The Elms Mission House

The Elms Mission House in Tauranga, is one of the country’s oldest and finest surviving Georgian-style buildings in New Zealand

Established as part of the Church Missionary Society’s Te Papa mission station in the late 1830s, the site was chosen for its long Māori history as Otamataha pā. Reverend Alfred Nesbit Brown and his family moved there to promote Christianity and education among local iwi.

The adjacent library was completed in 1838, followed by the main Mission House in 1847. 

Constructed from kauri timber, the house features elegant colonial architecture and largely retains its original furniture and fittings.

In 1873, Brown and his second wife Christina purchased the property and surrounding land from the CMS, renaming it The Elms after the elm trees on the estate. It remained in the Brown family until 1997.⁠

Today, The Elms is a heritage site open to the public, offering insights into early Māori-Pākehā relations, missionary life, and colonial New Zealand history. Its peaceful gardens and historic buildings make it a treasured landmark.

15 Mission Street

Tauranga

Open 11am to 3pm