Location 57
Location #57 - The Coronation Hall
Map 5
Address
King Street

Area


Description

Location #57 - The Coronation Hall. King Street, west side.


Still Standing

Yes



Construction Details

Stone and mortar

Location Type

Public Building


View Location on Map

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Interested Parties

The table below shows the groups of people that had an interest in this property, either as owners, residents, tenants or shareholders. Clicking on the 'Details' link will display a list of the individuals in the group along with any known historical information about them.

Group Date Description
1 1912 - The Coronation Hall Details
Notes

The table below shows any historical notes about the location.

Note Date Short Description Note Text
747 1911 Planning for the new Coronation Hall. By 1911, the old Jubilee Hall and Athenaeum (location #120) had become too small for the growing population of Bannockburn. It had served the community well since 1888 but was now in poor condition. Mr Charles Ray was the secretary of the Hall Committee and the librarian. He was trying to generate support for the upgrading of the old hall. At this time the celebrations for the Coronation of King George V and Queen Mary were being organised with James Horn the secretary. The government of the day had made funds available to County Councils to put towards the construction of public buildings or halls in commemoration of the Coronation, although this was not widely known. Mr Horn called a public meeting to discuss the grant. However by the time the meeting was held, the deadline for applications was the next day. The meeting went well and it was proposed that Mr Horn apply for the grant 'by wire' (the postmistress, Miss Anderson would send a telegram) and Mr horn would follow it up with a letter. This was done, and as there was no other application the Bannockburn Hall Committee received a grant of £600 (six hundred pounds) to build the new hall which was to be known as the Coronation Hall (#57). The new hall was to be constructed of stone and mortar with a timber and galvanized corrugated iron roof. The interior was to be match-lined with a tongue and groove timber with plaster above the dado rail. The ceiling was to be of tongue and groove timber. A stage with a dressing room was required. The hall floor was to be of timber and suitable for dancing. It was also proposed to construct an ante-room to house the library. This was to be attached to the south side of the new hall and constructed of timber and clad in galvanized corrugated iron. The materials were to be salvaged from the demolition of the old Jubilee Hall (#120). The committee advertised for tenders to construct the new hall and received two submissions. The Cromwell stonemason, William Gair submitted a tender price of £800 (eight hundred pounds). He had recently completed the stonework on the Presbyterian Church (#58) which was close by and had done a very satisfactory job. The second tender submitted was from a Clyde builder, Mr A Kofoed who was Danish and new to the area, but had support of friends in the Bannockburn township. His price was £600 (six hundred pounds). The contract to build the hall was awarded to Mr Kofoed with Charles Ray as inspector of works. The stone for the hall may have been quarried from the same area in Shepherd’s Creek as for the Presbyterian Church (see location #282).
748 1912 New Coronation Hall is completed. In April 1912, the hall was completed and ready for use. The old Jubilee Hall and Athenaeum (#120) was demolished.
749 1912 The opening of the Coronation Hall. On May 1 1912, the new Coronation Hall was officially opened by the Member for the County, Mr James Ritchie. This was followed by a concert and a dance that evening. It was a wild and stormy night and the ante-room was found not to be waterproof. Some time later it was discovered by the librarian, Mr Ray, that the books stored in the ante-room were damp, so the library was stored in a room behind the stage.
750 1913 1913 Bazaar The hall committee resolved that a wicker chair, valued at about 35 shillings be given away as a door prize at the first night of the upcoming Bazaar. On the second night, the door prize was to be a dressed sheep. Children were to be charged sixpence and a childrens door prize would also be given away. The Bazaar continued to be held, although not every year, until about 1941.
751 1913 Notes on the Hall toilets. The hall toilets were long drops. The men's toilet consisted of a galvanized, corrugated iron and timber out-building well away to the south of the hall. The urinal consisted of a length of spouting connected to the long drop. The woman’s toilet was also constructed of galvanized corrugated iron and timber but was attached directly to the hall (where the present window is in the existing woman’s toilet). The smell from the toilets would enter the hall from the passageway.
752 1919 Planning for additions and improvements On December 3 1919 a public meeting was held and it was resolved that hew flush toilets and a supper room with accommodation for the library be built. The committee was to obtain prices for the construction of these improvements and for a water tank with a stand. A quite of £200 (two hundred pounds) to build the new supper room was obtained from Mr George Gair, of Cromwell.
753 1919 Financing arrangements for extensions and improvements. On December 17, another public meeting was held to discuss the hall finances and ways of obtaining money to construct the supper room and toilets. It was decided to issue debentures valued at £5 each, bearing an interest rate of six percent per annum. It was also decided to construct the extension in concrete rather than in stone, also that the committee would undertake and supervise the construction themselves. Mr George Burgess who was a local builder (a stone mason from the Shetland Islands) was engaged to construct the new extension by day work. To raise additional funds a Grant Art Union was proposed. The prize was to be gold nuggets, valued at approximately £10, to be obtained by Mr James McLedowney, the publican of the Bannockburn Hotel. The gold was to be purchased on behalf of the committee from the local gold miners (at this time the Government price paid for gold was around £3 per ounce). There were to be 3000 tickets printed in books of 25 and the price of the tickets was to be one shilling each.
754 1920 Payments made for materials and labour. On June 20 a Hall Committee meeting was called to pass the payment for materials and wages for the construction of the new supper room extension. They included : Jolly & Sons - one hundred pound George Burgess – forty eight pound, three shillings William Clunie – forty four pound, sixteen shillings James Crabbe – seven pound, sixteen shillings Edward Lawrence – ten shillings John Parsons – fourteen shillings The total cost of the concrete supper room was £300-19-00 (three hundred pound and nineteen shillings) which unfortunately was more than George Gairs quote for a stone extension.
755 1920 Opening of the new supper room On October 1, the opening of the new supper room was celebrated with a Euchre Party, social and dance. Admission was: double tickets – five shillings, single tickets – three shillings, with refreshments provided.
756 1926 Note on letting charges The committee resolved that the following prices be charged for the use of the hall: Long night with use of cups and saucers to be one pound, five shillings - Until 12 o’clock with use of cups and saucers to the twelve shillings and sixpence - Without use of cups and saucers to be ten shillings - Travelling companies to be one pound - Cinematographic pictures to be ten shillings - Public meetings to be five shillings - Members fee for the library to be five shillings
