The Napier War Memorial Hall was opened in Marine Parade on 14 July 1957. The stylish and innovative building incorporated a conference hall, a restaurant and an aquarium, along with a memorial bay displaying a roll of honour recording the names of 300 former residents of Napier Borough who had died during the Second World War.
The facility was rebuilt in 1995. On 30 September 1995 it was rededicated as Napier War Memorial Conference Centre. A new First World War roll of honour was added (the town’s original roll of honour had been destroyed during the earthquake in 1931); a number of names were added to the Second World War roll of honour to cover what was now the wider Napier City area; plaques were also installed to acknowledge service in post-Second World War conflicts. The perpetual flame, which had been extinguished some years previously, was relit.
The names on the rolls of honour are listed on the Napier City council website.
See also: ‘Napier War Memorial of Modernistic Design’, Weekly News, 24/7/1957, p. 23’, Unveiling and Official Opening of the War Memorial by the Honourable S.W. Smith, Napier, 1957 (4 pp.); D.N. Campbell, Story of Napier, 1874-1974, Napier, 1975, p. 194.
Community contributions