When Mrs. Maria Sophia Pope opened her shop on Colombo Street in 1862, the street that ran along the front of her door was nothing more than a muddy runty track that would fill with water every time it rained. But I’m sure on those fine Christchurch days; Maria would take a breather on her …
Mrs. Rebecca Money couldn’t quite believe her ears. She had been wiping down table tops in the dining room of the Victoria Hotel she owned with her husband Charles when she heard the first scream from the street. Confused at first, Rebecca paused before glancing out into the night from the window. An eerie orange …
On 16th April 1868, a date kept secret from the public, convicted murderer and arsonist, John Densley Swales became the first man to be hung in Canterbury. This took place at 8.15am at the Lyttelton Gaol (the remaining prison cells pictured here). On the evening on 7th February 1868, a fire at the general store …
