John Mitchell and Robert Martin Watt were a pair of New Zealand architects who designed numerous buildings, primarily educational buildings, several of which have been heritage listed.
Mitchell and Watt entered into a partnership in 1892 as architects for the Auckland Education Board [lower-alpha 1] until at least 1905.
John Mitchell (c.1859–1947) [2] was born in Ramelton, Ireland, he trained as an architect in Ireland before heading to New Zealand in 1888. [3] [4] He was an early adopter of reinforced concrete and developed a baked earthenware block. In 1912 he went to England before returning to New Zealand a decade later. [3] Mitchell spent the later years of his life in Rotorua, where he would die in 1947. [5]
Robert Martin Watt (1860–1907) was born in Shotts, Lanarkshire, Scotland. [6] Watt studied architecture in Glasgow under H & D Barclay before immigrating to New Zealand c.1878. [2] Watt was a member of St Stephen's, Ponsonby, for which he designed an extension. [6] [7]
In 1906 Watt was elected as president of the Auckland branch of the New Zealand Institute of Architects [2] Watt lived in a home he named Glencairn in Bayfield, Ponsonby. He died in April, 1907. Before his death he was appointed to judge designs of the Auckland Town Hall. [6]
The two architects formed a partnership in 1892, previously they worked independently in Auckland. [4] Later that year they were appointed to the Auckland Education Board. Mitchell and Watt designed multiple school buildings in the Auckland Province area. [2] The pair also designed numerous residential, commercial, and religious buildings. [4] Their partnership ended either c.1905 or 1907. [lower-alpha 2] [6] [1]
Mitchell was responsible for new works whilst Watt was responsible for existing works and extensions. The pair designed numerous school buildings across the Auckland Province area [1]
In December, 1902, the pair received notice from the Board of Education that their employment was to be terminated in three months. The pair were given a hearing to justify the dismissal, where the board charged them with incurring excessive costs and delays, but public support for the architects resulted in the board members being voted out at the election with those who supported Mitchell and Watt being elected with a strong majority. The Auckland Star described the charges as 'utterly insignificant'. [8] [9]
The pair were likely inspired by Edward Robert Robson in their design of school buildings. Robson favoured the Queen Anne style as he believed Gothic architecture's association with religion was inappropriate for secular educational buildings. Education in New Zealand was secular and many of Mitchell and Watt's designs are influenced by the Queen Anne style, notable examples include Bayfield School and Onehunga Primary School. [1] [10]
Schools designed by Mitchell and Watt are 'held to represent an important phase in the architectural development of school buildings in New Zealand'. [11]
Mitchell and Watt had innovative design techniques relating to ventilation, lighting, and heating. [1] Examples include ventilation holes in the eaves, a patented stove, and large windows. [11]
Name | Date | Image | Note | Ref |
---|---|---|---|---|
Winstone Stables | 1883 | Only designed by Watt. Registered as a Category 1 building with Heritage New Zealand | [12] | |
Newton Council Chambers and Fire Station | 1887–1889 | Only designed by Mitchell. Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [5] | |
Kuaotunu School House | 1892 | Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [1] | |
Hukanui School | 1893 | Designed by either Mitchell alone or both Mitchell and Watt [lower-alpha 3] Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [13] | |
Greenhithe school building | 1893 | Registered as a Category B building with Auckland Council | [4] | |
Te Awamutu School | 1894 | Designed an extension for the school. Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [2] [1] | |
Winstone shops on Symonds Street | 1895 | [15] | ||
Bayfield School | 1896 and 1904 | Registered as a Category I building with Heritage New Zealand | [4] [10] | |
St James Church, Pukekohe | 1898 | Possibly designed by Watt alone but may also have been work of both men. [lower-alpha 4] Building was relocated, current status is unknown presumed demolished | [4] | |
Church of Christ, Newton | 1898 | Demolished for the Auckland motorway | [17] [18] | |
Epsom property | c.1898 | [19] | ||
St Paul's, Buckland | 1898–1900 | Registered as a Category B building with Auckland Council | [4] | |
St Peter's Presbyterian Church, Grey Lynn | 1899 | Only extensions and redesign of existing Church. Demolished c.1950 | [20] | |
Methodist Church in Te Aroha | 1900 | Later became a Baptist Church and later became a private residence. | [21] [22] | |
Mt Eden Congregational Church | 1900 | Registered as a Category B building with Auckland Council | [4] | |
Cambridge Primary School | 1900 | Designed an extension block | [2] | |
Riverhead school | 1900 | [23] | ||
Onehunga Primary School | 1901 | Registered as a Category 1 building with Heritage New Zealand | [4] [24] | |
Richmond Road Manual Training School | 1903 | Scheduled as a Category B building with Auckland Council | [4] [1] | |
Newton East Manual Training School | c.1903 | Demolished in 1959. Designed identically to Newmarket and Richmond Road Manual Training Schools | [1] | |
Newmarket Manual Training School | 1903 | Registered as a Category B building with Auckland Council | [10] | |
Australis House/Entrican Building | 1903–1904 | Registered as a Category I building with Heritage New Zealand | [4] | |
St Andrew's, Howick | 1903–1904 | Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [25] | |
Taniwha School | 1904–1905 | Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [13] | |
Dargaville school | 1905 | Designed an addition for the school | [2] | |
Te Mata school | 1905 | Registered as a Category B building with Waikato District Council | [2] [13] | |
Maungatautari school | 1905 | Registered as a Category B building with the Waipa District Council. Closed in 2011 | [2] [26] [27] | |
Leys Institute | 1905–1906 | Only Watt was involved with the Leys Institute. Registered as a Category I building with Heritage New Zealand | [2] | |
St Stephen's, Ponsonby | 1906–1907 | Only Watt was involved. This was just an extension to an existing Church building. Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand. | [7] | |
Karangahake School | 1907 | Addition designed by Mitchell. Registered as a Category I building with Heritage New Zealand | [28] | |
Seddon Memorial Technical College | 1909 | Only designed by Mitchell. Registered as a Category 2 building with Heritage New Zealand | [2] [4] | |
Papakura School | 1913 | An extension which is now the main building was built in 1913 to a design from Mitchell and Watt. Registered as a category B building with Auckland Council | [29] | |
Helensville Manual Training School | 1912 | Likely the work of Mitchell and Watt but not confirmed | [10] [1] | |
Cambridge Manual Training School | c.1903 | Likely the work of Mitchell and Watt but not confirmed. Demolished. | [10] | |
Ponsonby Fire Station | 1902 | Attributed to Watt by John Stacpoole but other authors attribute it to someone else. Registered as a Category B building with Auckland Council | [30] | |
Waiuku is a rural town in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the Waiuku River, which is an estuarial arm of the Manukau Harbour, and lies on the isthmus of the Āwhitu Peninsula, which extends to the northeast. It is 40 kilometres southwest of Auckland city centre, and 12 kilometres north of the mouth of the Waikato River.
