By Roselyn Fauth
The Grosvenor Hotel standing today, you’re looking at a building that has been a Timaru landmark for 110 years (and a site of hospitality for nearly 150). This is a view of the exterior in 1916, photographed by Frederick George Radcliffe. Timaru. F.G.R. 5553 - National Library 1/2-006876-G & hocken.recollect.co.nz/52786 No known copyright.
People still say the Queen stayed at the Grosvenor Hotel. It is sort of ish true... what actually happened in 1954 I think tells us a lot about the people of Timaru District, the care, the pride, and the work of many people who pulled their resources together to make Elizabeth's visit to the Grosvenor one fit for a Queen.
When you stand at the corner of Cains Terrace and Beswick Street today and look up, you too might think she's a beauty. The Grosvenor Hotel still lifts her rounded chin to the sea, oriel windows leaning out looking to the port. There's an impressive almost forty metres of frontage on each street. The Grosvenor is grand and familiar to everyone. Over a century the walls have hosted premiers and princes, rugby men and housie nights, union raffles and art openings. While the facade and interior bones have been remodelled, repainted, the building is very close to the original design that was intended.
Learning about the Grosvenor has taught me about our people of the past... here is a blog about what I have learned so far...
The site’s first life began as a Cobb stable stand in 1869 for John Crammond.
John Meikle commissioned Timaru architect Francis. J. Wilson to design a two storey brick hotel on land owned by John Crammond. The the stable was cleared and the foundation stone was laid in 1875. The two story brick Grosvenor opened in June 1876. , and shortly after it opened, a fire broke out and it completely burned down.
Francis was noted in a newspaper as said to have practically rebuilt the town after the devastating 1868 fire that destroyed three quarters of Timaru's CBD. So by the time Francis helped John with his hotel, he had been involved with a fair few buildings in town. He himself build the bluestone Criterion Hotel. It looks like after the hotel was built, it was expanded along Beswick Street.
If the name Meikle rings a bell, it might be because of John's dear wife Janet, who sadly died in a motor car accident 1906, age 36 near Kellends Hill, Timaru. The car rolled, and trapped Janet beneath it. John, with a broken leg crawled to get help, but by the time they managed to roll the car off her, she had died. Her death was published in newspapers all over the country, and her name ever since has been linked to the first death in New Zealand to be caused by a motor car. They had a young four year old child together.
John was a Scottish immigrant who reportedly arrived in New Zealand with only a sovereign to his name. Later accounts from his grandson, Bruce Meikle, suggest he may have worked as a coach driver, proprietor of the Grosvenor Hotel, and invested in farms. He may have tried his luck in gold mining after Janet's' death. He married three times, and was made a widower twice. His wealth could explain how he was in a position to buy a motor car, which was a French made De Dion Bouton at about 400 pounds. John moved away to the North Island and died aged 82.
Interestingly, while John owned the Hotel, in July 1879, the Canterbury Rugby Football Union was founded in the Grosvenor’s basement. This meeting beneath the Timaru hotel was the start of one of New Zealand’s strongest provincial unions. The fun fact reminds me that hotels, as well as a place to sleep, eat and drink, we also civic rooms where communities organised themselves and hammered out rules for new organisations. I wonder if this is the same basement the Grosvenor has today.
Peter O’Meeghan, originally from Inniskeen, County Louth, Ireland, was a well-known Timaru publican. He took over the Grosvenor Hotel and then later became proprietor of the Clarendon Hotel on Church Street. The O’Meeghan family left a lasting mark on Timaru’s hospitality scene, their name appearing again and again in connection with prominent hotels and commercial buildings in the central city.
An advertisement in the South Canterbury Times,29 June 1885, then listed J.D Kett as the proprietor of the Grosvenor Hotel. The same newspaper edition lists Peter O'Meeghan, as the Proprietor of the Clarendon Hotel (corner of Main North Road and Church Street), and "late of the Grosvenor".
In 1884 the hotel hosted Sir George Grey, and then in 1899, Premier Richard Seddon.
In 1913, the building disappears. It is demolished and the site is cleared to make way for something new. Sadly the during the demolition, worker William Fitzgerald tragically fell from the building and was killed. He was the beloved husband of Mary Fitzgerald of 3 Wellington Street, aged 56.
There is a military file museum.timaru.govt.nz/scroll/1411 about their son, Patrick Gregory. Within the space of four months in 1915, Mary Ann Fitzgerald lost her husband William in the Grosvenor demolition accident and her son Patrick at Gallipoli. Another son, Thomas (Ben), was badly wounded at Gallipoli, and other brothers were also called to serve. For a working-class Catholic family with many children, I can imagine this was a staggering burden of grief. The Fitzgerald children were educated at Sacred Heart and Marist schools, played for the Celtic Football and Cricket Clubs, swam competitively, and were noted athletes. Two stories of legacy, and sacrifice, one for their contributions to building a grand heritage building, and the other for fighting for freedom.The Third story is of their wife and mother Mary who had to carry on in hardship.
