More Info →Hopwood Clock Tower

The clock in the Clock Tower, named Kerei Te Panau after a local Rangitane chieftain, was originally housed in the Chief Post Office of Palmerston North. Due to safety concerns both the tower and clock were removed from the Post Office after the 1942 Wairarapa earthquake, and the clock placed in storage. In 1953 Arthur Hopwood gifted the city of Palmerston North £10,000 to build a new tower in The Square to hold the clock and chimes. It was completed in 1957. The Clock Tower has experienced a number of changes including the removal of the original sound shell at the base of the tower in the early 1990s and the addition of a cross (both features are visible in this image). During 2007 the Clock Tower was refurbished and it is now topped with a lantern style cross.