Akaroa Historical Overview - Christchurch City Council

The most important concentration of these smaller 19 th century homes is on the
southern length of Rue Jolie, from the Beach Road corner up to the entrance to the
Garden of Tane. The older buildings on the lower section of Rue Jolie south are the
subject of a valuable monograph, Barbara Allison’s An Akaroa Precinct. 20 The oldest of
the houses in this precinct date from 1860s; the youngest were built in the early 20 th
century. There are more 19 th century cottages on the stretch of Rue Jolie above the Bruce
Terrace corner. (The significance of the stretch of Rue Jolie from the Beach Road corner
up to the entrance to the Garden of Tane is greater because it also has examples of
houses built throughout the 20 th century, making the street a remarkably, perhaps
uniquely, comprehensive catalogue of New Zealand domestic architectural styles. 21 )
As some residents of Akaroa became wealthier, when the town gained improved
transport and access to markets, several medium-sized and even large houses were built.
These houses, most of two storeys, were the family homes of people who had done
relatively better than some other Akaroa residents.
One early house (possibly 1862) which was not two-storeyed but still larger than a
cottage is the house known as The Poplars towards the northern end of Rue Lavaud. A
slightly later example, of two storeys, is the house on upper Rue Jolie known as The
Maples. The Maples has a twin on Rue Balguerie, the Presbyterian manse of 1872 (refer
figure 5.7). Significantly, most of these larger houses were built on sites where they were
hidden to some extent by the lie of the land and were located in large grounds and
surrounded by trees. They did not dispel the general impression that Akaroa’s houses are
cottages or medium-sized. 22
Two of the earliest of the surviving larger 19 th century houses in Akaroa are among the
town’s most significant buildings historically. Both were the homes of early Akaroa
settlers of greater means than most. The first part of Glencarrig was built in 1852-53 by
the Rev. William Aylmer, who took up one of the rural sections adjoining the town. This
first part of Glencarrig is a single storey, square house with a hip roof that extends out
over verandahs. This building has a plain, symmetrical appearance that gives it a Georgian
or Australian Colonial air (refer figure 5.8). Some time in the last 15 years of the 19 th
century, a later owner added a more elaborate, two-storey wing which made the house
larger than was usual for Akaroa. 23
Blythcliffe was built after Augustus White bought five acres of John Watson’s 50-acre
rural section in the mid 1850s. Blythcliffe had a generous verandah along its frontage
and, originally, a flat roof which gave it an unusual appearance for a Canterbury house. A
new, pitched roof was built later. Samuel Farr was possibly the architect for the original
house. 24 Some distance further up Rue Balguerie from Blythcliffe, Arthur Westenra,
manager of the Bank of New Zealand in Akaroa, built Linton in 1881. This large, grand
Italianate house, which also survives, was designed by a Christchurch architect, A.W.
Simpson 25 (refer figure 5.9).
20 Allison, An Akaroa Precinct, passim. The references in this report are all from the 2008 edition.
21 Wilson, A Rue Jolie Walk, passim
22 Fearnley, Unpublished manuscript, ch. 8
23 Sewell, Journal, vol. 1, p. 328; Leaflet prepared for Akaroa Civic Trust AGM, 18 November 2006
24 The Press, 3 March 1979;
25 Ogilvie, Cradle, p. 39
AKAROA HERITAGE OVERVIEW : SECTION 5 THE COLONIAL TOWN 1850 TO 1900 PAGE 39