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The race to restore
A HOMESTEAD with a HISTORY...
A
thenree Homestead plays an
important part in reflecting the
history of the settlement of Katikati and
Athenree. Hugh and Adela Stewart were
among the first Ulster Protestant ’Orange’
settlers (of 4000) brought over by Hugh’s
brother George Vesey Stewart.
Viewing the stately homestead currently –
with its red roof and creamy white walls – one
would think perhaps it has maintained this
pristine beauty since Hugh and Adela started
construction in 1878. One would not believe
its condition just 20 years ago – roof gashed,
sagging on collapsed walls, and floors covered
with decades of muck.
Descendants of the original Bay of Plenty
Katikati settlers despaired as they witnessed
the building’s deterioration. Once the social
centre of the region, the building was now in
ruin – until a few persevering individuals took up
the challenge. They bought the property, rallied
resources, wrote grant applications, donned their
gumboots, brought in the dump trucks, and dug
in for the long haul.
The homestead and its original owners have
a fascinating history that we will continue in
the upcoming Summer 2017 issue, but we now
present a story of the modern day volunteers who
saved the house and resurrected the land. Making
their own history, they restored the homestead
itself and kept alive the story of the area’s
pioneers. Below is a brief account of their valiant
restoration efforts and excerpts from the memoirs
of historian Ellen McCormack.
Researcher and Historian
Ellen McCormack
(Continued)
In 2016,
Ellen
McCormack published her
memoir of the project’s extensive restoration
efforts, which can be read in full (one of
many historical articles) on the Tauranga City
Libraries website.
When Hugh and Adela Stewart left Athenree to
return to Europe in 1906, the home was sold
several times. The Rapley family were longtime
owners, from 1921-1946, and the house was
occupied and maintained to a good standard
until 1952. With no attentive owners after that,
the grand old homestead was even used for
hay storage. It then started a steep decline to
near ruin, but not without being noticed.
John Rapley and his friend Snow Browne held
a dream that it could be restored, as did other
descendants of the pioneer families – the
Stewarts, Macmillans, and Johnstons.
Ellen writes, “A few of us who had watched
the Athenree Homestead deteriorate talked
amongst ourselves about the possibility of
restoration, and in 1986 John and Colleen
Rapley re-purchased the land that had been
owned by John’s family many years earlier.”
Passionate about saving the old home,
the Rapleys, Snow Browne and Ellen (a
descendant of the Macmillan family and one
of the previous owners) played a major role
in getting the restoration underway. They
started a campaign to get other volunteers
involved in clearing the debris/mud/junk and
everything else that had been dumped in the
home over the years.
“The homestead and approximately five acres
were then subdivided off and an approach
made to the Western Bay District Council to
purchase the property. All this took years but
we never lost interest and many ideas were
formulated for the future”.
“The whole house was deep in mud and the
roof was collapsing”, Ellen writes, “so no visit
was possible without gumboots. There were
no floors, except in the drawing room and part
of that ceiling was full of shrubbery, and we
braced other walls to keep them standing”.
Although several locals were devoted to this
seemingly impossible dream, many in the
community were against it, fearing that full
restoration of such a derelict property would
demand public financing. Some, shared Ellen,
even threatened to burn it down and “be
done with it”.
However the group kept at it, with both manual
labour (even working behind the ‘DANGER!
NO TRESPASSING’ tapes) and with petitions,
letters, and meetings to rally support.
In 1995 the Athenree Homestead Trust
was formed, and Ellen began successfully
campaigning for other grants and donations to
commence foundation work.
Together various experts devised an overall
Conservation/Maintenance Plan for Athenree
in 1997. Heritage architect Warwick Kellaway
came on board offering appropriate direction,
property surveys, and more.
In 1999 a starter grant was secured – $65,000
from the Waikato Trust – to replace the pilings
and roof. Ellen recalls the day when she and
her late husband Wayne drove up to see the
initial rebuilding progress. “We were both
very tearful with absolute delight, surprise
and joy. It was all at last a reality. What we
saw was absolutely unbelievable, the building
was standing up straight and tall and looked
amazing.
“We knew from that day onwards people would
at last be able to see what we were trying to
achieve. There were still many doubters and
complaints, but we had won the battle to keep
the house. The lovely old building was on the
first step to coming alive again.”
Adela Stewart’s book, ‘My
Simple Life in New Zealand’,
a comprehensive diary of
their time at Athenree, was
a valuable resource for the
homestead’s restoration
team. The book is available
at the Homestead.
24
COROMANDEL LIFE
SPRING/HOLIDAY 2016