Howick Historical Village
Dried cowpats sit by the fire, ready to be used as fuel on a cold day. Seaweed hangs outside by the little front door—it’s moist, meaning rain must be on the way.
Welcome to the Howick of the 19th century, as displayed in the Howick Historical Village.
It was 28 years ago that the council gifted the five-acre plot of land to the Howick Historical Society, and it is now the home of several colonial buildings, which the society rescued from demolition and lovingly restored.
Today, the public can peer in the doors of houses dated between 1840 and 1880, and imagine life as it once was. The village looks a little like Hobbiton, with small ramshackle shops and cottages all placed along winding lanes and linked by wooden fences.
A sign outside one building reveals it to be the oldest school building in New Zealand. And perhaps the smallest, too—it’s barely larger than a prison cell, with just a couple of desks squeezed in front of the blackboard. An old map of England hangs on the wall. The chants of school children (a recording) echo eerily round the empty room.