The Old Schoolhouse

• 1993
• Re-piled SR2473
• 2008
• Subdivision SR141743

Not assessed

Not assessed

The Old Schoolhouse is a simple, single storey Georgian-style cottage built in 1859 – 60. The house was built in two parts, each with a steeply-pitched gable roof that may well have originally been clad in timber shingles. It has a simple, narrow verandah to the west (Oxford Street) façade, and a small lean-to extension to the rear (north-east) corner.

The Oxford Street façade is notable for its row of three sash windows that have wide, Georgian rather than Victorian, proportions. The glazing bars are particularly finely moulded and the windows are likely to early or original. The timber/glass entrance door is a later alteration.

The street façade is clad in rusticated weatherboards that were generally produced in saw mills or joinery factories by sophisticated steam-powered moulding machines from the 1860s onwards. This is a relatively unusual feature for a cottage of this date, and perhaps reflects the building’s social status as a schoolhouse, rather than a humble domestic dwelling. The shiplap weatherboards on the north elevation are more typical of the late 1850s, but most of these appear to have been replaced at some time in the c.20th, and the wall is clad in a mix of boards of varying profiles and of varying dates. The casement windows are a relatively recent addition that are likely to date from the c.1940s onwards and appear to have recently been replaced again in the 1990s – 2000s. Despite these changes, the building, itself, retains many of its original features, and its form remains relatively coherent. The most unfortunate change in recent years is its loss of setting from a ¼ acre, semi-rural, site that has since been subdivided in a way that is particularly unsympathetic to this significant historic building.

Corrugated mild steel (or possibly iron) roof

Timber weatherboards – some rusticated, others ship-lap

Timber framing.

Oxford Street is a suburban residential street that runs parallel to Tawa’s Main Road.

The old schoolhouse has some relationship with the current Tawa School to the south, and with the historic former Bartlett Homestead (30/239) to the north.

• Architectural

  Does the item have architectural or artistic value for characteristics that may include its design, style, era, form, scale, materials, colour, texture, patina of age, quality of space, craftsmanship, smells, and sounds?

  The old School House is an attractive single-storey Georgian-style cottage that was purpose-built as a school and master’s residence.

• Group

  Is the item part of a group of buildings, structures, or sites that taken together have coherence because of their age, history, style, scale, materials, or use?

  The building has some group value for its relationship with the current Tawa Primary School and with the nearby Bartlett House – all of which are located on Oxford Street.

• Townscape

  Does the item have townscape value for the part it plays in defining a space or street; providing visual interest; its role as a landmark; or the contribution it makes to the character and sense of place of Wellington?

  The cottage is a local landmark as one of the last remaining buildings that date from the early years of the settlement of Tawa Flat.

• Association

  Is the item associated with an important person, group, or organisation?

  The building is one of the oldest and most significant historic buildings in suburban Tawa. It is associated with the lives of almost all of the early farming settler families whose children were educated at Tawa Flat School. The use (and eventual replacement of the school house) reflects the growth of the suburb from its origins as a small farming settlement in the mid 19th century.

• Archaeological

  Does the item have archaeological value for its ability to provide scientific information about past human activity?

  Pre-1900 building.

• Technological

  Does the item have technological value for its innovative or important construction methods or use of materials?

  The building has technological value for its age, materials (possibly local timber), and local construction techniques.

• Identity Sense Of Place Continuity

  Is the item a focus of community, regional, or national identity? Does the item contribute to sense of place or continuity?

  The building has had few modern alterations and additions (with the exception of the poorly conceived subdivision, and the rear (north-eastern) kitchen addition) over the past 150 years and contributes to the continuity and sense of place of suburban Tawa.

• Public Esteem

  Is the item held in high public esteem?

  The building is featured in several books on local issues and is likely to be held in high public esteem

• Authentic

  Does the item have authenticity or integrity because it retains significant fabric from the time of its construction or from later periods when important additions or modifications were carried out?

  The building retains much of its original built fabric.

• Rare

  Is the item rare, unique, unusual, seminal, influential, or outstanding?

  The building is a rare example of an early rural school house

• Representative

  Is the item a good example of the class it represents?

  The building is a good representative example of domestic architecture of the 1850s & 60s.

Not assessed

• Murray, Bruce. The Streets of Tawa. Tawa: Tawa Historic Society, 2005.
• Carman, Arthur H. Tawa Flat and the old Porirua Road 1840 – 1982. Trentham:
• Wright and Carman, 1982.
• Cassells, K.R. Tawa: Enterprise and Endeavour. Tawa: Tawa Borough Council, 1988.
• Stuart Arden & Ian Bowman. The New Zealand Period House: A Conservation Guide. Auckland: Random House, 2004.
• Wellington Independent, 30 January 1866, Page 4

Not available

Not available