Nathan Homestead

Nathan Park and Homestead

Nathan Homestead and Park
General information
Architectural style	Tudor Revival
Address	68R Hill Road, Manurewa, Auckland
Coordinates	37°00′56″S 174°54′09″E
Year(s) built	1923-1925
Opened	14 October, 1978
Owner	Auckland Council
Design and construction
Architect(s)	D.B Patterson
Website
Auckland Council - Park Details

David Nathan Park and Homestead is a historic site located in Manurewa, Auckland, New Zealand. Developed from the remnants of the Nathan family farm, the park spans 3.7 hectares and features playgrounds, landscaped gardens, a totara-kahikatea forest, and the Nathan Homestead, a 1925 brick mansion built for the Nathan Family.

Owned by the Nathan family since 1910, the site was transferred to the Manurewa Borough Council in 1961 as part of the development of the Hill Park subdivision.

The homestead served as council offices until 1976, after which it was repurposed as a community arts and cultural center. Owned and operated by Auckland Council, It continues to function as a venue for arts activities, exhibitions, childcare, and events. The property is recognized as a Category A* Historic Heritage Place in the Auckland Unitary Plan for its historical, architectural, and ecological significance. Nathan Homestead is currently undergoing extensive renovations that began in July 2024. The $5 million project includes seismic strengthening, asbestos removal, and accessibility upgrades, aiming to preserve the building's structural integrity and enhance its usability for the community.

History

Early Ownership and Land Acquisition (1842-1910)

The land on which David Nathan Park and Homestead sit on today are of great significance to Te Ākitai Waiohua, the iwi whose ancestral lands include the Manurewa and Manukau regions. The park lies at the outer boundary of the Papakura Block, which was the first land transaction between Te Ākitai Waiohua and the Crown in 1842.

The area that would become Manurewa formed a part of Church Missionary Society member William Thomas Fairburn's 1836 Tamaki land purchase, which included almost the entirety of the land from Otahuhu to Papakura. Though Fairburn himself estimated his holdings to be 40,000 acres (162 km²), later land surveys recorded his holdings as being in excess of 82,000 acres (332 km²).. Amid criticism over the size of his land purchase, Fairburn resigned from the Church Missionary Society in November 1841, after which the Crown acquired all surplus land to be allocated for use by other European settlers, leaving Fairburn with 5,494 acres..

10,000 acres of Fairburn's purchase was gifted to James Reddy Clendon in compensation for his land taken in Russell for use by the Crown as the new capital of New Zealand. Russell began selling sections of his land grant to settlers, and over the next 70 years, the section that would become the Nathan Homestead changed hands multiple times. Eventually, it came into the possession of farmer Godwyn Dalrymple Smith. In October 1910, Smith sold 100 acres of land to David Laurence Nathan for £3000.

The Nathan Family Home at ‘The Hill’ (1910-1923)

David Laurence Nathan had purchased the property in Manurewa for use as a summer residence for the family, while in the Winter months they would live in their Karangahape Road estate, St Kevens, the Nathan family home since 1870. By 1918 the size of the Nathan household had grown to six, with the births of Lawrence David Jose in 1910, Jacqueline in 1911, Dennis Raoul Hillel in 1912 and Frank in 1918. As the family expanded, the rates for St Kevens became a burden, and the property became increasingly surrounded by commercial buildings, which made it a difficult house to maintain.

For these reasons, the Nathans decided to make The Hill the family's permanent residence, selling their St Kevans home. To accommodate their growing family additions were made to the house, including a second floor and expanded ground floor rooms.

On Saturday, 22 December 1923, a fire broke out at 5 a.m. and quickly consumed the house. Without a local fire brigade, the timber structure was destroyed in minutes. Although some belongings were salvaged, the fire resulted in the loss of priceless heirlooms passed down from Nathan’s grandfather David Nathan, as well as works of art and antiques collected by David and Simone over the years

Creation of the Nathan Homestead (1924-1961)

Though the fire destroyed their home, David Nathan was reluctant to leave his prized garden, and the Nathan children wanted to remain at "The Hill", so it was decided that a new residence would be built on the same site.

Bibliography

• Matthews & Matthews Architects Ltd. (2019). David Nathan Park and Homestead Conservation Plan. Prepared for Auckland Council and Manurewa Local Board, July 2019. PDF.

• Nathan, Lawrence D. (1984). As old as Auckland : the history of L.D. Nathan & Co. Ltd. and of the David Nathan family, 1840-1980. Takapuna, N.Z.: Benton Ross. ISBN 0908636903 (hbk.).

• Nathan, David Lawrence. (1982). Nathan Homestead, 1925-1982: Reminiscences by Lawrence David Nathan. Manurewa: Manurewa Historical Society.

• Ringer, Bruce (2012). Countryside in the City - A History of Totara Park Manurewa. Papatoetoe, Auckland: Auckland Communities Foundation. ISBN 978-0-473-19493-2.

• Wichman, Gwen. (2001). Soaring Bird: A History of Manurewa to 1965. ISBN 0-473-07114-2.

• New Zealand Government; Te Ākitai Waiohua. (12 November 2021). Te Ākitai Waiohua and Te Ākitai Waiohua Settlement Trust and the Crown: Deed of Settlement of Historical Claims. Retrieved 26 November 2024. PDF.

• Moore, D., Rigby, B., & Russell, M. (1997). Rangahaua Whānui National Theme A: Old Land Claims. First release, July 1997. Waitangi Tribunal, Rangahaua Whānui Series. Retrieved 26 November 2024. PDF.