When completed in 1913 the two storey Clyde Hotel (Former) was the latest incarnation of a historically and socially important central Wairoa pub and accommodation facility. The building was designed by prominent early twentieth century Hawke’s Bay architect James Augustus Louis Hay and its appealing Art Nouveau inspired features have aesthetic value. This local landmark also has architectural significance as one of the earliest remaining examples of Hay’s work, having survived the devastating local earthquakes of 1931 and 1932. In the early period of European settlement hotels were said to be ‘the gathering places for their communities’, and the Clyde Hotel, which had been established by 1865, was among these. It went on to have a long tradition of offering food and drink to locals and travellers. Central Wairoa businesses appear to have been particularly susceptible to fires in the early twentieth century. Indeed, the Clyde Hotel had several near misses before it and neighbouring premises were destroyed by a fire in March 1913. Louis Hay established his Napier architectural practice by 1909. It was still in its early period when Hay, who was already engaged to do extensive alterations at the Clyde Hotel, designed the new hotel – ‘a larger and more up to date [brick] structure’. This is thought to have been Hay’s first notable commercial building and it reflects his main influences at the time, which were also present in his residential work. Peter Shaw highlights the Art Nouveau aspects, evident in the construction date’s typeface and in the parapet’s decoration and balustrade. Pilasters, extending above the parapet, create vertical emphasis. The combination of Hay’s design features provides ‘visual interest and an imposing quality to [this] provincial hotel’. Hay designed the building with a splayed corner featuring the main entrance – a common feature of New Zealand’s pubs. Behind its front section the main building is a two storey structure with hipped roof and deep eaves. The hotel seems to have been recently extended when the 1931 Hawke’s Bay Earthquake struck – the addition ‘…collapsed; otherwise the building was intact’. Therefore, business was able to continue. The following year the town and hotel sustained further damage in another major earthquake. Despite these events, there seems to have been little change to Hay’s original main elevations, except altering some glazing panels and removing one of the ground level’s arched windows. The Marine Parade secondary entrance was also removed. This may have coincided with the conversion of an earlier western windowed addition into an entranceway, visible in Ans Westra’s 1963 photograph of young people outside the hotel. The additions along the main building’s east side were created by the early 1940s. In 2008 the Clyde Hotel was described as still featuring dining and lounge bar facilities. As Wairoa’s night club there was regularly live music events and karaoke evenings. In 2016 the building began being used as a music recording space.