Picture this. You are standing before Saint Ninians Church in Avondale. Its weathered kauri planks whisper tales of a bygone era. This unassuming building is Avondale’s oldest structure. Construction began on November 14 1859. Opening services followed on Easter Sunday April 8 1860.
Saint Ninians Church wasn’t just a place of worship. It served as the Whau District’s first school. Imagine children learning their ABCs in the very pews they later sat in for Sunday services. The desks were cleverly designed to fold away. The church also doubled as the community’s first public hall. This continued until a new hall was built across the road.
In its early years the Avondale parish extended all the way to Helensville a vast area. A tragic event forever linked the church to its history. In July 1873 Rev David Hamilton died while traveling to preach at Whatipu. His grave became the first in the small cemetery next to the church. The cemetery closed in 1914. However family plots were still permitted. Other notable figures rest there including John Neale Bethell of Bethell’s Beach. William Forsyth the public hall builder is also buried here. Lastly Jessie MacKenzie the so called Danish Princess is also interred in this historic graveyard.
In 1935 the church was dedicated to Saint Ninian a 5th-century missionary to Scotland and northern England. A manse a home for parish ministers was constructed in the 1870s on Blockhouse Bay Road. Times changed and on October 8 1972 Saint Ninians merged with other churches. The congregation moved to the Avondale Union Parish Church on Rosebank Road. In 1984 Saint Ninians Church closed its doors. The Auckland City Council bought the building and the cemetery in 1988. Today Saint Ninians Reserve stands on the grounds. The church itself is a venue for hire. Its story continues to unfold. Its walls retain memories of devotion education and community life. The church remains a symbol of Avondale’s rich past.