Fruitlands | |
|---|---|
Settlement | |
 Mitchell's Cottage in Symes Road is registered as a Category I heritage building byHeritage New Zealand | |
.svg)  Fruitlands Fruitlands, New Zealand | |
| Coordinates:45°18′47″S169°18′04″E / 45.313°S 169.301°E /-45.313; 169.301 | |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Region | Otago |
| Territorial authority | Central Otago District |
| Time zone | UTC+12 (NZST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+13 (NZDT) |
| Localiwi | Ngāi Tahu |
Fruitlands, originally known asBald Hill Flat, is asettlement inCentral Otago in theOtago region of New Zealand.
It is situated onState Highway 8, 14 km southwest ofAlexandra, and 27 km northeast ofRoxburgh. Fruitlands was initially settled a gold mining town following agold rush in the early 1860s.
Fruitlands was initially known as "Bald Hill Flat" following a gold rush to the area in August 1863. Miners Andrew Drew and Ben Buchanan were getting an ounce of gold in 30 buckets from a depth of only a foot below the surface.[1] In the next few years the whole of Bald Hill Flat was prospected with small amounts of gold recovered from shallow depths almost everywhere.
Bald Hill Flat was initially an outlying part ofTeviot Station before the gold rush of 1863. Following the discovery of gold, it was split off theTeviot run and subdivided into sections for lease.[2]
Bald Hill Flat was renamed Fruitlands in 1915, in recognition of it becoming a fruit growing area. The establishment of orchards turned out to be abortive when only one crop of fruit was ever exported, and although there was ample summer irrigation water available, the hard winter frosts destroyed most of the trees.[3]
Once a community with school, post office andRoman-Catholic church,[4] today the area is a collection of modern farm houses, and the remains of miners' stone cottages; some derelict, others restored. Fine examples of restored houses are John Mitchell's cottage, and theSpeargrass Inn, formerly the Speargrass Hotel.
