By 1917 a public meeting was held calling for a new hospital, to be dedicated to the memory of Lord Kitchener. A building fund was set up, and work started in October 1922. The Geelong and District Kitchener Memorial Hospital as it was known opened on 13 March 1924. The original building consisted of a central administration block which remained until 2007, with wards branching off to each side. From 1927 the Gala Day festival in Geelong helped raise money for the hospital.