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.
South Auckland is one of the major geographical regions of Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand. The area is south of the Auckland isthmus, and on the eastern shores of the Manukau Harbour. The area has been populated by Tāmaki Māori since at least the 14th century, and has important archaeological sites, such as the Ōtuataua stonefield gardens at Ihumātao, and Māngere Mountain, a former pā site important to Waiohua tribes.
Onehunga is a suburb of Auckland in New Zealand and the location of the Port of Onehunga, the city's small port on the Manukau Harbour. It is eight kilometres south of the city centre, close to the volcanic cone of Maungakiekie / One Tree Hill.
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.
Grey Lynn is an inner suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, located 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) to the west of the city centre. Originally a separate borough, Grey Lynn amalgamated with Auckland City in 1914.
Ponsonby is an inner-city suburb of Auckland located 2 km west of the Auckland CBD. The suburb is oriented along a ridge running north–south, which is followed by the main street of the suburb, Ponsonby Road.
Māngere is a major suburb in South Auckland, New Zealand, located on mainly flat land on the northeastern shore of the Manukau Harbour, to the northwest of Manukau City Centre and 15 kilometres south of the Auckland city centre. It is the location of Auckland Airport, which lies close to the harbour's edge to the south of the suburb.
Māngere Bridge is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, under the local governance of the Auckland Council. Surrounded by the Manukau Harbour, the area is the most north-western suburb of South Auckland, and is connected to Onehunga in central Auckland by three bridges that cross the Māngere Inlet. Many features of the Auckland volcanic field are found in and around Māngere Bridge, including Māngere Mountain, a 106-metre-high (348 ft) feature in the centre of the suburb, and Māngere Lagoon, a volcanic tidal lagoon opposite Puketutu Island in the harbour. The suburb is also home to Ambury Regional Park, a working farm and nature sanctuary run by Auckland Council, that connects to the Kiwi Esplanade and Watercare Coastal walkways.
Favona is a mostly industry-dominated suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, and is part of the Māngere area. The suburb is in the Manukau ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland city, and is under governance of the Auckland Council.
Hillsborough is a suburb of Auckland, New Zealand. It is under the local governance of the Auckland Council. Hillsborough is a leafy suburb of 20th-century houses. The area is serviced by two shopping areas; Onehunga and Three Kings. The area is served by secondary schools Mount Roskill Grammar School and Marcellin College.
The Auckland Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876.
The Northern Regional Football League Conference, currently known as Lotto Sport Italia NRFL Conference for sponsorship reasons, is a New Zealand Semi-Professional football league. The league is run by the Auckland Football Federation and includes football clubs located in the northern part of the North Island, New Zealand. It is open to clubs from the Northland, Auckland, Waikato and Bay of Plenty provinces. Up until 2022, the competition was known as NRFL Division 2, and was not split into Northern and Southern competitions.
The Office of the Waikato District Hospital and Charitable Aid Board (Former) is a historic building at 17 Hood Street, in the CBD of Hamilton and was in 2008 listed as Category 2 by Heritage New Zealand.
Cecil Walter Wood was a New Zealand architect. He was the dominant architect in Canterbury during the interwar period.
William Alfred Holman was a New Zealand architect and a member of the New Zealand Institute of Architects who designed prominent commercial and residential buildings in Auckland as well as Whangārei, Hamilton, Gisborne and Christchurch.
Victoria Bridge is a hinged braced arch, bridge in New Zealand, linking Cambridge with Leamington and spanning the Waikato River.
The 1912 Auckland Rugby League season was the 4th official year of the Auckland Rugby League. The season commenced on 11 May, with the start of the First Grade competition.
Onehunga Primary School is a historic former school located in Onehunga and registered as a category 1 building. Constructed in 1901 as a district school before becoming a district high school, it later served as a primary school until the school moved to a new site in 1982. Initially planned to be demolished the local community had the building saved and it has become a community centre.
Manual training schools were a form of vocational education in New Zealand for standards 5–6 that had been established at the start of the 20th century. Although separate manual training schools no longer exist manual training has been absorbed into the general curriculum of New Zealand's education system.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)