The abattoir was built in 1906. The brick boiler house, chimney, boiling down house, and the concrete water tower of the Palmerston North City Council owned abattoir were the last structures to be brought down, by explosives. The demolition attracted a crowd of spectators, including a camera crew from the National Film Unit. The land was subsequently subdivided for housing in the rapidly growing Awapuni area of Palmerston North.