Former Strahan's Saw Mill

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

Former Strahan's Saw Mill

126 Ballarat Road

Built on land originally outside the City's boundaries, Strahan's was once the largest supplier of building materials in Hamilton. The yard was operated by the contractor R A Strahan from the 1920s and was closed down only recently. R A Strahan was a local contractor, building supplier, farmer, grazier and developer. He had extensive property interests in Hamilton and he was responsible for some of the suburban development along Ballarat Road. He was the builder of Monivae College, built in 1953, which stands opposite and had once owned the site. ([i]) The plasterworks shed built on the Ballarat Road boundary and the saw dust incinerator built at the rear of the site near Tatlock Street are all that remain of significance. They are of local significance for their historical associations and as expressions of the construction industry. The plasterworks shed is a thoroughly functional building of corrugated iron and the kiln is built of fire bricks. They both remain substantially intact and they are in fair condition. They are two of the few surviving industrial buildings in Hamilton. The other structures in the complex were equally utilitarian. The office, out buildings, crane and two saw mills have either been very much altered or demolished. ([ii])