DREAM SHED — CARRINGTON HOUSE
It took more than 60 years to accumulate and just a day to part out — while the collection you see here may no longer exist, it’s not all bad news
While most sheds or collections we feature in NZV8 have started within the last decade or two, the amazing Carrington House collection goes back a lot further than that. As impressive as the collection is, the building that it’s housed in is potentially even more of a standout — depending on your taste, of course. The main residence on the property in Carterton — about an hour and a half north of Wellington — was built in 1874 as the residence of Reverend William Booth, one of Carterton’s most prominent citizens. The sawmiller and farmer by trade moved the house to its current location in 1894, to allow a sawmill to be established behind it to mill the 6000 acres of native timber on the property. Over the years, an impressive garden was created around the house, with the planting of no fewer than 20,000 daffodils among many other plants. Understandably, the homestead is now registered with Heritage New Zealand as a Category 2 Historic Place and also with the New Zealand Gardens Trust as a Garden of Significance. After a century of ownership by the original family, the estate was purchased by John and Shirley Cameron in 1988. The Camerons have lovingly restored the house and gone on to open the property up for garden tours and events such as weddings and the annual English Country Day. However, in 2016, they decided that it was time to move on from the iconic residence, and, as such, it was put up for tender. Selling a house such as this, which is undoubtedly one of the finest estates in the country, would never be an easy task, but the house did eventually sell. While some of the house’s furnishings and items, such as the concert-sized Steinway piano, would stay, the large collection of vehicle memorabilia amassed over the past 60 years
which, sadly, will now be leaving New Zealand. Wakefield Auctions was blown away by the record prices paid for some items, stating that it was really the tin signs that many bidders were hungry for. The highest price of the day for a sign was for a large Plume sign, with bidding reaching around $4K. It wasn’t just the big-ticket items that went for higher-than-expected prices, however.
Smaller signs that would have fetched $30 or $40 a few years ago sold for more than double that. Although there were 132 registered bidders at the event, a handful of buyers did purchase a large number of the items. Some of these items have now become part of nearby Wairarapa collections and museums, which is great. The model-car side of the auction wasn’t quite as successful, despite some models — such as Shelby Mustangs and the like — exceeding their reserve with ease. The Chev and Rio trucks also exceeded reserve and found new homes on the day. While it’s a positive outcome for the collection’s owner, it’s also been a great thing for the whole scene, with other collectors now approaching Wakefield about running similar auctions later in the year. If you’re in the market, we’d suggest you keep an eye on what’s coming up, as maybe this wasn’t a once in a lifetime opportunity after all!