NZ Visual Diary - entry 299
John Kinder House - Parnell
The remarkable partnership of patron Bishop G. A. Selwyn, architect Frederick Thatcher1 and master stone mason Benjamin Strange produced a number of magnificent residential and ecclesiastic structures in the middle of the 19th century throughout Parnell, Auckland’s oldest suburb.
The John Kinder House, built in 1857, is the crown jewel of that partnership.
The house was commissioned by Bishop G.A. Selwyn and designed by Frederick Thatcher, the architect of many Anglican buildings in Auckland.
Kinder House is the last & only Gothic Revival designed colonial 2 storey building of the 1850's residence and retains the original oak, totara & bay trees & other tree plantings of the time in the tree park grounds and has a house 'well' from the colonial past. The tree plantings are representative of the colonial relationship between European settlers and the tangata whenua Maori people, with the spiritual connections as seen in the dedication ceremony of original Colonial "Kinder House' with the plantings of the exotic Bay tree as designated European connection and the native Totara tree to symbolise the cultural links between the two peoples with the opening of the house at the time.2
The home was built for John Kinder3 who served as the first headmaster of the Church of England Grammar School4 in Parnell. In addition to his reputation as theologian and educator, Kinder was a noted water colour artist and photographer. A representation of his artistic work is on display on the ground floor of Kinder House.
In more recent times, Kinder House was purchased by Auckland Council and has been managed as an art gallery by the Kinder House Society.
Frederick Thatcher entry - Wikipedia
< https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frederick_Thatcher >
The John Kinder House
< https://www.johnkinderhouse.org.nz >
John Kinder entry - Wikipedia
< https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Kinder_(priest) >