757 1927 Purchase of new piano On October 1, a public meeting resolved to purchase a new piano at a cost of forty seven pound, twelve shillings and sixpence, along with a new stool at one pound, ten shillings. The piano was to be supplied by Charles Begg and Company of Dunedin, who also offered twenty pound for the old piano.
758 1927 Electricity comes to Bannockburn On October 28, an official function was held in the Coronation Hall to celebrate Bannockburn being connected up with the Otago Central Electric Power Board’s supply of electricity. An address was given by the Vincent County Chairman, Mr James Ritchie, then by Mess’rs William Black, William Brigans, John Robert Webb and George Wishart, who were all members of the Board. These were followed by a speech given by the Chairman of the Hall Committee, Mr Alan Crombie. Mrs James Ritchie then switched on the power. The hall had been installed with 13, 60 watt lightbulbs and a hot plate for the supper room. A concert and dance followed the official function to “celebrate the turning on of the electric light”. This evening was reported as being one of the most successful concerts ever held in the hall, with the proceeds totaling £19-2-09 (nineteen pounds, twelve shillings and nine pence)
759 1933 Repairs required to foundations and walls Over a period of time, cracks had begun to appear in the walls of the hall due to poor workmanship with the original foundations. (the author has not been able to discover the exact location of these defects). The committee employed the services of Cromwell bricklayer and plasterer Mr Eric Albert Scheib to stabilize the foundations, repair the cracks in the walls and to plaster the entire building. The hall was then painted inside and out. The cost of the work to be undertaken was estimated at £130 (one hundred and thirty pound). The final cost was nearly twice the estimate which severely stretched the committee’s funds. A Bazaar and carnival were arranged to top up the halls finances. Debentures were also sold which were later repaid when surplus money became available.
760 1948 Replacement of the dance floor. In July 1948 a public meeting was held to discuss the condition of the hall floor for dancing. It was decided that the committee would purchase 1500 feet of timber from Mess’rs Keith and Ramsey to renew the dance floor.
761 1948 Letting charges On October 6, the committee set the fees for hall rentals: - Long night to be one pound, fifteen shillings - Saturday night to be one pound, ten shillings - Meetings with a fire to be five shillings - Meetings without a fire to be three shillings
762 1950 National Library mobile service comes to Bannockburn. About this time, the National Library Service started running a mobile library bus to service smaller country areas. The Otago bus was based in Dunedin, and would visit Bannockburn once every month. A display of books was set up in the supper room of the hall.
763 1978 Closure of Bannockburn Library. The remains of the original Bannockburn Library of 1870, and the later added Nevis Library were still held in a cupboard in the supper room. This had been installed when the concrete extension was added to the hall in 1920. Unfortunately, a leak in the roof was discovered which had allowed dampness to seep into the cupboard, severely damaging the books. The roof was repaired however the damp cupboard and the library books were destroyed. The Coronation Hall continued to serve the community for public meetings, sports clubs, dances and the like as it had since 1912. It had been upgraded over time with new paint, windows, better heating and kitchen facilities.
764 2011 Plan to upgrade kitchen, storage and toilets. A plan to upgrade the facilities to comply with new regulations was approved. Drawings of an extension on the south side to incorporate a bigger kitchen, extra storage and upgraded toilets were produced by Design Base, Architectural and Engineering Consultants, Central Otago.
765 2012 2012 Christchurch earthquake changes plans for upgrade, and leads to hall being closed for public use. After the Christchurch earthquake, the structural integrity of older public buildings, the Building Code and Insurance Regulations were revised. As a result of all these changes, the owner of the Coronation Hall (the Central Otago District Council) commissioned an engineering report on the structural integrity of the building. This was carried out by a Bannockburn engineer, Nicholas Knowles, and co-signed by Roger Vickers of the Christchurch firm of RSV Consulting Ltd. The report stated that the Hall did not come up to the new earthquake standards due to weak mortar in the stone walls and as at risk of collapse in a moderate earthquake. As a result of this report the Central Otago District Council closed the Coronation hall to public use. A meeting was called to discuss the situation. The options for strengthening and upgrading the existing hall were discussed along with demolition and a total rebuild. It quickly became very obvious that the community was split in its feelings on keeping the existing hall or trying to fund a replacement with all the financial implications.
766 2013 Fundraising begins for new or renovated hall. The Hall Committee continued to investigate the options available and began to raise funds for the final solution, as many committees over the years have done before them.
767 2014 Second engineering report commissioned paving the way for the upgrade to proceed. There had been considerable disbelief by locals about the findings of the engineering report and the spiraling costs of a replacement hall. The council was lobbied to have a second, independent engineering report undertaken. Finally this was agreed to and the Dunedin firm of Hadley & Robinson Limited, Consulting Civil and Structural Engineers was commissioned to report on the Coronation Hal’s structural integrity. The report was produced by Lou Robinson, a director. The findings of the report stated that: “The analysis shows that the building is not earthquake prone. Indeed, it can sustain 100% of the earthquake intensity assumed for the design of new buildings. In reaching that conclusion, certain assumptions have been made. These include the assumptions that the walls are well bonded together at the intersections and corners. On the basis of the evidence on site, this is a reasonable assumption. By using a parametric approach, whereby variations in the assumed design inputs are varied in a statistical way, it can be reported with high confidence that the building rates at better than 80% of the National Building Standards. Other assumptions, not vital to the survival of the building in an overall sense but important to ensure damage initiation is not too early or severe have been validated by further analysis. They include investigation of incompatible displacements between parts of the building, and the security of the roof in extreme events.” The findings of this report were delivered to the Chairwoman of the Bannockburn Community Centre management Committee, Mrs Kerry Stanton-Herbert by the Central Otago District Council property manager, Mr Mike Kerr. Now the future of the hall was secure. On June 15th, at 5.30 pm, a community pot-luck tea was held in the hall to celebrate the re-opening. Residents of odd numbered houses were asked to bring a savoury dish, and those of even numbered properties, something sweet. The Hall Committee then, with the help of the council, employed Breen Construction of Alexandra to repair the stage. This was the first part of a number of improvements that the committee had planned for. The next project is the 2011 proposal to replace the existing kitchen and toilets with a new extension on the south side to comply with the new regulations. This will include a larger kitchen, extra storage and upgraded toilets.
768 2015 Coronation Hall again open for public use. The Coronation Hall is once again being used by local groups, for workshops and meetings, as a venue for concerts, dramatic and musical, as well as catering for weddings and funerals – just as it has done for the past 103 years.
Images

