Richard Cock Jnr's "West End Store" (1880)

This two-storied commercial building was constructed for prominent New Plymouth citizen, and later mayor of New Plymouth, Richard Cock Jnr in 1880. Richard Cock Jnr purchased Town Section 242 in early August 1880, and soon after architect Henry Edmonds placed advertisements in the Taranaki Herald on the 10th, 11th, and 12th of August, announcing an extension of time (until August 18th), for tenders "for the erection of shop and dwelling in Devon Street West for Mr R. Cock" - almost certainly referring to the present building on Town Section 242. Mr Cock opened his new business the "West End Store" in the building on 18 December 1880; he also continued to operate a store in Brougham Street. 

It is thought Richard and his family also lived in this building (probably upstairs), as Dr Leatham advertised moving into Mr Cock's old house in Devon Street East at the same time the West End Store opened. The living quarters of this commercial building are in contrast to Cock's later grand villa residence "Overdale", constructed in 1889. 

Richard Cock sold the building to an H (?) Richards in June 1892, who sold the section to A. Fitzherbert in 1895, and it was later purchased by Jane B. Corney in 1900.

A building on this site, of similar dimensions and location is clearly marked on Skinner's 1880 map of New Plymouth - it must have been either under construction or recently finished at the time Skinner produced the map.

This building is thought to have originally been constructed with a rusticated weatherboard facade and is an early surviving example illustrating the transition from commercial buildings primarily clad in vertical board and batten or plain horizontal weatherboard (1840s-1860s), to the predominant use of rusticated weatherboard in commercial building facades (1870s-1900s).

The building is now clad in fibrolite and its original sash windows replaced with aluminium windows.  

Town Section 242, Taranaki Land Deed Index I5 Page 292. The section was subdivided in 1919, Taranaki Land Deed Index I8 Page 565.