Post by NZBC on May 24, 2007 22:05:23 GMT 12
Corner, Macraes-Dunback Road and Gifford Road, MACRAES FLAT
Gay Tan’s house is of special historic importance. It is the last intact Chinese residence in the Macraes area and is one of only a few surviving Chinese buildings throughout Otago. This is despite the fact that Chinese miners made up a substantial proportion of the population during the late nineteenth century. As such it represents an important aspect of goldfields history that is otherwise represented by fragmented archæological sites rather than intact structures.
It is also an extremely rare example of Chinese affluence in the goldfields, as most Chinese were poor and lived in small huts. A house of this size, style and permanence was uncommon amongst European miners, let alone the Chinese. Gay Tan was a man well outside the Chinese norm in Otago, being both relatively wealthy and having married a European wife.
The house marks the site of the Gifford Road Chinese camp, which was situated on the other side of Gifford Road. Such Chinese settlements were a common feature of goldmining settlements, generally located a short distance away from the main European settlement. Similar location patterns can still be identified at Lawrence and Arrowtown.
Gay Tan’s house is of special historic importance. It is the last intact Chinese residence in the Macraes area and is one of only a few surviving Chinese buildings throughout Otago. This is despite the fact that Chinese miners made up a substantial proportion of the population during the late nineteenth century. As such it represents an important aspect of goldfields history that is otherwise represented by fragmented archæological sites rather than intact structures.
It is also an extremely rare example of Chinese affluence in the goldfields, as most Chinese were poor and lived in small huts. A house of this size, style and permanence was uncommon amongst European miners, let alone the Chinese. Gay Tan was a man well outside the Chinese norm in Otago, being both relatively wealthy and having married a European wife.
The house marks the site of the Gifford Road Chinese camp, which was situated on the other side of Gifford Road. Such Chinese settlements were a common feature of goldmining settlements, generally located a short distance away from the main European settlement. Similar location patterns can still be identified at Lawrence and Arrowtown.