Wooden shamrock survives St Patrick's Church fire

There are many strange and unusual objects in the Hawke’s Bay Museums Trust collection. One such item is a broken wooden shamrock from St Patrick’s Catholic Church (1894 – 1981) which fronted Munroe Street, Napier.

On 15 August 1981, a quiet, sunny Saturday afternoon, Napier was suddenly startled out of its slumber by the persistent and urgent wailing of fire sirens. Clouds of black smoke were billowing from the direction of the central business district – it became apparent that St Patrick’s Catholic Church was ablaze. Fire quickly engulfed the building, and such was the fury of the inferno that flames whipped wildly up the landmark spire sending sparks skyward until the cross, surmounting the very top, was totally enveloped.

There was little chance of firefighters extinguishing the flames once they caught hold and within two hours there remained only the detritus of a once beautiful building. The following morning Bernadette and Max Hartshorn attended Sunday mass, held at St Patrick’s Church Hall. To reach the hall the parishioners had to walk past the remains of their once beautiful church, gingerly avoiding the huge blackened beams and piles of burnt debris. At the back, against a low brick fence bordering Station Street, Bernadette spied a remnant of unburnt wood lying on the ground which she picked up. On close inspection she discovered it was a wooden shamrock from the spire.

As early as 1886, Catholic parishioners living in Napier, guided by Father Grogan, began fundraising for a larger church in a more central position. It was anticipated that the new church would replace St Mary’s on Convent Hill, which was no longer large enough to accommodate its many worshippers. A more central position was required and when reclaimed land on Munro Street, close to Clive Square came up for sale, it was eagerly purchased.

On 30 March 1893, Robert Lamb’s architectural plans for the proposed new Gothic church were available for scrutiny at his Tennyson Street office. Building tenders were invited, with Bull Brothers being the successful applicants. The ceremony of laying the foundation stone, officiated by Archbishop Redwood of Wellington, took place on the afternoon of 11 February 1894. A few weeks after the ceremony, Bull Brothers had “pushed on with characteristic energy” and by 26 April, the “architectural outline of the structure”, including the spire and roof timbers, were “in position”.

The church was completed 12 November 1894, and on Saturday evening, a week before opening, it was lit-up for inspection. Built entirely of native timber, except for concrete foundations, the building was lauded in the Hawke’s Bay Herald as an “imposing specimen of architectural skill”. The wooden exterior was “strikingly handsome” with its carved arches, numerous gables, hipped roofs, light buttresses and highly ornamental finials, all of which “formed a harmonious whole” making it one of the “finest ecclesiastical edifices in the colony”.  The elegant spire - which was covered in kauri shingles “steeped in boiled oil” - rose to 120 feet, (36½ metres) including the iron finial cross. The height meant that the spire became a prominent local landmark, especially for sea-faring vessels.

Internally St Patricks had a nave, north and south aisles and porches, a sanctuary with side chapel and sacristies. The tower and spire were situated at the west end, the lower floor of which was located at the main entrance. Sixteen stained-glass windows, imported from France, with the remaining windows filled with tinted glass, suffused the interior with refractured light and colour. This light gave a sense of loftiness to the simplicity and grandeur of the ceiling. The octagonal sanctuary housed the central stained-glass windows (depicting four of the apostles), the entirety accentuated by a curved and moulded ribbed ceiling, the panels of which were distempered in blue and sprinkled with stars.

Opening day loamed. St Mary’s church choir and orchestra (of over forty performers) had spent weeks earnestly practising in readiness for the official opening. Their main rendition was Hadyn’s First Mass followed by Oberthur’s Ave Maria as the offertory piece. On the day of consecration, parishioners festooned the interior of the church, particularly the altar, with “strikingly beautiful” floral decorations. Around the walls hung colourful hand-embroidered banners citing sacred texts, which themed Archbishop Redwood’s sermon.

The service commenced with choristers and clergy solemnly making their way down the aisles and around the inside. As they walked, Bishop Luck (Auckland) sprinkled holy water on the walls and floor, dedicating and blessing the church. He followed this with a short address during which he congratulated the congregation, stating the church “was a credit to the town and had been erected, not from the superabundance of their wealth, but by the exercise of self-sacrifice”. Archbishop Redwood, “robed in full canonicals” then gave the sermon, after which mass was held. To conclude the orchestra played Gounod’s Marche Romain.

Parishioners and locals alike were devastated by the fire and loss of their much-loved church which held a meridian of personal, family and community memories and represented several generations of dedication, sheer hard work, and devotion. This seemingly indestructible building, which survived the 1931 Hawke’s Bay earthquake and subsequent fires, had served Napier faithfully for 87 years but on 15 August 1981 was consumed by fire and within two hours was no more.

Published in the Hawke’s Bay Today newspaper on 1 June 2024 and written by Gail Pope, Social History Curator at MTG Hawke’s Bay.

Image: Wooden shamrock from St Patrick’s Church, 15 August 1981

5 June 2024

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