PAPANUI’S

TOWN

HALLS

1881—1978

and

LIBRARIES

“First” Town Hall—from “SAIL’S LAND sale of freehold sections, December 1880”

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Papanui Town Hall.

The first Papanui Town hall was a wooden structure built

in1880 on the corner of what is now Bellvue Avenue and Papanui

Road.

The opening took place on New Year‟s Day, 1881, in conjunc-

tion with a Sports Meeting held on the Cricket Ground (now St.

James Park.) to raise funds. This was followed by „tea‟ provided in

the old school room (St. Paul‟s) between 5 and 7pm.

The “Grand Dramatic Entertainment” started in the hall at 8pm.

The programme as printed in the Press, 31 December 1880, is on

page 4.

A description of the building was given in the Press on the 30th

December 1880: - “The hall, with which it may be stated is also

combined two very handsome shops, with living rooms, &c, per-

fectly disconnected (though under the same roof) from the hall,

fronts on the North road, and has a very pretty elevation, being 33 ft.

from base to parapet. Taking the hall proper first, entrance is gained

by a pair of doors leading into a passage 8ft. 6in. wide and 27ft.

long. On the right hand side is a ladies‟ cloak room 7ft. 6in. by 11ft.,

and on the left the stairs by which access is gained to the gallery. At

the end of the entrance passage is the door to the hall proper, which

will be half glass, frosted, having a ticket office on the left hand side.

The gallery itself is 33ft. by 9ft., and the height from the floor of the

hall to the top of the balcony rail is 13ft. It is supported by iron pil-

lars, and the floor is raised in three steps. The front is ornamented

with circles having scarlet cloth under. The hall itself is 60ft. by

32ft. in the clear, the height being 22ft. 6in. from the floor to ceiling.

The ceiling is curved, and has two ventilating trunks running through

from front to back, with ornamental apertures the length of the hall.

The ceiling is supported by bold pilasters, relieved above by a heavy

cornice. The room is lighted by a very pretty sunlight with enam-

elled surface, the colours being lavender and white, and on each side

of the sunlight are ornamental flower centres; a dado stained and var-

nished 4ft. high runs round the room. The stage, which is at the

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south end of the hall, is 4ft. high from the floor of the building,

20ft. 6in. deep, and 32ft. wide. It is well fitted with scenery, &c,

has patent float footlights, and generally has been carefully

planned. On the eastern side are two entrances, one with double

doors, being the entrance to the stalls, and also communicating

with the stage, by means of a small staircase. The other leads into

the supper room at the back, which is 36 x 14 and 13ft. high in the

clear. At this entrance is also a small ante-room. On the western

side is another entrance communicating by a side door with the

hall, and also leading by a 4ft. passage into the supper room. On

the stage are two commodious dressing-rooms. The proscenium

front is plastered, and is 16ft. 6in. wide and 12ft. high. The light-

ing on the stage, exclusive of the floodlights is by two rows of

border lights, and the whole of the gas arrangements of the build-

ing, exclusive of the shops, are controlled by taps in the prompt

entrance. The shops in the front are each 14 x 17 and 13ft. high.

At the back of each is a kitchen 10ft. 6in. x 12ft. 6in., with stair-

cases communicating with the upper floor, on which there are a

parlour and two bedrooms attached to each shop. The parlors are

14 x 17 each, and the bedrooms nice handy-sized rooms. The

ventilating arrangements throughout are very complete, as, in ad-

dition to the ventilating trunks already spoken of, there are side-

wall ventilators all round the building. Taken as a whole, the

building is a credit to the district, and the work has been carried

out in a thoroughly substantial manner. It may be noted here that

it is plastered throughout.

The architect is Mr AW. Simpson, the contractor being Mr

Jamieson.”

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“The Press” 1st January, 1881 “The Press” 31st December, 1880

“The Press” 31 December, 1880

“The Press” 1 January, 1881

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A newspaper reported on the 9th December 1899:- “At one of

Mr Tanner‟s meetings in the Papanui Town Hall three fat geese

entered the side door, filed past the candidate and his chairman,

wheeled round, and proceeded in the direction of the gallery set

apart for ladies.”

So says the Christchurch Press.

In the early hours of the morning of the 5th October 1900 the

hall was destroyed by fire, along with three neighbouring shops.

The shops were occupied by Lake the boot maker, Hopkins‟

grocery and Roberts the hairdresser and tobacconist.

In an article in the „New Zealand Tablet‟ in December 1881,

the writer states: “The Papanui Town Hall is a structure really

worthy of a town in the Old Country, though its enterprising

shareholders can scarcely as yet have found their investment a

mine of inexhaustible wealth.”

On the 21st May 1883 news papers around the country

reported that the Papanui Town Hall, “built a couple of years ago,

sold for £1075 - not half the cost.”

