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Greymouth Memorial Gates

War memorials are part of the New Zealand cultural landscape. Such memorials serve as a unique and significant reminder of the sacrifice made by the people of that community.

The Greymouth War Memorial Gates at the entrance to a site that was formerly the Grey Main School on Tainui Street, Greymouth, represent a significant community effort to recognise and commemorate 40 servicemen and women previously associated with the main local school of the area who died during service in World War One. Like numerous other war memorials throughout New Zealand, the entrance gates, which were erected in 1922, serve as both a glorification and a reverent reminder of the loss of lives from the community.

Constructed of painted concrete and wrought iron, the entrance gates are of a simple yet elegant design. When unveiled on ANZAC Day 25 April 1922, only four years after the war had ended, they were hailed as a powerful reminder and exemplar for the community, especially for school pupils, so that the names commemorated on the gates would never be forgotten.

Now that the Grey Main School is no longer located at this site on Tainui Street, the gates also serve as a tangible reminder of the site of the earliest State School in Greymouth – Grey Main School, first established on the site in 1878.

The 40 servicemen and women who are honoured by the Greymouth War Memorial Gates are as follows:

A separate granite plaque on the Greymouth War Memorial Gates states:

Memorial Gates

Erected to the Memory of The teachers and scholars
Who paid the supreme sacrifice
In the Great War 1914-1918
For God, King and Country.

Another smaller plaque below this states:

We seek the light of knowledge.