It is named after Puaka the Māori star cluster also known as Rigel in the Orion constellation,[4] and Sir James Hight, former, professor, and rector at Canterbury College.

[8] In 1963, the University Newsletter announced the appointment of the Ministry of Works as the architect for the initial phase of a comprehensive building complex at Ilam, encompassing the Arts, Library, Administration, and General facilities.

"On 23 March 1974, Governor-General Sir Denis Blundell officially opened the James Hight Library and arts block, heralded as New Zealand's largest university building.

In 1975, the University Library occupied the bottom four levels of the building, while the Departments of Accountancy, Business Administration, Classics, Economics, Law, Philosophy, and Religious Studies were situated in the tower.

The first earthquake led to the closure of the university for a week, and the library remained inaccessible for several months as efforts were dedicated to repairing shelves and reinstating half a million books to their positions.