The Basin Reserve has not always been a sporting ground - it was originally a lake, which early settlers intended to link to the harbour via a canal running in the median area between Kent and Cambridge Terraces. However the 1855 earthquake (estimated to be around 8 on the Richter scale) lifted the entire area about 1.8 metres, effectively bringing the canal/basin plans to an end, and leaving the Basin Reserve a swamp.

Following requests from local residents, prisoners from the Mt Cook Gaol began draining the swamp in 1863, and the Basin Reserve became Wellington's official cricket ground in 1866. Since then, it has been in continuous use for local, national and international matches, as well as for a variety of other sporting and cultural events.

The Basin Reserve was officially deeded to the city of Wellington by William Fitzherbert, the then Superintendent of the Province of Wellington on 21 March 1873. A transcript of the original Deed is below.

More on the history of the Basin Reserve can be found on Wikipedia, and the authoritative source of information - current and historical - is widely regarded as being "The Basin - An Illustrated History of the Basin Reserve" (Canterbury University Press, 2003) by Don Neely and Joseph Romanos.

The Basin Reserve precinct and the Pavilion are regarded as significant by the Historic Places Trust, and there is an excellent cricket museum within the Pavilion, which is well worth a visit for cricket fans and history buffs alike.

The Basin Reserve has its own tag on Flickr, where hundreds of photos from a huge range of people - covering everything from cricket matches and the recent SummerSet concert to the buildings and the grounds - can be viewed.