“High cultural significance”, “unique”, and “intact” are some of the words used by conservation architects to describe the Brain-Watkins House (no, not Brian!). This Victorian square villa was built in 1881. It is one of six surviving single-family homes in New Zealand with predominantly intact original contents that function as a house museum.

The house and contents were gifted to the Tauranga Historical Society (Est. 1952) by Elva Brain-Watkins in 1979. Today the Society is responsible for the management, preservation and display of the Brain-Watkins House Museum.

Volunteers maintain the house as a museum and open it to the public for guided tours each Sunday from 2-4 pm. Admission $5 (children free). Private group tours are available on request.

To hire the hall behind Brain-Watkins:

• $30 per half day
• $50 full day
  • contact: bwhallusers233@gmail.com