Howick Historical Village

Howick was settled in 1847 by Fencibles - retired British soldiers and their families brought out to garrison the southern approaches to Auckland, given a cottage and an acre in return for being available for defence duty. The village assembles more than thirty buildings from that period and the decades after, moved here from around the district rather than built new: Fencible cottages, a school, a church, a forge, a courthouse, a general store. Guides and volunteers in period dress work the site, and on live days once a month the buildings are occupied and worked - bread baked in the ovens, the forge lit, the school in session - which is when it is worth timing a visit rather than walking through a static display. It is aimed squarely at school groups and families, and it is honest about being a collection of relocated structures rather than a place that stood here.

History

The Howick Historical Society was founded on 23 May 1962 by Dee Collings, Eileen Martenson and Alwyn Zellman, and in 1964 it was offered a Fencible cottage from Panmure, restored and reopened in 1966. The council gave the society land in Lloyd Elsmore Park in 1972, development began in 1977, and the Howick Colonial Village opened on 8 March 1980, taking its present name in 1990 (Wikipedia, Howick Historical Village).

The main sights

• The Fencible cottages - the 1847 soldier-settler housing.
• The live days - buildings occupied and worked, once a month.
• The relocated village - thirty-odd buildings moved from around the district.
• The trades - forge, bakehouse, store and school in operation.

When to go

On a live day, which is monthly - the schedule is published, and on other days the village is largely static. Any season otherwise.

Things to know

Buildings were moved here; nothing stood on this site. On non-live days it is a walk-through of empty rooms. Ticketed, and geared to families and school groups.

Nearby

Howick village and Cockle Bay are close; central Auckland is thirty minutes west.

Key facts