COMMUNITY MEMORIALS

The current Papanui war memorial located near the junction of Papanui, Harewood and Main North Roads.

THE PAPANUI MEMORIAL

The memorial shown above is not the original war memorial shown on this site. The original war memorial was a much larger affair. After some discussion, public meetings and a vote, the Waimairi County Council agreed to borrow money to build a Town Hall and Library, the repayments to be funded by a special rate imposed on ratepayers. The foundation stone was laid on 8 June 1922 by the Chairman of the Waimairi County Council, Mr W.J. Walter, who “thanked the people of Papanui for the great honour they had done him in asking him to lay the stone. He had spent his school days and his football days in Papanui, he said, and he knew personally what a fine lot of fellows this memorial was to represent. He congratulated the district on the way it had worked for patriotic purposes during the war, and on the way it had undertaken to provide a lasting memorial.”

The Town Hall was not completed until 1923 and remained on site until demolished in the 1960s to improve roads. The memorial tablets containing the names were inset into the ground on the section. The memorial plaques were removed inset into the ground as a separate memorial. Lobbying of the local community board by the local RSA and council concern about damage to these plaques from skateboarders led to pressure for change. In 1997, this reserve was redeveloped. The memorial was relocated and incorporated into its current form, and the section was redeveloped to include a memorial to some soldiers from World War II.

THE BELFAST MEMORIAL

The Belfast community chose to create an ornamental rather than a practical memorial as did the people in Papanui. The Patriotic Committee that had organised farewells and receptions for returning soldiers turned its attention to creating a public memorial in Sheldon Park. It called a public meeting on 21 February 1919 which resolved to form a committee to plan and raise funds for the memorial. The result was a 6.85 metre obelisk, with four panels, two of which name the thirty-four men from the district who were killed in World War I. The memorial was unveiled on 5 June 1921. Several hundred people from the district, including returned servicemen, attended the service. The Rev. H.N. Roberts claimed that the manhood of New Zealand had “gained a great reputation for New Zealand … Every man in the land today was better for the sacrifice. The monument, from the commanding and convenient position, would be seen daily by the young people who would enter the park and it would show then a worthy idea. No man could die a greater death than for his country.”

THE COUTTS ISLAND MEMORIAL

Coutts Island is a small rural enclave that separates Belfast from the south branch of the Waimakariri River. It chose to create its own memorial to the five men from this district who were killed in World War I.