Heritage: saints be praised

St Peter’s Anglican Church, East Maitland, and Cintra House in Regent Street have been listed as items of state or local significance in the register.

“I am delighted that the highest level of heritage recognition is being given to these beautiful and significant local landmarks,” Heritage Minister and Maitland MP Robyn Parker said.

“St Peter’s is one of the finest examples in NSW of a sandstone church in the Victorian Academic Gothic style as interpreted by one of the leading architectural practices of the time, Cyril and Arthur Blacket, sons of Edmund Blacket (colonial architect).”

Ms Parker said the site had been continuously occupied for ecclesiastical purposes since 1829.

She said Cintra House was an outstanding example of late Victorian architecture in the Italianate town villa style.

“Along with its remarkable garden and stables, Cintra House has outstanding aesthetic quality, symbolic of the Hunter’s expansion prior to the growth of Newcastle,” Ms Parker said.

She said the significance of the region’s rich history was recognised through the Hunter Homestead Project, the initial findings of which were presented to the Heritage Council yesterday.

“The study includes research into the settlement and agricultural development of the Hunter, the nature of the properties dating back as early as the 1830s and the relative historical significance of these properties,” Ms Parker said. “The Hunter Valley is the perfect destination for people keen on visiting heritage sites. 

“The region contains a rich variety of heritage items from churches, courthouses and post offices, to railway stations, town halls and mills.

“Thanks to the Hunter Homestead Project, many more local sites of historic significance will be recognised and managed for future generations.”

There are more than 500 items of special significance identified throughout NSW and listed on the State Heritage Register.