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Meadowbank, c1913
Description
TitleMeadowbank, c1913
DescriptionThe house known as Meadowbank, at 785 Leeston Road, was designed by Christchurch architectural firm, Collins and Harmon, for George Edward Rhodes (1866-1936) and his wife Ellen Laura Amy (Nellie)(nee Perry), who married in 1890. George Edward Rhodes was the younger brother of Robert Heaton Rhodes of Otahuna.
G. E. Rhodes, a gentleman farmer, purchased the Meadowbank estate in 1890, and built the three-storey timber home in 1891 at a cost of 2,753 pounds. He also developed the surrounding land into a model farm, with 'a flock of stud Southdown sheep and a herd of pedigree Berkshire pigs.' (source: Heaton Rhodes of Otahuna, Geoffrey W. Rice, 2001)
'It was built around 1891 on a farm situated on the edge of Waihora (Lake Ellesmere), between Lincoln and Leeston.
'George Edward Rhodes was the son of Robert Heaton Rhodes (1815-1884) and husband of Ellen Laura Perry. He and his wife sold the house in 1916. After several changes of ownership between 1916 and 1923, the house was purchased by (Arthur) Tahu (Grovenor) Rhodes (1893-1947), George's second cousin, who sold it in 1926. It was then held by I. K. Buchanan for 14 years, until it was bought by Henry Neave in 1940. It remained in the Neave family until 1994.
It is now a Category 1 Historic Place'. - source - National Library website.
'... [Meadowbank] is quite an impressive timber structure, with a multitude of gables, high pitched roofs, verandahs, porches and a tower. Built on a central axis, the main block achieves symmetry by clever stressing and grouping of verticals and horizontals, accented by mock half timbering, distinctive bargeboards and cast iron. The north front shows on the left a recessed kitchen wing with the family areas and reception rooms either side of the central entrance.
Originally the half timbering and all window and door trim, barges and verandah posts were painted in a contrast to the wall colour, which must have been very restless; the present [1968] crisp white walls, red roofs and contrasting door having more appeal.
To enter the very long wide hall, with a broad staircase at the end, is quite overwhelming, this feeling being maintained by the huge dining room, rich in moulded timber and plaster. Opposite, the smaller drawing room similarly decorated, is quite a relief. At the far end the billiards room with a high coved ceiling, inglenook fireplace and built-in bookcases is Georgian in character.
The six bedrooms and nursery suite of the first floor together with a quaint tower room are interestingly detailed. Here is a country house in the fuller sense, approached by a long dramatic drive and set about with wide lawns, lovely trees and ornamental water.'
Source: J. A. Hendry, F.N.Z.I.A. in 'Homes of the Pioneers', Caxton Press (1968).
Renowned crime writer Dame Ngaio Marsh was a regular guest of the Rhodes family – George sold the house in 1916, but his cousin Arthur (Tahu) Rhodes bought it in 1923 and he and his wife were renowned for their lavish parties. Heritage NZ says Dame Ngaio described it in her autobiography as a “house, twenty miles away in the country”. “Its doors opened into a life whose scale of values, casual grandeur, cockeyed gaiety and vague friendliness will bewilder and delight me for the rest of my days.”
Source: Colleen Hawkes in Stuff, 27 October 2023
Datec1913SourceNational LibraryPhotographerSteffano Webb
DescriptionThe house known as Meadowbank, at 785 Leeston Road, was designed by Christchurch architectural firm, Collins and Harmon, for George Edward Rhodes (1866-1936) and his wife Ellen Laura Amy (Nellie)(nee Perry), who married in 1890. George Edward Rhodes was the younger brother of Robert Heaton Rhodes of Otahuna.G. E. Rhodes, a gentleman farmer, purchased the Meadowbank estate in 1890, and built the three-storey timber home in 1891 at a cost of 2,753 pounds. He also developed the surrounding land into a model farm, with 'a flock of stud Southdown sheep and a herd of pedigree Berkshire pigs.' (source: Heaton Rhodes of Otahuna, Geoffrey W. Rice, 2001)
'It was built around 1891 on a farm situated on the edge of Waihora (Lake Ellesmere), between Lincoln and Leeston.
'George Edward Rhodes was the son of Robert Heaton Rhodes (1815-1884) and husband of Ellen Laura Perry. He and his wife sold the house in 1916. After several changes of ownership between 1916 and 1923, the house was purchased by (Arthur) Tahu (Grovenor) Rhodes (1893-1947), George's second cousin, who sold it in 1926. It was then held by I. K. Buchanan for 14 years, until it was bought by Henry Neave in 1940. It remained in the Neave family until 1994.
It is now a Category 1 Historic Place'. - source - National Library website.
'... [Meadowbank] is quite an impressive timber structure, with a multitude of gables, high pitched roofs, verandahs, porches and a tower. Built on a central axis, the main block achieves symmetry by clever stressing and grouping of verticals and horizontals, accented by mock half timbering, distinctive bargeboards and cast iron. The north front shows on the left a recessed kitchen wing with the family areas and reception rooms either side of the central entrance.
Originally the half timbering and all window and door trim, barges and verandah posts were painted in a contrast to the wall colour, which must have been very restless; the present [1968] crisp white walls, red roofs and contrasting door having more appeal.
To enter the very long wide hall, with a broad staircase at the end, is quite overwhelming, this feeling being maintained by the huge dining room, rich in moulded timber and plaster. Opposite, the smaller drawing room similarly decorated, is quite a relief. At the far end the billiards room with a high coved ceiling, inglenook fireplace and built-in bookcases is Georgian in character.
The six bedrooms and nursery suite of the first floor together with a quaint tower room are interestingly detailed. Here is a country house in the fuller sense, approached by a long dramatic drive and set about with wide lawns, lovely trees and ornamental water.'
Source: J. A. Hendry, F.N.Z.I.A. in 'Homes of the Pioneers', Caxton Press (1968).
Renowned crime writer Dame Ngaio Marsh was a regular guest of the Rhodes family – George sold the house in 1916, but his cousin Arthur (Tahu) Rhodes bought it in 1923 and he and his wife were renowned for their lavish parties. Heritage NZ says Dame Ngaio described it in her autobiography as a “house, twenty miles away in the country”. “Its doors opened into a life whose scale of values, casual grandeur, cockeyed gaiety and vague friendliness will bewilder and delight me for the rest of my days.”
Source: Colleen Hawkes in Stuff, 27 October 2023
Datec1913SourceNational LibraryPhotographerSteffano WebbImage
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Meadowbank, c1913 (c1913). Selwyn Stories, accessed 10/12/2025, https://selwynstories.selwynlibraries.co.nz/nodes/view/5194