The table below shows a list of images related to the location. Click on 'View Image' to display more details about the image, and to view the image.

Image Id Source Date Short Description
334 Mrs V Paterson, Bannockburn 1912 Coronation Hall. View Image
468 Miss A Parcell Collection 25 Apr 1923 1914-1918 War Memorial Unveiling Ceremony. View Image
955 Land Information NZ - Dunedin 1921-1923 Bannockburn Survey 1921-1923. Surveyor S T Burton. Field Book 1164 - page 36(b) View Image
1058 Terry Emmitt c1932 Bannockburn War Memorial and Coronation Hall View Image
1626 Crabbe family collection 1912 Coronation Hall - location #57. Looking west. View Image
1789 Lowburn Action Group Calendar c1975 Coronation Hall - location #57, looking south west View Image
1950 Lakes District & Central Otago News c2000 Murray & Rena Newman - outside the Presbyterian Church. View Image
2228 Lakes District & Central Otago News 22 May 2014 Bannockburn Hall Upgrade - the Coronation Hall - location #57 View Image
2229 Lakes District & Central Otago Times 22 May 2014 Bannockburn Hall Upgrade - the Coronation Hall - location #57 View Image
2230 Lakes District & Central Otago Times 5 Jun 2014 Bannockburn Hall Upgrade - the Coronation Hall - location #57 View Image
2231 Lakes District & Central Otago Times 19 Jun 2014 Bannockburn Hall Upgrade - the Coronation Hall - location #57 View Image
2232 Lakes District & Central Otago Times 9 oct 2014 Bannockburn Hall Upgrade - the Coronation Hall - location #57 View Image
2233 Design Base Ltd 2015 Bannockburn Hall Upgrade - the Coronation Hall - location #57 View Image
2245 The News 9 Apr 2015 Fund Raising for Bannockburn hall - location #57 View Image
2246 The Mirror 22 Apr 2015 Fund Raising for the Bannockburn hall - Location #57 View Image
2248 Paul Crump - Bannockburn 7 Nov 2015 Fund Raising for the Bannockburn Hall View Image