Highwic

Last updated

Highwic
Highwic front view (2).jpg
Highwic
General information
StatusHistoric house museum
Architectural style Carpenter Gothic
Address40 Gillies Avenue, Epsom (off Mortimer Pass Newmarket)
CountryNew Zealand
Coordinates 36°52′18″S174°46′30″E / 36.8718°S 174.7749°E / -36.8718; 174.7749
Opened1981
Designated7 April 1983
Reference no.18

Highwic is a 19th-century house in Auckland, New Zealand, which is listed by Heritage New Zealand as a Category I structure. The house was built in 1862 for Alfred Buckland, a wealthy colonial settler and landowner. The building sits in an elevated position above Newmarket.

Contents

Origin and construction

Highwic is a large house of Carpenter Gothic design that was built for a wealthy colonial settler and landowner, Alfred Buckland. The building was erected in an elevated position looking out over the township of Newmarket. In 1861, the land was purchased by Alfred's first wife Eliza for £1,000. The family with seven children, moved into the house in 1862. Eliza Buckland had two more children during her short time alive in her new house, she died of pneumonia in July 1866. The original eight room house was extended in 1874, 1883 and 1884 as the Buckland family grew bigger and their wealth increased. [1]

Alfred Buckland married Matilda Jane Frodsham in May 1867. Matilda was twenty years younger than Alfred and went on to have eleven children of her own, nine of them surviving to adulthood. Matilda outlived Alfred, spending her declining years at Highiwc.

The building included a Drawing Room, several bedrooms, a boy's dormitory, a laundry, kitchen, scullery, outside stables, grooms accommodation, a billiard house, and a service yard. By the early 20th century two inside bathrooms were added with baths, hand basins, flushing toilets and hot and cold water on tap. Family descendants who lived in the house until 1978 made alterations of their own. The property was then jointly purchased by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust (now Heritage New Zealand) and Auckland City Council to save the site from subdivision. [1] Highwic was opened as a historic house museum in 1981. [2]

Functions and celebrations

A reception for the Duke of Kent and Katharine, Duchess of Kent was held at Highwic in 1980. There was also a ball to aid the New Zealand Blood Foundation in 1982. The ball generated a substantial article in the New Zealand Woman's Weekly magazine.

The Twelve Days of Christmas

In 1985, an exhibition known as "The Twelve Days of Christmas" involved Christmas items such as Christmas decorations, Christmas cards, Christmas trees, Christmas carol singing, floral arrangements and wreaths in addition to antique dolls and toys. There was also a display explaining Christmas legends and symbolism, as well as a gift shop. One of the large Norfolk Island Pine trees in the grounds was covered with eight hundred lights. On a few occasions, there were also candlelit rooms.

150th anniversary

In 2012, year-long celebrations were planned to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the building including high tea at the house, seeing a collection of Victorian era costumes and floral arrangements as part of the Festival of Flowers plus music and arts. [3] That year, Highwic became the main attraction of several Auckland Heritage Festival events. [4] The concert A Song Without Words celebrated the work of students of Felix Mendelssohn in the ballroom. [5]

Filming

Gardener at work at Highwic circa the 1960s Gardener at work at Highwic..jpg
Gardener at work at Highwic circa the 1960s

The building has been used in filming for music acts such as Bic Runga, Rhys Darby, and also television shows such as The Jono Project and The Luminaries. [6]

Claimed hauntings

Highwic is considered to be one of the most haunted places in Auckland as there have been claimed sightings of a ghost in a bedroom. [7] It is also said to be the home to a ghostly canine. A former spokeswoman claimed that a black dog has been seen running across the garden to the property's boundary. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newmarket, New Zealand</span> Suburb in Auckland, New Zealand

Newmarket is an Auckland suburb to the south-east of the central business district. With its high building density, especially of retail shops, it is considered New Zealand's premier retailing area, and a rival of local competitor Auckland CBD.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Epsom, New Zealand</span> Suburb in Auckland, New Zealand

Epsom is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is located in the centre of the Auckland isthmus between Mount Eden and Greenlane, south of Newmarket, and 5 km (3.1 mi) south of the Auckland City Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Eden</span> Suburb in Auckland, New Zealand

Mount Eden is a suburb in Auckland, New Zealand whose name honours George Eden, 1st Earl of Auckland. It is 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) south of the Central Business District (CBD). Mt Eden Road winds its way around the side of Mount Eden Domain and continues to weave back and forth as it descends into the valley; it runs south from Eden Terrace to Three Kings. Mt Eden village centre is located roughly between Valley Road and Grange Road. The domain is accessible on foot from many of the surrounding streets, and by vehicle from Mt Eden Road. The central focus of the suburb is Maungawhau / Mount Eden, a dormant volcano whose summit is the highest natural point on the Auckland isthmus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Remuera</span> Suburb in Auckland, New Zealand

