Johnston Building
This building was erected for John Johnston, a blacksmith, who was also the second Mayor of Rangiora.
It was designed by R W England and built in 1896 by one of the town’s prominent building firms, Boyd & Keir, using “only the best procurable materials”.
Located opposite the Junction Hotel, it housed the first shop in Rangiora to be lit by electricity (today Rangiora Coffee Culture).
The shop was built for its first tenant, G F Smith the draper. The engineering business was located at the rear of the premises. The Lyttelton Times office was an original occupant. Over the years the building has had a wide variety of businesses operating from it, for example, Self Help grocers, The Public Trust and the Victoria Street Café.
The building is still owned by Johnston’s descendants, who, with the cooperation of the Historic Places Trust and the Rangiora and Districts Early Records Society, have restored the building. This has included returning ornamentation to the façade.