 Munda Point was originally the site of a coconut plantation established by Englishman Norman Wheatley, and then owned by Australian Lesley Gill.In November 1942, during World War II, the town became strategically important after Japanese forces built an airstrip (on the site of today's Munda Airport) to support to Japanese forces fighting the Battle of Guadalcanal.A Japanese convoy put into Munda Point on 24 November 1942, and started construction under careful concealment from the air by means of rows of coconut palms suspended by cable.