Remuera is an affluent suburb in Auckland, New Zealand. It is located four kilometres southeast of the city centre. Remuera is characterised by many large houses, often Edwardian or mid 20th century. A prime example of a "leafy" suburb, Remuera is noted for its quiet tree lined streets. The suburb has numerous green spaces, most obvious of which is Ōhinerau / Mount Hobson – a volcanic cone with views from the top overlooking Waitematā Harbour and Rangitoto.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bucklands Beach</span> Suburb in Auckland, New Zealand

Bucklands Beach is a suburb 13 kilometres (8.1 mi) east of Auckland's CBD in New Zealand. The suburb is in the Howick ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smith & Caughey's</span>

Smith & Caughey Ltd, trading as Smith & Caughey's, is a chain of two mid-sized, upscale department stores in Auckland, New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newmarket Workshops</span>

The Newmarket Workshops in Auckland were a major New Zealand Railways Department facility, one of 13 workshops nationwide. It was one of two main railway workshops of Auckland, used mainly for maintenance; the older facility at Newmarket was replaced in 1929 by Otahuhu Workshops.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Haunted House (story)</span> 1859 story series in All the Year Round

"The Haunted House" is a set of short stories published in 1859 for the weekly periodical All the Year Round. It was "Conducted by Charles Dickens", with Charles Dickens writing the opening and closing stories, framing stories by Dickens himself and five other authors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Albert, New Zealand</span> Place in Auckland Region, New Zealand

Port Albert is situated on the shores of the Kaipara Harbour, approximately 8 kilometres west of Wellsford, in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. Originally called Albertland, it was the last of the major organised British settlements in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Buckland (politician)</span> New Zealand politician

William Thorne Buckland was a 19th-century Member of Parliament in New Zealand.

Joseph Newman was a 19th-century Member of Parliament in the Waikato, New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingseat Hospital (New Zealand)</span> Hospital in Auckland Region, New Zealand

Kingseat Hospital was a psychiatric hospital that is considered to be one of New Zealand's notorious haunted locations with over one hundred claims of apparitions being reported, as of 2011. It is located in Karaka, New Zealand, south of Auckland. Since 2005 has been used as a site for Spookers. Spookers is believed to be Australasia's only haunted attraction scream park as of 2011, and "the number 1 Haunted Attraction in the Southern Hemisphere". According to stuff.co.nz, Kingseat Hospital is considered one of the most haunted locations in New Zealand.

Alfred Henry Whitehouse was a notable New Zealand motion picture exhibitor and producer. He was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire, England, in 1856.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfred Buckland</span> Landowner, auctioneer, farmer, pastoralist, businessman

Alfred Buckland was a New Zealand landowner, auctioneer, farmer, pastoralist and businessman. His house, Highwic, is registered by Heritage New Zealand as a Category I structure, with registration number 18.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Edgerley</span> English-born New Zealand botanist

John Edgerley was a pioneering botanist in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buckland, New Zealand</span> Village in Auckland Region, New Zealand

Buckland is in the Franklin ward of Auckland Regional Council, on the south-east side of Pukekohe, between Pukekohe and Tuakau, and on the northern boundary of Waikato District. It is part of the Pukekohe urban area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riccarton House</span> Historic building in Christchurch, New Zealand

Riccarton House is an historic building in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is part of the Riccarton estate, the first area in Christchurch lived in by white settlers, after which the suburb of Riccarton is named. The house was commissioned by Jane Deans, the widow of Canterbury pioneer John Deans, and finished in 1856. It was twice extended; first in 1874, and the work carried out in 1900 more than doubled the size of the house. The Riccarton estate has in stages become the property of Christchurch City Council and Riccarton House itself was sold by the Deans family to the city in 1947. Damaged by the earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, the repaired and renovated building was reopened in June 2014. Riccarton House is used as a restaurant and for functions, and a popular market is held on Saturdays in front of it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The PumpHouse Theatre</span> Auckland performance venue

The PumpHouse Theatre is an artist-led arts centre that presents theatre and other events in the North Shore of Auckland, New Zealand.

References

  1. 1 2 Jan Harris (1996). Sweet Villa of Highwic – The Story of Highwic and the Buckland Family. ISBN   0-908577-32-X . Retrieved 25 February 2013.
  2. ↑ "Highwic". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand . Retrieved 18 February 2013.
  3. ↑ "Highwic celebrates 150th anniversary" . Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  4. ↑ "Highwic to come under close scrutiny". Scoop. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  5. ↑ "Song Without Words at Highwic" . Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  6. ↑ "Highwic's life in films". Stuff. Retrieved 19 February 2020.
  7. ↑ Ghost hunters in for the chill
  8. ↑ Mathers, Joanna (18 May 2012). "Haunted by the memory of these visits". The New Zealand Herald . Retrieved 19 February 2020.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Highwic at Wikimedia Commons

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.