50th Anniversary of The Big BananaPrint Page

The plaque commemorates the 50th anniversary of The Big Banana which was opened in 1964 to advance the banana and tourism industries. 

In 1964 John Landi wanted something to make passing traffic stop at his road side banana stall. He had heard of a "Big Pineapple" in Hawaii and thought that something big would definitely stop traffic. With assistance of 1200 pounds and local engineer, Alan Chapman, who set about designing the giant banana by cutting the best looking banana he could find into 40 pieces and developing plans from which builders could work from, the Big Banana could become a reality.

Builder Alan Harvey started the construction in September 1964 with the work to be completed before Christmas. The biggest banana in the world was officially opened on December 22 that year.

Not long after, John Enevoldson joined as a partner and they expanded with 20 more plantation acres, a shop, cafe and a larger car park. In 1968 John Landi retired and sold his share to John Enevoldson who continued building the business until 1988 when it was sold to Horticulture World, which was part owned by local businessman Bob Johnston. Bob continued expanding the Big Banana into an educational showcase before undergoing a $30 million redevelopment that re- opened in June 1989.

 

 

Location

Address:	351 Pacific Highway, Coffs Harbour, 2450
State:	NSW
Area:	AUS
GPS Coordinates:	Lat: -30.274751 Long: 153.133925 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.

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Details

Monument Type:	Plaque
Monument Theme:	Technology
Sub-Theme:	Industry
Actual Event Start Date:	22-December-1964
Actual Event End Date:	22-December-2014

Dedication

Actual Monument Dedication Date:	Saturday 28th February, 2015