Cnr Church & Stafford St
LN:3159 C:2
1876.
Architect: Daniel West
Built: Thornton
This hotel was built in 1864 by the father of Cecil Walkden Wood. The tavern get’s it name because the Bank of New Zealand acquired freehold title to Lot 79 in 1863 where the first agency for the BNZ operated from a small wooden building. The current tavern was erected in 1876 of bluestone, brick and plaster designed by architect Daniel West. Significant elements of the building are the Cornice, arched top windows and string course.
The Old Bank Tavern in Timaru was erected in 1876 and has been the site of a hotel since the 1860s. Its name references the earliest period of European settlement in Timaru and the founding of the Bank of New Zealand. As a hotel, the Old Bank Tavern has local social and historical significance as a popular venue for entertainment and accommodation and has architectural significance as a prominent corner building on a busy thoroughfare. The building has archaeological value as a nineteenth century hotel on the site of earlier pre-1900 buildings.
The land on which the Old Bank Tavern is situated was formerly part of Rural Section (RS) 7555, granted by the Crown to George Rhodes and another, probably William Barnard Rhodes. In 1853 the Rhodes Brothers had RS 7555, and adjoining RS 703, surveyed as ‘Rhodes Town’ and subdivided sections were sold for commercial and residential occupation. The subject land was formerly part of Lot 98 of RS 7555. In 1862, in a wooden building at this site, the Timaru agency of the Bank of New Zealand was opened, of which W. B. Rhodes was a founder.
In 1863 the Bank of New Zealand acquired freehold title to Lot 79, situated on the corner of Stafford and George Streets. Here a permanent branch was built and the wooden building at the corner of Stafford and Church Streets became a hotel, known as the Old Bank Tavern. In 1867 the freehold of Lot 98 was transferred to George Healey, although the license for the hotel had been transferred to him in 1864. Lot 98 was leased to Charles Walkden Wood in 1875. In June 1876 a tender from H. Thornton for construction of a new building for the Old Bank Tavern was accepted by architect, Daniel West and the former Old Bank Tavern building was demolished later that month.
Wood opened his ‘new and commodious hotel’ in the new building in October 1876. It is a substantial brick building over two storeys with two prominent façades fronting Church Street and Stafford Street. The upper storey features rounded windows with square windows on the ground floor. The main entrance was situated on the corner of Church and Stafford Streets beneath a decorative arched lintel. A cantilevered cornice was described as a prominent feature at the time of original construction. Internally the ground floor provided a private bar, sitting rooms, billiard room, dining room, kitchen, storeroom and a yard with an underground tank. The second storey accommodated 16 bedrooms, a sitting room and bath room. The building originally incorporated a stone store built facing Church Street, although this building was probably among those destroyed by a fire in 1882. In 1877 Wood fitted the hotel with a system of electric bells to connect the bedrooms with service areas.
The Old Bank Tavern changed hands throughout the remainder of the 19th century and 20th century. M. Spillane purchased the lease of the hotel in 1885 and announced that ‘considerable improvements’ had been made to the building. The brick façade was plastered over, probably in the mid-20th century, but the exterior of the building retains most of its original features. Some changes have been made to fenestration on the ground floor, including relocation of the main entrance to the Stafford Street frontage, although the decorative arched entrance surround has been retained. A fire escape obscures the original string course and a large advertising hoarding covers much of the corner. The parapet has been modified with some of the decorative cornice removed. The internal spaces have been variously modified since its original construction. Learn more
From the Old Bank Facebook Page
Overlooking Church Street and towards the harbour, Timaru. You can see the Old Bank on the Corner of Stafford and Church Street. - The Press (Newspaper) :Negatives. Ref: 1/1-008810-G. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. /records/29946828
Corner of Stafford, Church and Strathallan Streets. Store SC Dresden - sold pianos. The Old Bank Hotel Robert Bowie, Stafford St., sold pickles.
Peace Day, Timaru (19th July 1919). Hocken Digital Collections, accessed 17/04/2025, https://hocken.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/23466 Conditions of Use and Copying Low quality image. For further information on use of low quality scans and on how to order a high quality image please see conditions of use.