After breakfast we begin a day of visiting historic homes and gardens. Oamaru is a beautiful town full of of Oamaru stone buildings. Their scale gives you some idea of the town's past success on the back of gold mining and frozen lamb. There is a quote that floats around that at one point Oamaru was bigger than Los Angeles. These days the quaint, and tourist oriented, Victorian Quarter and Steampunk Museum, point to a more funky character in the main streets.
Totara Estate
Our first stop is historic Totara Estate for a guided tour through the buildings topped off with billy tea and scones. Now a Heritage New Zealand owned building, this historic farm played a significant role in New Zealand’s history.
From here the first ever shipment of frozen meat was sent in 1882. That event changed farming prosperity and is still a major export today. The restored buildings we wander through were bought by Heritage New Zealand (then the Historic Places Trust) in 1980. Utilitarian, but made of beautiful Oamaru stone, they stand as a tribute to the toil and determination of the early pioneers.
We head off the short distance to our next visit, beautiful Rocklands Gardens where we are hosted by Sally and Phil Cleland.
We lunch Marcus and Cathy Holgate at distinctive Burnside Homestead surrounded by 160 year old specimen trees and sheltered flower gardens in a parkland setting. The original orchard and vegetable garden, a tame flock of sheep and poultry add to the authentic experience of a past lifestyle.
Brookfield House
Expect the unexpected on a visit to Jennifer (JJ) Rendell’s beautifully restored historic home, Brookfield, near Oamaru. Registered as a Category 2 Historic Place and constructed in the 1880s, Brookfield was once home to Oamaru’s first mayor and is appropriately grand in design.
Jennifer purchased the home and its surrounding 13 acre estate in the early 2000s and set about restoring the beautifully detailed Oamaru stone exterior, modernising the interior and improving the rambling grounds. The result is a delight for visitors.
The ornate exterior, designed by local architectural firm Forrester and Lemon who were responsible for many of Oamaru’s Victorian buildings, is superbly presented. Meanwhile, Jennifer’s quirky nature is abundantly present, with unexpected and unusual sculptures, artworks and installations making frequent appearances both inside and out.
The expansive gardens include a wide range of exotic and native plantings alongside many of the property’s original trees. History aficionados and garden lovers will appreciate the thorough tour of the property provided by Jennifer on our MoaTours visit.