Country Churches of NZ 64. St. George's, Patea, Taranaki

I wrote and illustrated Country Churches of New Zealand. It was published in 2002 by New Holland, Publishers and is still on sale in bookshops. The publishers have kindly agreed to me re-publishing some of the book’s images and descriptions in this blog.

ST GEORGE'S, PATEA

It's hard to believe that this imposing and well-presented church, almost too large for my collection, serves a congregation of rarely more than twenty parishioners. It's a sign of the times.

My old friend de Jersey Clere caught some flack in 1885 when he gave St George's, Patea an unusual A-frame design. The critics failed to appreciate that it was a deliberate decision to make use of timber for timber's sake rather than to try to replicate stone in wood.

© DON DONOVAN
donovan@ihug.co.nz
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