Maungaturoto's Heritage Buildings

The second National Bank of NZ Maungaturoto Branch circa 1940
Architects Mitchell & Mitchell

With Maungaturoto turning 150 years old this year, a lot of research has been going in around the area by many willing people into Maungaturoto's past. A look at Kaipara District Council's current Heritage Schedule for the Annual District Plan has me concerned that there are many heritage buildings being left off the list. Maungaturoto in the past has been very lean on the heritage buildings being noted. Much of their history has been lost to time. Thankfully there's been further additions to the schedule, including the very iconic Maungaturoto Hotel.

Tender Notice Auckland Star, 2 January 1937, Page 17

 I was talking with a friend today in Maungaturoto, while I was photographing some of the work that has been done by the Maungaturoto Beautification Project volunteers, on the new gardens and steps in the township. My friend asked me if I knew when the former Maungaturoto Post Office (not photographed) had opened. To me it looked around 1930 or so. After a short bit of brief detective work thanks to Papers Past I have a date for what is now Coast to Coast Healthcare on the corner. This building was officially opened on 19 July 1937 (Auckland Star, 2 July 1937, Page 6). Present at the ceremony were MP for Kaipara the Right Honorable J. G Coates and the MP for Marsden J. G Barclay who opened the new post office. Barclay announced at the opening ceremony that the road between the Maungaturoto Co-operative Dairy Company out to the Maungaturoto Railway Station was to be tar sealed almost immediately, and with weather permitting would be completed by the end of the same year. (Auckland Star, 21 July 1937, Page 18).  I have serious concerns about the previous post office which is in rather poor condition. That particular building dates back from the 1914 period. It seems sadly doomed to be totally ignored. Its more fortunate neighbour dating from the same year is the former National Bank of NZ building which thankfully has been well taken care of, and its heritage characteristics maintained.

Maungaturoto Hotel circa 1902

We have of course the iconic Maungaturoto Hotel, which made national headlines over the granting of the licence to Maragret Sarah in June or so of 1902. The hotel's original owner Moss Davis was no stranger to controversy, an earlier application for the Opanake Hotel (now Kaihu Tavern) had also drawn the ire of the Temperance movement. In looking at the Maungaturoto Hotel, there is a strong and close association to the former Pahi Hotel (circa 1897) in the architectural design. The Pahi Hotel was designed by prominent Auckland based architect John Currie (c1859-1921). Currie designed a number of buildings for Moss Davis' Hancock & Co Brewery (also Captain Cook Brewery). Northland has a number of Currie designed buildings. At the the time of writing I'm still looking for any tenders for the erection of the Maungaturoto building. We do know that it was built at the yard of the well known Johnny Rowe, who owned a building company in Onehunga, and the builders had come from Auckland, it's possible no tender notices were ever issued  for this particular building. More to look into. I strongly suspect the Maungaturoto Hotel is also a John Currie design based on the Pahi Hotel plans.

Gittos Church, Tanoa circa 1874

The Gittos Church (above) was opened in March of 1874 and was designed by W. J Symonds. This building is sited on a place of  importance in the Kaipara's cultural history. The building is listed on the Register of Historic Places as a Category II Historic Place.

The Scandalous Maungaturoto Hotel

Few would ever suspect the local Maungaturoto Hotel could have caused such a scandal. Back in 1902 though it was a hot topic. It started off with the transfer of a license when it was brought by the colourful Moss Davis then owner of the Captain Cook Brewery from Mrs Margaret .J Sarah of the Cornish Arms Hotel at Kaiwaka. As the law stood then, no licence could be transferred between licensed hotels more that a quarter of a mile away. Moss Davis must have had friends in the Waitemata Licensing Committee. Despite strong protests from some of the local Maungaturoto temperance movement the license was summarily granted by Stipend Magistrate Mr T. Hutchinson.

An article appeared in the Evening Post 18 July 1902

BY TELEGRAPH—Auckland Press Association)

AUCKLAND, 17th June 1902.

A crowded meeting was held in the Foresters Hall tonight to protest against the granting of a license at Maungaturoto. Mr George Fowlds M.H.R., the Rev. R. N. Davidson (Maungaturoto), the Rev. Mr Gittos (Wesleyan Missionary), Mr Wesley Spragg, The Rev. Mr Garland, Mr A. C. Caughey, and the Rev. Hugh Kelly spoke in favour of a resolution calling for enquiry into the declaration charging Mr. Hutchinson, S.M., with exhibiting bias in the conduct of the case. This was carried by a large majority.

