Stevenson Memorial Obelisk & Japanese Mountain Gun

Captain C. M. Stevenson Memorial, 1909

This obelisk, located adjacent to the old Council Chambers on Manning Street, Kiama, was unveiled on 29 May, 1909 to honour the memory of highly esteemed Australian Army Captain Charles Moore Stevenson, who served his country fighting in the Boer War (1889-1902).

Captain Stevenson was considered a very popular man in Kiama. He was a leader in the military as well as the Masonry Order in Kiama. He served with the 2nd Australian Infantry Regiment from 1886 until 1906.

Captain Stevenson joined the Kiama Company of Infantry c.1883. He passed through every rank until he became Captain and Commander, and in 1909, a year before his death, he received a medal for long service in the Kiama Company. Captain Stevenson was also a leading member of Lodge No.35 'Kiama' with the Free Masons. In 1891, he was elected to the Worthy Master's Chair in Lodge Kiama, and again in 1894.

The obelisk bears the inscription: 'Erected to the memory of Capt. C.M. Stevenson, V.D., by his late comrades of "E" (Kiama) Company, 2nd A.I. Regt. 1909'

Japanese Light Mountain Gun, Type 94

This gun, located alongside the Capt. C.M. Stevenson Memorial, was captured in 1945 by Australian forces during one of the last campaigns of WWII against Japanese forces, in Rabaul (Papua New Guinea). Captain Benson and his crew on the H.M.A.S. Kiama secured two of these guns to present to the town after which their ship was named.

The guns were presented to the Municipality of Kiama by the H.M.A.S. Kiama on 6 February 1946 by Lieutenant Commander Godden and accepted by the Mayor, Alderman W.R. Holden. On the day of the presentation, the guns were rolled up the street from the wharf to the Council Chambers in front of the members of the community.

The guns were kept in storage for many years until the Kiama community demanded they be put on public display. By this stage one of the guns had deteriorated badly, so only one gun could be displayed.

The mountain gun is a light weapon that can usually be taken to pieces to be moved forward by the military men.