Wounded men return to Port Chalmers

Group of soldiers who returned on the hospital ship Marama in October 1916.

The Marama called first at Port Chalmers, where it was visited by the governor, the Earl of Liverpool, Acting Prime Minister James Allen, and other dignitaries. The returning men marched behind the Caversham band to the Port Chalmers Town Hall, where they and their families listened to speeches before afternoon tea was served by the Port Chalmers Ladies’ Patriotic Association.

The troops were then marched back to the Marama to complete disembarkation formalities before they continued on their way home. Men travelled to other parts of the South Island by train, while those headed for the North Island boarded the interisland steamer Maori.