The statutory declaration made by Mr. Fowlds, M.H.R., the Rev. Messrs Davidson (Congregational), and Gittos (Wesleyan), and Messrs H. Cullen and W. Spragg, states that they were present at the sitting of the Waitemata Licensing Committee, which was presided over by Mr. T. Hutchinson, Stipendiary Magistrate.

They then declare—that at that sitting an application was made in the name of Mrs Margaret Sarah for an accommodation license, to be issued for a new hotel building, at Maungaturoto, in lieu of one which was being allowed to lapse at Hakaru, over eight miles distant, Mr Moss Davis, brewer, being the declared beneficiary owner of the new house. That Maungaturoto is a Non-conformist settlement, with a history of nearly forty years, and hitherto taken pride in excluding the sale of liquor from its neighbourhood. That during the hearing of the application referred to Mr Hutchinson exhibited marked bias and unfairness in his treatment of witnesses.

Bias was shown by his complete failure to condemn a false description given by five carpenters, who were taken to Maungaturoto for the purpose of erecting the hotel building, and who would be leaving shortly after the building was completed, who signed the petition in favour of a license, describing themselves as “settlers, Maungaturoto,” the falsity of this description having been sworn to by a witness named Harrison, who had collected the signatures to the petition in favour of the license. That when the same witness for the applicant admitted, upon cross-examination, that at least four-fifths of the adult bona-fide residents of the whole of the Wairau Riding, which contains the settlement of Maungaturoto, were opposed to the granting of the License, the Magistrate again showed his bias by severely reprimanding the witness because he could not say that he had personally canvassed and carefully counted the numbers for and against the license, himself repeated a rumour which he said he had heard at Maungaturoto, “That many who had signed against the license would be very glad to see an hotel there, and would be the first to go for a nip when it was opened.” That during the examination of the Rev. Mr. Davidson Mr. Hutchinson asked of him from the Bench if he drank lager beer, and being told by the witness that he did not drink lager beer and did not know what it was, retorted, “You do not know what life is if you do not know what lager beer is.”


That from the beginning and throughout the hearing of the case, it was manifested that as far as the Chairman was concerned , the case was prejudged, and his influence was being used to discredit evidence from whatever source which was adverse to the application for the license. That it was given on sworn Testimony that the opposition of the residents of the district immediately concerned to the establishment of a house licensed to sell intoxicants was so strong that settlers had refused to sell sections for its accommodation, notwithstanding that high and tempting prices were offered. It was further proven before than Licensing Bench that 88 bona fide adult residents within the Wairau Riding (including a radius of 4½ miles from the proposed hotel) had petitioned against the granting of the license, while only about 20 similar residents had petitioned in favour of it. That the Magistrate, in giving his judgement, said that people living outside the Wairau Riding, but within a nine mile radius, of the proposed licensed house, had a right to an equal voice in locating the hotel with the bona fide residents with the affected settlement. That the Magistrate then declared that a majority of the settlers of this extended area had petitioned in favour of the license (a statement which we believe to be contradicted by the petitions then before the Court). That finally he did, in violation of the Act, which expressly provides that licenses may not be transferred from house to house when such houses are separated by a distance of more than a quarter of a mile, and against the petition of an overwhelming majority of the settlers of Maungaturoto proper, and to the grievous annoyance of many within the district, announce the license granted.

The matter didn't end there. George Fowlds took the matter all the way to parliament charging the Stipendory Magistrate T. Hutchinson with bias and for his removal - stating Mr Hutchinson 'was unfitted to hold the office of Stipendory Magistrate."



The Minister for Justice, however, didn't seem so convinced the charges would stick:


On the first charge of Bias the Minister replied


"If the Petitioners are in a position to prove the charge of bias their proper remedy is by way of proceedings in the Supreme Court which has the power to quash the license if to be illegally granted."


On the second issue of Mr Hutchinson's removal the Minister had this to say


"The petitioners allege that they believe the Magistrate is unfitted to hold the position, but it must be obvious that the Government would not be justified in acting upon such an expression of belief unsupported by any concrete facts or specific instances."

