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Kingsdown Manor has an interesting history.
In 1905 the Anglican Chapel known as Saint Matthews was opened for public use, serving the residents of the Kingsdown area. Clad in weatherboards, the chapel remained a focal point in the lives of those in the area until early in the 1970's when like many other small churches in country areas it was deconsecrated and closed.
Above: Members of the St. Matthews Parish, Kingsdown
assembled for the fiftieth anniversary in 1955.
Above: Wedding of Norma Crawford (nee Campbell) at St. Matthews,1966.
This was the first wedding to be held at Saint Matthews for over 30 years.
Most weddings were held at the church in Otipua,which catered for larger numbers.
Norma's grandfather was a founding member of the very first church committee.
The land and buildings that once belonged to the church community were passed into private ownership (see newspaper article). Over the ensuing years the then owner, Mr Tyree, set about building onto the property with a dream to see it operating as it does today. This was a very lengthy process. In fact it took about 20 years as he scoured recycling and demolition yards. sourcing the materials that give the place the character and sense of history it is well known for today.
Standing out in the landscape with its distinctive turret, the buildings became very much a talking point and a curiosity as the general public watched its development with interest.
2005 saw the Manor breathe new life as Peter and Rochelle decided to embark on the challenge of turning the property into a boutique accommodation provider and conference and wedding venue. Moving from Southland, and from a life very different from that at Kingsdown, they embraced the challenge of restoring the grand old lady to her former glory.
Pictured: Rochelle and Peter begin their renovations in 2005.
Over the years, the repairs and maintenance had not been kept up and the wear and tear was beginning to show in lots of the originally recycled materials. Builders spent countless hours doing general maintenance work such as replacing rotten corners on windows - no mean feat when you are dealing with a two storied house with very steep rooves, I can assure you!
CHAPEL
This beautiful building, over 100years old, was in good general repair thanks to the exterior cladding of brick that has protected it since its recladding from weatherboards in the early 1970's.
The rimu floor in the chapel had been taken over by borer and was rotten in many places making it a real hazard. After sourcing over 100metres of recycled floor boards the painstaking work of cutting out the rot and replacing the boards took two men over a week. By the end of it all we could confidently shift the piano around without wondering if it was going to fall through the floor!
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