She was born in Ireland and emigrated to New Zealand, where she married William Fitzgerald, a builder’s labourer. Together they raised a very large Catholic family, first in Ashburton and later in Timaru. By the time the family settled at 3 Wellington Street, Timaru, Mary Ann was mother to at least ten children, though not all survived infancy. The youngest, Lawrence, died at just three weeks old in 1908. After William’s death she had to raise her surviving children largely on her own, relying on extended family, parish support, and sheer resilience. Notices in the newspaper show her gratitude for even small acts, such as a prompt insurance payout that gave her a financial lifeline.
Her story highlights the what is oftern unseen, the backbone of families like hers: women who held households together through bereavement, economic struggle, and wartime sacrifice. While her sons are recorded in rugby clubs, swimming results, and war rolls of honour, Mary Ann’s labour was was much quieter, but as you will agree, no less significant. She kept the home running, supported her children’s education, and endured the unendurable.
Mary Ann Fitzgerald (née Madden), widow of William and mother of Patrick, was laid to rest in Timaru Cemetery, General Section, Row 23, Plot 380, on 2 February 1942, aged 75.
Anyway... I have digressed on a side quest... and will now get back on track to the Grosvenor and the new hotel that was built on the site.
J. P Murphy commissions architect James Turnbull and the contractors the Shillito Brothers to design and build a new hotel. It opened in 20 November 1915 in Edwardian Baroque style.
Not everyone loved the look of it. Some in Timaru thought James Turnbull’s design was too plain, even austere, for the era. At a time when many still preferred ornate Victorian flourishes, the Grosvenor’s strong lines and restrained Edwardian Baroque detailing were seem by some as too severe. Yet what critics once saw as a lack of decoration now reads as confidence and permanence. And it reminds me that we have always had critics, and they were often proved to be wrong over time. More than a century on, I think it is precisely those bold proportions, the curved corner, columns, windows and brickwork that have allowed the building to endure while so many of its contemporaries have vanished, even if it has had a little architectural tickle along the way.
Said to be built as “the finest accommodation house possible”, The new Grosvenor, costs then £33,000 (about £12,000 for construction, £2,000 for furnishings, and the remainder the land purchase).
The Grosvenor’s exterior is a lesson in Edwardian Baroque. Striped brick and stone pilasters, a rounded corner punctuated by circular windows, dentilled cornices, segmental pediments and projecting parapets with the hotel name in relief. Along Beswick Street, oriel windows push out like small viewing platforms. On Cains Terrace, stacked balconies perform the building’s seaside role.
It's walls were brick and cement plaster, sheltered by Marseilles tile roof. There was a hip roofed service building built at the rear. The official heritage description notes wreath motifs, a piano nobile treatment to the upper floors, and those once open light wells (later roofed over). Interiors have changed but apparently still include the ornamental plasterwork by Arthur Hornsey of Timaru. A side quest for me to follow up on to see if they are still there.
It looks like Murphy didn’t hold the Grosvenor for long. He was eventually bought out by a syndicate, who leased the hotel to F. M. Drewitt and later had it managed by C. S. (Tui) Elms. I guess with this in mind Murphy represents a transition era, a publican willing to take a financial and reputational risk to rebuild on a grand scale. His 1915 Grosvenor is the one we still recognise today.
Photo: Queen Elizabeth II, Timaru, 1954. Courtesy of South Canterbury Museum https://bit.ly/3eun3Tr.
I have really enjoyed reading through news article about the preparation for Queen's visit to the District. Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh attend a civic luncheon at the Grosvenor during the Royal Tour 25 January 1954.
The Summer of 54 must have been a really exciting. The Grosvenor Hotel was chosen as the venue for a civic luncheon, and for weeks beforehand the town buzzed with preparation. The Grosvenor had seen its share of premiers and dignitaries, but this was on another level. Going on what was reported every detail was carefully planned.
One of the rooms was given a royal makeover. People often say the Queen stayed at the Grosvenor, but actually, they were there for a brief rest and did not stay over night. Mrs Irene McNeill, the licensee’s wife, personally escorted the Queen upstairs. On the walls the District had rallied to loan artworks for the occasion, so her majesty could admire the South Canterbury landscapes, which included paintings of Aoraki/Mt Cook, Mt Sefton, and the Tasman Valley.