And just when you figured that was the end of the scandalous Maungaturoto Hotel Saga the building itself had its own tale to tell. The hotel of course still stands today there right beside a now much improved road bridge coming into the Maungaturoto Township.

This excerpt comes from This Valley in the Hills 1963 compiled by Dick Butler for the Maungaturoto Centennial Committee. 

Hakaru Hotel (called the Cornish Arms Hotel) was brought by the brewery interests from Mrs N. J. Sarah, and was transferred to Maungaturoto. There was only a limited time to build a new hotel and have the licence in use again or it would lapse. All new buildings for the breweries were constructed at this time by Johnny Rowe, who was Mayor of Onehunga (the forerunner of prefabricated buildings today) and intended to ship them on the barquentine May from the Manukau onto the Kaipara, and up to Point Curtis. There it was to be transferred onto barges for the trip up the river to Maungaturoto.

 The scheme was a good one in theory, but not work out of practice.The May was weather-bound inside the Manukau Heads for a week and the bar conditions were so bad she had no chance of getting out. Back went the May to Onehunga. The hotel was unloaded and loaded on a train to Helensville. At Helensville Captain Cecil (Sandy) Vause waited with the tug Tangihua and a cattle punt, and every other boat in the Kaipara which could be engaged for the cartage of the remainder was pressed into service.Captain Vause, who served all of his life on the Kaipara until the boat traffic ceased altogether, and who died earlier this year (1963) at the age of 78, told the story of the race against time to get the building to Maungaturoto. 

The cattle punt, which the Tangihua was towing, developed a leak coming across the harbour entrance, and started to list badly. The Tangihua let go the tow-line about Tinopai, and went back to tie up beside the punt. It looked at one stage as if the whole lot was going to capsize.The punt, still leaking badly, was run aground on the hard alongside the old Batley wharf. When the tide had dropped the plugs were pulled out of the punt, the water drained out, and replaced. She was refloated on the next high tide. “We then went for our lives for Maungaturoto with the barge still leaking,” recalled Captain Vause. Then it was “flat out” back to Point Curtis to unload bricks and cement off the steamer, and the rest of the building from other boats which could not make it up the creek to Maungaturoto. 

When all the materials were landed at Maungaturoto, they had to be dragged up the hill to the hotel site in the pouring rain. The frame was up, a door hung, and the licence nailed to the door – the day the time limit expired. 

 “Every time I went past the Maungaturoto Hotel after that I always thought of the hard work connected with getting it there,” continued Captain Vause. He said it was lucky any of it got there, apart from the leaking barge. The builders travelled on the Tangihua, and had a “ dinkum” party to pass the time. Even the Tangihua’s engineer, one “Scot” McKenzie, was drunk, and Captain Vause did not know how he even kept the engines going.

The hotel still stands today as a reminder of those good old bad days of the scandal that made national headlines for a tiny rural Northland township.

The Burning of Edward Mahoney

This is one event that happened in 1934 that lessons perhaps would have been learned from. A sad tale in the 110 year old history of the local Maungaturoto Hotel. Edward Mahoney was badly burned when benzine fumes ignited because of a naked flame source nearby. What happened to him is unknown. I've been unable to find any further details of the man's progress or even if he survived the terrible burns he had received as a result of his clothes catching on fire.

CLOTHES SET ALIGHT

MAN SEVERELY BURNED

BENZINE FUMES IGNITE

(By Telegraph—Press Association.) AUCKLAND, September 14,

Severe burns to the body were received by an employee of the Maungaturoto Hotel, Edward Mahoney, aged 56, single, when his clothes were set alight while he was pouring benzine. He had been employed at the hotel, only since Monday.

Mahoney had gone to a building about 50 yards from, the hotel to replenish the tank of a. petrol engine, used to generate electric power. As he was pouring the benzine the fumes were ignited by a candle lantern which was standing a short distance away. Benzine was splashed over his clothing, which was quickly in flames. Mahoney rushed into the yard shouting for assistance. His cries were heard by the occupant of an upstairs room, who stripped the bedclothes from the bed and threw them from the window to the yard below. Attracted by shouts, others in the hotel hastened to smother the flames. Mahoney's clothes were almost completely destroyed by the flames, and he suffered severe burns practically all over his body. His condition is very serious.

Evening Post 15 September 1934