St Stephen's Church (Anglican)

16-18 Church Street and Walsh Street, REEFTON

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St Stephen's Church at 16 Church Street in Reefton was built in 1877-78 as the first Anglican Church in the township and in 1889 it became what may have been the first church in New Zealand to be lit by electric lights. Built in a simple Gothic style of timber with a corrugated iron roof, the building was enlarged to create a cruciform plan church in 1898-99. Various other alterations have taken place, including the covering of the exterior weatherboards with Fibrolite. St Stephen's Church (Anglican) reflects the rapid growth of mining settlements on the West Coast during the latter half of the nineteenth century and in particular the influx of Anglican miners and their families, as part of a mix of miners of other denominations, to the West Coast. Reefton was the first town in New Zealand to have a public supply of electricity, and contemporary newspaper accounts record that in May 1889 St Stephen's Church was the first of the churches to have electric lighting installed. This was in the form of eleven 16 candle power lamps, ten on the interior and one illuminating the exterior. The installation of electric lighting was widely publicised and celebrated. The church remains a place of worship today.

St Stephen's Church (Anglican), Reefton. CC Licence 3.0 Image courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org | Mattinbgn | 29/11/2011 | Mattinbgn - Wikimedia Commons
St Stephen's Church (Anglican), Reefton | Mike Vincent | 20/06/2012 | Heritage New Zealand
St Stephen's Church (Anglican), Reefton. Image included in Field Record Form Collection | Trish McCormack | 01/01/1989 | Heritage New Zealand

Location

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List Entry Information

Overview

Detailed List Entry

Status

Listed

List Entry Status

Historic Place Category 2

Access

Private/No Public Access

List Number

1691

Date Entered

8th August 2008

Date of Effect

8th August 2008

City/District Council

Buller District

Region

West Coast Region

Extent of List Entry

Extent includes the land described as Sec 451-452, Town of Reefton, Nelson Land District and the building known as St Stephen's Church (Anglican) thereon, and its fittings and fixtures. (Refer to map in Appendix 1 of the registration report for further information).

Legal description

Sec 451-452 Town of Reefton (RT NL2D/372), Nelson Land District.

Location Description

North-east corner of Walsh Street and Church Street, Reefton.

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