The temporary royal suite were adorned with flowers from local gardens, donated for the occasion to making sure that for a few hours their Queen was surrounded by the colour and scent of Timaru’s gardens.
The luncheon tables were transformed into a spectacle of silver and flowers. The Queen’s table gleamed with King pattern silver, Georgian epergnes, Rockingham fruit service, and Paragon china edged with gold and Tudor roses. The floral centrepiece was distinctly local, with roses arranged in driftwood with ferns and coleus. The other tables carried vases of red, white and blue sweet peas, echoing the Union Jack.
It was really interesting to read about what they prepared for the menu. A luncheon to showcase South Canterbury's pride and produce:
- Entrées included baked mountain trout, provided by the Acclimatisation Society and Anglers’ Club.
- Main course featured roast muscovy duckling, reared by Mr C. J. Cook.
- Desserts included strawberries grown by Bruce Kirkland and ices supplied by a local firm.
- Cheeses came from Canterbury producers.
- Wines were drawn from the Grosvenor’s ample cellar, with French vintage bottles chosen for the occasion: Château d’Yquem 1946, Perrier Jouët 1944, and Veuve Clicquot 1943.
The Queen and Duke were served personally by three Timaru men; Len O’Connell, Len White, and Harry Barrar. I can imagine their role would have felt like and honour and then with great pressure, every movement watched. Reports note the Duke especially enjoyed the apple pie.
The luncheon was short, but intense. The Queen and Duke arrived, dined, thanked their hosts, and signed the visitors’ book before departing to the cheers of the crowds lining the streets. Next time you are at Ashbury Park, see if you can spy the commemorative tree that was planted to mark the occasion.
While some might focus the story on the royal presence, I enjoyed learning about the work of the community behind the scenes. Farmers, gardeners, hoteliers, waiters, artists... all contributed to create a moment “fit for a Queen.” For just a few hours, the Grosvenor was transformed into a palace, and probably in a few hours it was all over, and then just a memory. So, while the Queen may not have stayed the night, the effort poured into her brief stop, I think says a lot about who we were as a community: ambitious, resourceful, and determined to put our best foot forward.
In 1970 the Grosvenor was purchased by Dominion Breweries Ltd, which undertook a major refurbishment and officially reopened the hotel in November 1973. A little over a decade later, in 1983, the building was recognised by Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga as a Category II historic place, cementing its status as part of the nation’s protected built heritage. Refurbishment returned again in 2010, when new owners sought to reverse some of the less sympathetic 1970s alterations and restore elements of the hotel’s character. Today the Grosvenor continues to trade as a hotel, bar and art space, a living reminder of how heritage buildings can adapt while still anchoring a community’s identity.
The Grosvenor c 1875. Image from a Tourist Guide publication. christchurchcitylibraries.com/TouristGuide1902/83338-025
John Meikle from Geni.com ancestory page
Did you know? When NZ's premier arrived by train he popped in for a quick champagne to clear the soot from his throat before continuing on to Dunedin.
The Street is named after the early pioneer George Buchanan (1833-1922) he had a farm at Willowbridge where he built the first flour mill in the district south of Timaru in 1862.
A colour slide showing the Grosvenor Hotel, Timaru, circa 1985. The slide mount bears the processing date "Oct 85NZ". South Canterbury Museum 2016/053.005
Grosvenor Hotel, Timaru. Hocken Digital Collections, accessed 10/09/2025, https://hocken.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/23636
The grave of Janet Meikle (Wright) (1865 - 1906), Timaru Cemetery - Photo By Roselyn Fauth 2025
Sources:
Royal Visitors' Luncheon At Grosvenor / Unusual Floral Decorations On Dining Table / Commemorative Tree Planted At Ashbury Park (26 Jan 1954). Aoraki Heritage Collection, accessed 18/09/2025, https://aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/1907
Floral Work Next Week's Main Task (Jan 1954). Aoraki Heritage Collection, accessed 18/09/2025, https://aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/1906
Unprecedented Enthusiasm Of South Canterbury People Greets Her Majesty And Duke, City And Country Crowds Captivated By Queen And Her Husband (26 Jan 1954). Aoraki Heritage Collection, accessed 18/09/2025, https://aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/1905
South Canterbury Gift Picture Of Mount Cook For Queen Completed By Mrs R J Comrie (? 1953). Aoraki Heritage Collection, accessed 18/09/2025, https://aorakiheritage.recollect.co.nz/nodes/view/1901
https://nzhistory.govt.nz/politics/queen-elizabeth/royal-tours
"J.B Rutland" can be seen on the facade of the building on Beswick Street - Section of photo Timaru, New Zealand, by Muir & Moodie. Te Papa (C.014369) Below is a closer look where you can see "Grosvenor" painted on the roof
