This small wooden cottage clad in plain and rusticated weatherboard was constructed in 1903. In late 1898 and early 1899, Town Section 2109 was advertised for sale, with no mention of a building.
The 1900-01 New Plymouth Borough Council Rating Book lists Charles Brewer as the ratepayer for Town Sections 2108 and 2109, with no dwellings yet constructed on the section; the properties were valued at £4.
On 16 June 1903, Arthur Lealand was granted a permit for the construction of two cottages on Town Section 2109 Lemon Street, with an estimated construction cost of £288 - this is likely the two cottages presently on this section.
Town Sections 2097-2113 were initially offered for sale in late 1896 and early 1897 - several businesses including Mitchinson's Plant Nursery occupied the site prior to this time. Most of the houses were built after this time, and whilst some have been removed, this section of Lemon Street still contains a number of late 1890s and early 1900s homes.
Particularly important are the four cottages at 161, 163, 165, 167 and 169 Lemon Street - being a continuous row of early twentieth century cottages now rare in New Plymouth. The small size of some of these cottages (compared to villas and other homes constructed around the same period) suggest they may have been workers cottages and are thus representative of a group of people who have only in recent decades been recognised in the historical literature.
In June 2019, whilst undertaking renovation work on the property, new owner Katey Pittwood discovered a 1960s 'time capsule' hidden within the walls of the house. Whilst removing later plasterboard to reveal the original ceiling, it was found that the walls of one room were almost entirely covered with pop posters from the period - including of the Beatles. The story first appeared in the Taranaki Daily News, before being shown on Seven Sharp - a show which was seen by Pege Heaford, who as a 15-year-old in 1964-65, was responsible for plastering the walls of what was then her bedroom with the posters!
Related items:
A blast from the musical past (Taranaki Daily News 13 June /2019)
Time Capsule Uncovered (Taranaki Daily News 13 June 2019)
Poster woman stops by (Taranaki Daily News 20 June 2019)
Uncovered pop posters going to record studio (Taranaki Daily News 24 June 2019)
Return to sender (Taranaki Daily News 3 July 2020)
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