Cobblestones
Museum
Heritage Buildings
Hastwell Stables
In 1857, the Hastwell Stables were built where they currently stand, along with our namesake cobblestones. Cobb & Co horse-drawn coaches took people to Wellington, and Hastwell coaches transported people around Wairarapa. Imagine the bumpy carriage ride! Up to 70 horses grazed overnight at this transport hub, while the coachmen enjoyed the hospitality of the Rising Sun Hotel across the road.
(Category 2 listing with Heritage New Zealand)
Colonial Cottage
The Colonial Cottage was probably built by Hugh O’Connor around 1867, with timber milled nearby. It originally sat just north of St Lukes Church in Greytown so it hasn’t moved far.
Compare the small rooms and furnishings to your own house or apartment. What would the daily challenges be for a large family living in that space?
(Category 2 listing with Heritage New Zealand)
Wairarapa’s First Public Hospital and Dispensary
This building was Wairarapa’s first public hospital, which opened in Greytown in 1875. Visit the dispensary, doctor’s consulting room, and patients’ ward to see how public health care was delivered in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
(Category 2 listing with Heritage New Zealand)
Wesleyan (Methodist) Church
The former Wesleyan (Methodist) Church was built in 1865 out of timber from Udy’s Greytown mill. It is probably the oldest purpose-built church in Wairarapa. It was originally located at 63 Main St, Greytown, and relocated to Cobblestones in 1979. The church was funded and used by all the different Christian denominations, until they could build their own.
(Category 2 listing with Heritage New Zealand)
The church building is still a social hub, over 150 years later. You can hire the church for weddings, civil unions, fetes, and other celebrations.
Donald Woolshed
The Donald Woolshed was an early purpose-built woolshed. Built around 1870 it was moved from Masterton to Cobblestones Museum in 1973. Enter the world of shearing that still exists today all over New Zealand. The beautifully preserved shearing floor, machinery, and wool-sorting bench echo our modern day wool industry. Innovations like the ‘Donald Donald’ patented wool press showcase New Zealanders’ renowned agricultural ingenuity that spread across the world.
(Category 2 listing with Heritage New Zealand)
Mangapakeha School
Mangapakeha School was a one-teacher school that opened in 1902 at Tinui, near Masterton. For 60 years students aged 5 to 12 learned and socialised (and probably misbehaved) in this very building. Wander through the cloakroom, past the hanging leather schoolbags and rows of class photos dating back to 1929. Sit in the small classroom and wonder at the original textbooks, blackboards, and wooden desks with their fold-up seats and inkwell holders.
(Category 2 listing with Heritage New Zealand)
