Built in 1920, the World War One Memorial in Wellington’s Mitchelltown has historical and social significance as a reminder of the devastating impact of the First World War. It was ‘Erected in memory of the boys of the Mitchelltown school and district who served abroad in the great war 1914-1919.’ Every war memorial in New Zealand is different and unique to the district it represents. The memorial was funded and chosen by the local community making it a unique and valuable insight into Mitchelltown in the early twentieth century.

Ngāi Tara were among the earliest residents of Te-Whanganui-a-Tara, Wellington. By the 17th century, Ngāti Ira, Rangitāne, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Māmoe and Ngāi Tahu also occupied parts of the region. From 1822 to 1834, during a period of upheaval following the introduction of muskets, Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Tama and Ngāti Mutunga moved south in a series of migrations or heke from the Taranaki region. The war memorial, which lies at the apex of Aro Street, is near the historic stream bed of Waimapihi. The stream is named after the rangatira of Ngāi Tara and Ngāti Māmoe, Mapihi, a chieftainess who bathed in the stream. It was considered a sacred waterway by the inhabitants of Te Aro Pā, which was located on the floodplain of Waimapihi and other waterways which were valued as mahinga kai sites. Te Aro Pa was established by Ngāti Mutunga of Taranaki in 1824 and later inhabited by Ngāti Ruanui, Ngāti Haumia and Ngāti Tupaia.

European settlement of the area began in 1840, and by 1854 the land in Polhill gully (Aro Valley area) was purchased by the Mitchell brothers, where they logged timber and raised sheep. In the 1870s, the area was developed for labourer housing and was renamed Mitchelltown.

Between 1914- 1919 over 100,000, New Zealanders served overseas in World War One, including 18,000 casualties. Among them were the residents of Mitchelltown, ‘which had sent so many men to fight.’ From 1918 to 1920, the Mitchelltown Welcome Home Association raised community funds towards the construction of a war memorial at the Triangle Reserve, Aro Street. A series of events, including dances and euchre parties, were held at Mitchelltown school to raise funds for the project.

Designed by the monumental mason Mr H. Glover, the memorial consists of a four-sided tapered concrete obelisk with a pointed pyramid top (4572 mm in height). Obelisks were one of the most popular forms of war memorials in New Zealand, with over 30 per cent of World War One memorials being of this style. Supported by a stepped base, the monument sits centrally atop two concrete steps on a base plate surrounded by eight square posts. The structure has four marble plaques with the names of 108 men, including 31 wounded and 19 killed in action, listed in alphabetical order reflecting the egalitarian attitude towards those who served. Above each plaque is a pediment containing a crossed sword and rifle symbol surmounted by a distinctive Kiwi lemon squeezer hat. This is atypical as national symbols are rarely found on memorials in New Zealand.

In October 1920, paths were added leading to the memorial, and a pair of small machine guns were installed in the centre of the grass plot. These were removed in 1933 when the mound around the memorial was levelled and the surrounding roads re-graded. In 1988 the monument was vandalised with three marble panels on the side and back removed along with gold lettering on the inscription. This was repaired soon after.