Auckland Central Archaeology Unveiled

One of the earliest hotels in Auckland, Victoria Hotel, opened in 1840 as a temporary structure made of raupō between Shortland Street and Fort Street. The hotel was replaced in 1842 with a timber building, and later extended in 1845. For the first two decades, Victoria Hotel was popular and fashionable; however, by the 1860s, the hotel was experiencing financial difficulties. In February 1865, a fire broke out under suspicious circumstances, consuming the hotel and several other nearby properties.  

A commercial building was constructed on the vacant site in the 1880s, which remained until 1989 when the Auckland Star newspaper building was demolished for redevelopment. During excavations, archaeologists uncovered the Victoria Hotel's cellar, which had been infilled and sealed by the hotel's contents during the fire, creating a time capsule representing Victorian Auckland.  

A large amount of material relating to hotel operations was recovered, including glass bottles, ceramic ware, chimney bricks, hotel fittings, coins, faunal material, and an extensive collection of clay tobacco pipes. More than 2000 pipe fragments were recovered, representing over 20 manufacturers, including varieties rare to Aotearoa. Some clay pipes are stamped with the manufacturer's mark, and through research, archaeologists can determine the location and period of manufacture, providing a date range for the site and information on export networks.  

Excavations undertaken during the demolition of the Brown's Mill building, 15-17 Durham Lane, in 1988 revealed the remains of residential dwellings with evidence of occupation since the 1840s. A stone warehouse was later constructed on the site in 1876 and converted into a flour mill sometime before 1882. The mill continued to operate until the 1960s, when the machinery was removed from the building. The site was then used for the Brown's Mill craft market, which operated from 1968 until the building was demolished. 

A well, constructed at the same time as the house foundations, had been filled with domestic rubbish, relating to the day-to-day activities of the households. Much like the clay pipes, ceramic ware, glass bottles and other domestic items display makers marks, which date the material to being in use while the dwellings were occupied. 

The material recovered provides some clue as to the socio-economic status of the occupants, suggesting they did not prioritise spending on consumer items. A Fox and Grapes patterned bowl found in the well is a manufacturing 'second' with a prominent drip and several runs in the pattern's ink. Two additional printed vessels also show flaws in the pattern application.  

Footwear belonging to men, women and children was also recovered from the well. The shoes were very badly worn, suggesting they got all the wear out of them before they were discarded. At least two pairs show evidence of sole repairs. Leather offcuts found in the well could relate to repairs being made by the occupants.  

The animal bones, including pig and cow, also indicate that the occupants used inexpensive cuts of meat. Butchery marks on the bones are consistent with their use as roasts. The fact that whole animals were not found suggests they were obtained as individual cuts.

While the archaeological evidence cannot tell us exactly who was living at the site, several pieces of sawn and nailed timber offcuts were in the well, suggesting one of the tenants carried out carpentry or may have been employed as a carpenter. Interestingly, jury lists show that a carpenter lived on Durham Lane from 1850-1851.

^{Brown’s Mill, Durham Lane. Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira. PH-CNEG-B4587.}

The Albert Barracks was a major British military installation that once encompassed the current sites of the University of Auckland and Albert Park within a 3-metre high stone wall. Construction of the barracks started in 1845 and continued until 1851-52 to reassure the people of Auckland after the First New Zealand War (1845-1946) in the Bay of Islands. While the barracks never saw conflict, it played a central role in public life, hosting balls, sporting, and other events. Albert Barracks was abandoned in 1870, and the buildings were demolished or relocated. A remnant of the wall can still be visited on the University of Auckland campus beside the library.  

Archaeological investigations uncovered numerous items relating to the military aspects of the barracks, including buttons and badges that identified the regiments residing at the barracks, flintlock, percussion munitions and a stoneware ink jar with a government-issued broad arrow mark. Narratives relating to Albert Barracks often focus on the military presence in colonial Auckland and the impact on urban development.  

However, the artefacts assemblage also provides interesting aspects of daily life in the barracks, from alcohol and pharmaceutical bottles, game pieces, ceramic ware, condiment bottles, and other food refuse. Personal items such as patterned chamber pots, washbowls, teapots, porcelain jars, and an octagon jar with a face moulded onto it are also present in the collections.  

A more interesting aspect of the assemblage is the presence of items relating to the soldier's families who also resided in the barracks. There are several instances of ceramic figurines, which were popular household decorations for working and middle-class nineteenth-century families. Brass eyelets and lashing hooks from women's boots, ceramic dolls, children's tea sets, and glass marbles also speak to the presence of women and children in the barracks.  

Examination of the more everyday occurrences allows for a richer interpretation of the social aspects of life at the Albert Barracks, and the role women and children played, contributing to the story of families living in the barracks.  

^{Artefacts from the Albert Barracks site}