02/24/2026
142 Years After Nigeria’s First Presidential Villa Still Stands in Calabar
Long before the rise of A*o Rock in Abuja, Calabar was home to Nigeria’s very first seat of power. The Old Residency Museum, a timeless landmark that has endured for over 142 years.
Located in the heart of Cross River State’s capital, the Old Residency once served as the official Government House during the early colonial administration. It housed the offices of Lord Lugard and other pioneering British officials who governed both the Northern and Southern Protectorates of Nigeria before their eventual amalgamation in 1914.
Remarkably, this historic structure designed and constructed in Glasgow, Scotland was shipped in parts to Calabar and assembled on-site in 1884. The one-storey building, originally called the Government House, became the administrative nerve centre of the Niger Coast Territories, symbolizing authority, diplomacy, and the dawn of modern governance in Nigeria.
Today, the Old Residency stands majestically between the official residence of the State Chief Judge and the Deputy Governor’s residence, with the Presidential Lodge directly in front a fitting reminder of its former glory.
In 1950, the building served as a ministerial guest house, and after the Nigerian Civil War, it accommodated the administrative offices of the newly created South Eastern State. Recognizing its historical significance, the structure was declared a National Monument in 1959, and later renovated by the National Commission for Museums and Monuments in 1986.
While Lagos became the capital of the amalgamated Nigeria in 1914, it is important to remember that Calabar was the first seat of British colonial power in the country the true origin of Nigeria’s central administration.
Standing tall after more than a century, the Old Residency Museum remains a powerful emblem of Nigeria’s political beginnings a living monument to the nation’s enduring heritage.
