This building is an important link to the development of the Oamaru port over the past century. Built two years after the creation of the Port Council, it served as the administrative headquarters throughout the period of major port works.
All the Council's affairs were conducted here: the Council chamber and the inspector's office are located upstairs. The building is thus associated with several notable figures in local history, including the pioneer and merchant George Sumpter, president from 1876 to 1891.
The Venetian style of the building was chosen to reflect the sense of importance and prosperity that the Port Council wished to project.