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This is a transcript of an article from “The Papanui Herald” February 6th, 1968

One of Papanui‟s oldest shops is being demolished this week.

Historic building

to be rebuilt

Jim Taylor‟s Shoe Bar was built

almost 70 years ago of kauri timbers

salvaged from the old Papanui town

hall burnt down at the turn of the cen-

tury.

The town hall was sited where Ford

and MacDougalls Service Station

now is on rhe corner of Papanui Road

and Bellvue Avenue.

The Shoe Bar building was origi-

nally the office for the coal yard be-

longing to the Papanui Trading Com-

pany.

This is now Dales building occu-

pied by Dales the chemists and Don

Smith the draper.

John Roberts, a barber was its next

occupant.

„He used to cut your hair for six-

pence and shave you for threepence,‟

remembered Stan Kruse, a Papanui

resident for 60 years.

Jim Taylor of the Shoe Bar found

that the floor had been packed up in a

circle where the barber had had

walked around the chair for so many

years.

For a few years in the late thirties it

was occupied by Willburgs Cycle

Shop [a picture was shown above]

Charlie Plows, a boot repairer,

moved in.

He was in the shop for 17 years

before Jim Taylor took over in 1950.

He also began as a boot and shoe

repairer. Later he began a complete

footwear retailing service.

Now, after 18years, Jim is moving to

temporary premises down the road

whilst the old shop is rebuilt.

After the fire some of the kauri timber was salvaged and may

have been used in several buildings in the Papanui area. One of

these buildings was an office for the Papanui Trading Company‟s

coal yard. The building lasted some 70 years before being demol-

ished.

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Papanui Memorial Hall.

It wasn‟t until 1923 that Papanui got its sturdy-looking con-

crete Memorial Hall and new library on the corner of Horner

Street and Papanui Road. Prior to this, on the site there had been

a blacksmith for many years; the original building being the old

St. Paul‟s property that William Horner had purchased and shifted

across the road. It had seen a number of occupants over the years.

The Hall was built by the Papanui community in memory of

the men from the district who lost their lives in the 1914 - 1918

War. This was before Papanui amalgamated with the City, and in

order to raise the necessary funds for the building, committees

were formed and collections started.

Many concerts were held, and it was said that one group

even travelled as far as Tai Tapu on bikes to put on a concert.

There were dances and a Carnival Week when a “Queen of the

Carnival” was crowned. The money rolled in.

An article in “The Press” in February 1922 stated that “The

excavations have been made, and the foundations laid.

The section was purchased for £800…..

The sum of £6000 had been raised and out of that amount the sec-

tion had to be bought, leaving the balance for the building…..

The tender which had been accepted was about £400 in excess of

the amount of money in hand, and in order to cover the

deficiency, it had been arranged to hold a fete in the Papanui

Domain on Easter Monday and have a Queen Carnival…..”

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On the 10th April 1922 “The Press” reported: “…..The plans

were prepared by Messrs Guthrie Bros. and Mr J. Smith‟s tender

for £5950 had been accepted. The memorial would include a

library, a reading room, and a hall capable of holding 400 people.

Unfortunately there was no allowance made for a supper-room,

but the speaker hoped that one would be erected at the back.”

The foundation stone was laid by Mr. W.J. Walter, chairman

of the Waimairi County Council, on the 8th June 1922. He com-

mented that he thought this was one of the most important days in

the history of Papanui.

The piece from the paper starts: “An impressive ceremony

was held at Papanui on Saturday afternoon, when the foundation

stone of the war memorial Town Hall and Library was laid. The

walls of the building, which is situated nearly opposite the Post

Office, have already been erected, and they were decorated with

flags…..Mr Hart stated that in an opening under the stone, would

be placed coins of the realm, and the newspapers containing the

reports of the proceedings. This would be for the edification of

the people of a thousand years hence.”

(The building survived for only 65 years.)

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PAPANUI WAR MEMORIAL.

Unveiling ceremony.

From “The Press” Monday 2 April 1923: “Many hundreds of

people were present yesterday afternoon at the unveiling cere-

mony of the tablet in front of the newly erected Memorial Town

Hall and Library at Papanui. The Memorial Tablet, which is of

granite, bears the following inscription: “In memory of the men of

this district who gave their lives in the Great War, 1914 - 18.”

(A full report followed.)

Across the corner of the building, the Roll of Honour was

set into the wall for all to see.

There were 38 names on this Roll.

(Other memorials for the Papanui area are: St. Paul‟s, Papanui

High School, Belfast, Harewood School, and Coutts Island.)

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PAPANUI MEMORIAL HALL

Opening Ceremony.

From The Press, 23rd April 1923.( Extracts from a full report.)

