A large army staging camp was located at the site between 1943 and 1945 during World War II. As part of this development, the bandstand was sold for removal and many buildings, including a post office for soldiers at the camp, were erected. After the war, these were removed with the exception of the post office building, which was relocated to the western edge of the park, and is used by the Scouts, who have considerably altered and extended it over the years. Thiess Brothers were engaged to restore the park to its pre-war condition, though the bandstand was not replaced. In 1952 Harry Oakman, then Manager of Brisbane parks, planted tallowwoods along the memorial drive to replace trees that had died or been removed.