The hut is still an important accommodation link for trampers and canoeists using the river. Now operated by the Department of Conservation, the 24-bed hut was rebuilt in early 1990.
The Wanganui Table Tennis Club, which started playing in St Barnabas Hall on Durie Hill in 1930 before moving to the Union Boat Club five years later, is the second-oldest club in New Zealand.
Gradually, the sport flourished with clubs in most suburbs around the city and the installation of workplace tables by numerous companies helped boost the playing strength.
The old Drill Hall (opposite the present War Memorial Hall) was a venue where interclub competition numbers grew.
Whanganui table tennis was involved in helping fund the building of three major sporting venues in the city — the Memorial Hall (opened on Anzac Day 1960), the Springvale Stadium (1962) and the Jubilee Stadium (1980) — that became venues for the sport.
They were all opened debt free with appeal chairmen Kevin Neilson (1960) and Nelson Tizard (1962) and Queen Carnival representative Poppy Phillips helping raise thousands of dollars.
Table tennis later contributed substantial finance to the building of the Jubilee Stadium, which was needed because of high usage of the Springvale Stadium by other indoor sports.
Japanese world champions K. Matsuzaki and K. Yamaizumi were the first overseas players to compete in the War Memorial Hall, on June 10, 1960, on the opening night to an 11-day Festival of Sport that also involved badminton, basketball, indoor bowls, boxing, wrestling, judo and gymnastics.
Over the years numerous world and top international table tennis players from Japan, Hong Kong, England, Hungary, Sweden, France, Czechoslovakia and Australia played in Whanganui, plus numerous overseas entrants since the NZ Masters Games started in 1989.
Two Whanganui players who have enjoyed success involving top overseas competitors are Joyce Williams, who teamed up with English international Dennis Neale to win the NZ open mixed doubles when the nationals were first played here in 1967, and Nelson Tizard who paired up with national champion Richard Lee (Wellington) to upset visiting Japanese former world title-holders Furukawa and Sugimoto in 1973.
Joyce Williams became only the second local player to win a NZ open championship, following in the footsteps of Ray Dennis who won the same mixed doubles title with Manawatu partner L.M. Hughes at the first two nationals, in 1934 and 1935.
Garry Stewart won three NZ junior titles in the early 1960s — the boys singles in 1963 and the doubles in 1962-63 with Barry Cross (Wellington).
Greg Smith and S. Laugesen (Hutt Valley) won the national men’s under-21 doubles in 1995, Kelly Alan the C grade women’s singles in 1996, and James Chapman the B grade men’s singles in 1999.
Four locals won NZ women’s bracelet titles — Mary Broadbent in 1950 and 1957, Cynthia Gifford-Moore in 1955 and Joyce Williams in 1967 — with Garry Stewart men’s plate champion in 1967 when the nationals were first played in the city, with locals winning both consolation singles titles plus the open mixed doubles.
Whanganui players have won a swarm of NZ veteran-grade finals headed by “evergreen” Mary Broadbent, once a North Island captain, who captured a remarkable 42 national titles in the 35-plus and 45-plus age grades.
She won 11 NZ 45-and-over singles finals, including five on end between 1967-71, with the 1967 and 1971 victories here on home tables. Whanganui also hosted the 1974 and 1982 championships, with Kevin Neilson controller of the first three tournaments and Arthur Watson the last local nationals.
Other local NZ singles champions in the veteran grades were Gerry Sanderson in the 45-plus grade in 1996 (also the previous year when from Hamilton), Lee Mummery 35-plus here in 1974, and Nelson Tizard over-49 in 1981.
Other Whanganui national veteran age-group doubles winners included Nelson Tizard and Lee Mummery (over-49 men’s doubles 1981-84), Esme Wilkinson and Elsie Spooner.
With 25 Whanganui singles titles, including 10 in a row, and more than 25 doubles victories, Mary Broadbent stood out as the most prolific residential championships player.
Nelson Tizard headed the men’s ranks with 10 singles and 13 double titles. At one stage, between 1967-71, he won 176 A grade interclub singles games without defeat.
He was twice NZ president (1976-77 and 1980-81) after being NZ selector (1970 to 1974) and also managing national teams (1981-83). The other local national president was Ren Owen in 1955.
Whanganui players Bernard Lane and Malcolm Spencer twice broke the world playing record in 1964 — 33 hours and 32 minutes on May 1-3, and three months later extended the record to 54hr 7min.
The Whanganui 90th anniversary will be held in the Jubilee Stadium on Saturday, June 3, (11am start) with a graded doubles tournament on Sunday (9am start).
Weekly morning social table tennis is played in the stadium on Mondays and Fridays with more serious players in action on Monday nights.