“The opening ceremony of the Papanui Memorial Hall and

Library was held on Saturday afternoon. Despite inclement

weather, a large crowd had gathered before the building by 2.30

o‟clock.”

Mr R.W. Hawke, chairman of the Waimairi County Council,

had the pleasure to perform the opening ceremony. When the

doors were opened the assembly moved inside to the main hall

where afternoon tea had been laid out. There were a number of

musical items and speeches.

“The interior of the hall is of white plaster, with rimu panel-

ling and it is extremely effective. There is a large suspended

gallery and the stage has a full set of scenery.”

The Memorial Hall (or Town Hall ) became the hub of the

township, being used for balls, dances, 21st birthdays, wedding

receptions, flower shows and all the community activities that went

on, including roller skating on Saturdays. It had also been used for

silent movies, with seating for up to 500 people.

On the 21st August 1935 the „Empire Theatre‟ opened with

sound, and the theatre continued under this name until March 1965

when it became known as the Barclay Theatre. Older residents will

remember going to the pictures there for „One Shilling.‟

The theatre closed its doors on the 3rd June 1975.

For some time Si Sullivan was the custodian, and there are stories

of him dragging a sack of wheat around the floor in preparation for a dance.

The hall was his pride and joy and any children caught fooling about were sent off with a „flea in their ear.‟ He was said to be a hard-looking

man with a raspy voice, and his trousers were always concertinaed be-

cause they were too big for him.

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Later, the City Council took over the control and mainte-

nance of the hall and from then on, residents say it was sadly

neglected. By 1978 it was condemned, and had to be demolished

as it had become an earthquake risk. The memorial plaques were

removed and set into the ground of the landscaped area that

replaced the hall. There was concern that skateboarders and

cyclists were damaging the plaques, so when the reserve was

re-developed in 1997, the plaques were set into the wall as they

stand today.

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PAPANUI LIBRARY

The library in the Memorial Hall was not the first home of the

Papanui Library. Reports suggest that the Sawyers Arms

Hotel had a library, back in the days when it also housed The

Mechanics‟ Institute (similar to a night school). The Library was

then housed in the Church of England school room until a suitable

site could be found.

William Horner owned the 50 acres of R.S. (Rural Section)

304 that covered the area bounded by Main North Road, Papanui

Road, Grants Road and Proctor Street. When he subdivided most of

this land for housing, Lot 15, just before Proctor Street on the Main

North Road, was sold for £30 to “Trustees for a Public Library.”

In June 1874 “The Star” reported under PAPANUI

LIBRARY: “A meeting of the committee was held in St. Paul‟s

schoolroom on Thursday evening last. Present - H. Matson

(chairman) T. Langdon, J. Jackson and C.C.C. Duncan (Hon. Sec.).

The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed. The

chairman replied that the contractor for the erection of the library

building had experienced a difficulty in respect to the plastering and

wished to be allowed to substitute tongued and grooved boarding. It

was moved by Mr T. Langdon, seconded by Mr C.C.C. Duncan, and

agreed: “That in consequence of the difficulty in obtaining plaster-

ers, the chairman be empowered to make terms with the contractor

for the match lining and varnishing the interior of the building in

lieu of plastering, as originally agreed upon, and that the chairman

be authorised to arrange for the erection of a fence round the library

ground.” The chairman informed the meeting that he had received

from the Government the promised sum of £100 for building pur-

poses and £50 for books, and that he had passed the same over to the

treasurer. It was resolved not to purchase the books for the library

until the building was ready to receive them, and that on the comple-

tion of the building an entertainment or soiree be given in aid of the

library fund. After some general conversation on library matters the

committee adjourned.

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It would appear that this building on the Main North Road

was used until the Memorial Hall Library was opened in 1923 and

the money from the sale of the building was used to buy new

books.

“The site of the present Papanui library in the old

Barclay Theatre” (Oct. 1977)

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From there, in late 1989 or early 1990, the library shifted to

premises in Langdons Road on what is now the car park in front

of Briscoes. This was the former Kovacs Furniture showroom.

When the Memorial Hall building was demolished in 1978

it was hoped that a new library would be built on the site, but the

Christchurch City Council decided to lease part of the new

„Roundabout Arcade‟ just across the corner. This was opened in

May 1978.

Until this time the library had been run by volunteers.

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They stayed there about five years until the purpose-built library on

the corner of Langdons Road and Restell Street was finished in

1995. This building was opened on the 11th February by the Christ-

church Mayor, Vicki Buck..

This has been the home of the Papanui Library ever since.

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Compiled by Christine Grant, and edited by Warren Hudson February 2009

a PAPANUI HERITAGE GROUP Publication

ISSN 1173-6909 09 (print) ISSN 2253-4830-09 (online)