Town Acre 106: a colourful history

Town Acre 106 and its buildings have been owned by the Masterton community since 1872 through Lands Trust Masterton. The original building on the site opened in 1897 as the Masterton Town Hall. In 1916 it became the town's Opera House and was badly damaged in major earthquakes in 1934 and 1942. It later served as offices, a bus depot (surviving a fire in 1953) and auction house. The building was demolished in 2012 after it was classified as severely earthquake-prone. Historic features and materials, along with the memorial stone salvaged from the original building can now been seen in Waiata House.