We are in front of the former building of the New Zealand Elevator Company, an impressive grain warehouse built in 1883. It has five stories and connects directly to the railway to easily transport large shipments.
Sixty meters long and twenty meters wide, the building impresses with its size and the ingenuity of its mechanisms: gigantic conveyor belts transport the grain to deep silos, all of which can be managed by just a few men.
This place illustrates the prosperity of the grain trade in Oamaru during the 1870s and 1880s.
In 1920, a fire devastated the warehouse: the airflow, designed to preserve the grain, fueled the fire, the roof collapsed, and the rear was destroyed. The upper floors were subsequently removed, but the building continued to serve as a warehouse until the 1950s.
Today, this stone giant is reborn: it houses the Steampunk HQ, a unique venue where industrial past meets retro-futuristic imagination, ready to surprise and fascinate all visitors.