Wynyard St
Contents
Summary of Wynyard St Project
The excavations around Wynyard St have added significantly to an evolving picture of 19th and early 20th century inner-suburban Auckland life. The original subdivision of the properties along both Wynyard St and Grafton Rd appears to have been well organised and engineered. Drainage systems put in on the property were substantial, consisting of 0.5-1m deep trenches filled with basalt rocks running diagonally across the slope and channelling water down into Grafton Gully. The first houses generally consisted of single storey villas which were then modified substantially during their history. At least two and possibly three of the earlier houses were removed during the 20th century. Infilling of the allotments continued in the 20th century and there is evidence of garden landscaping and new and improved drainage being added to the site. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the houses appear to have been occupied by relatively wealthy Aucklanders. The most prominent identified was George Fraser, owner of the Phoenix Foundry, who lived at 36 Wynyard St and probably built his own private assaying laboratory in the land behind his house. He had good access from his house down to the Foundry buildings in Grafton Gully below.
Location and Date
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<googlemap lat="-36.852943" lon="174.77127" zoom="17" width="200" height="200" selector="no" controls="small">-36.852986, 174.771205, Wynyard St, Auckland</googlemap> |
Type
Late 19th Century, 20th Century Excavations
Team
- Simon Bickler, co-Director
- Rod Clough, co-Director
- Glen Farley, Archaeologist
- Marianne Turner, Archaeologist
- Dante Bonica, Archaeologist
- Barry Baquie, Archaeologist
- Mat Campbell, Archaeologist
- Tania Mace, Historian
& Kate Hill, Historian
- Jennifer Low, MA artefact analysis
Artefacts
Large collection of artefacts from late 19th Century and 20th Century domestic contexts
Publications
Excavation Report: Bickler et al. 2007. Excavations at Wynyard St.
