and privacy." The public bar on the ground floor was designed to cater for 90 patrons.
The building was designed by a team of architects from New Zealand Breweries and cost $190,000. It was built by Jones & Sandford Ltd.
Later Bond & Bond converted the Lion Tavern into a retail outlet.
2019 View From Sale Listing
The story of the present house at 88A Carrington Street begins at a sale of Education Board leases in May 1902, when Stephen Boothby White and G. H. Maunder purchased the lease for lot 2 of sub 4 of Education Reserve W; they paid a total of £22 10s. Two months later, during July 1902, White and Maunder surrendered their lease for this property and had the section subdivided in two, with new (separate) leases for
Tupare is a Chapman-Taylor designed residence on Mangorei Road. The plans were prepared in 1932 for Russell and Elizabeth Matthews, a substantial private home in the traditional English-style design.
A clause in the specifications allowed for 'alteration' to the design and Chapman-Taylor agreed to work "...under instructions from Russell Matthews Esq. who will himself employ the workmen and supple the materials and will place the work under the controlof the Designer who will act as Architectand as Foreman in charge of the job. Therefore this Specification will take the
This attractive villa residence was likely constructed during the mid-1900s for Carl Sorensen.
Carl purchased the property on which the villa is located (Part Section D of Hua & Waiwhakaiho District) in March 1904 and appears to have had the present villa constructed as his family home soon after.
In 1906, Carl discovered on the property large deposits of high-quality Kaolin, a pure white clay for ceramics. These Kaolin deposits attracted considerable media attention and in 1908 the farm was sold to an international consortium who hoped to mine the clay from
