When the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake struck on February 3 at 10.47am, the clock tower did as it was designed and wrenched itself from the building and fell on to Queen St.
Unfortunately, and despite the cries of the post office staff for people to stay inside, many ran out and were felled by the falling masonry. Lily Baker, a 15-year-old schoolgirl, home sick, but sent to post a wedding present to the South Island, was one of those killed.
Hawke's Bay Tribune reporter Darby Ryan was waiting on the street when he was struck by the falling clock tower. He was reported missing for days, until found buried upright.
On the top floor of building in the telegraph department, Eric Trask (1909-1993) reported seeing the roof lifting up and down and seeing daylight with each violent upheaval.
When the first two quakes had finished, he scrambled down from the first floor through the collapsed wall and on to the rubble. Trask checked the telephone wires on the corner of Russell and Queen Sts, and on returning he found the telephone switchboard girls covered in soot!
Steam engines that parked across the road at the station were the source of the soot – this had settled on the Post Office roof over many years and showered the workers when the ceiling collapsed. Fortunately, the only person injured within the building was the superintendent when a mantelpiece fell over.
When the building was restored, the surviving part of the 1928 post office was given the same façade as the new part of the building which had been demolished.
The chime for the original post office clock was donated by solicitor EH Williams, and inscribed on the mechanism.
When the present clock tower was built in 1935, the people of Hastings wanted to hear something familiar of the past – so they installed the chimes in the new clock tower.
The men of the town used to check their fob watches (watch connected to a ribbon or chain and kept in a pocket) when walking across the railway line heading towards Heretaunga St East. And for some months after the earthquake out of habit, men continued to glance up at the non-existent clock.
After the earthquake, around 150 special police and pickets patrolled the streets of Hastings for about a week.
Included in this was a squad of motor and cycle police (pictured). The men in the special police were volunteers drawn from ordinary civilian life and sworn in to become special police. Hastings High School principal and ex-World War I officer, Major W A G Penlington, was in charge of them.
Hundreds of thousands of pounds (2019: $32 million) in stock remained in the ruins of the Hastings Central Business District. Hastings mayor G F Roach had asked for 60 policemen from the Commissioner of Police to take over from the special police guarding the town.
By February 11, there were 18 members of the police force and non-commissioned officers of the territorial and permanent military forces in Hastings who took over from the special police volunteers.
Havelock North had more problems with crime than Hastings and had to introduce special police.
A hold up occurred on a road, which shocked the residents, so Arch Toop of the Havelock North Fire Brigade was in charge of issuing passes in and out of Havelock. A special police force was also established, with a number belonging to the fire brigade and could be seen in uniform wearing their brass hats.
Due to Napier's fires, protecting stock was not so much of a problem as nearly all stock was completely destroyed.
*Signed copies of Michael Fowler's Historic Hawke's Bay book are only available from the Hastings Community Art Centre, Russell St South, Hastings for $65.00.
*Michael Fowler FCA (mfhistory@gmail.com) is a chartered accountant, contract researcher and writer of Hawke's Bay's history.
