On 1st April 1941, New Brighton joined the Greater Christchurch and came under the care of the C.C.C. William Free was just 10 years old when he arrived in Lyttelton on the ‘Cressy’, the Canterbury Association’s fourth ship. Ten or so days earlier, William Guise Brittan had arrived on the ‘Randolph’ and took his post …
In 1940, the Carlton Hotel on Carlton Corner is the first pub in New Zealand to have beer on tap, followed by the first beer garden in 1947 and the first drive-thru bottle shop in 1954. Alfred Money, already a colourful Canterbury character, built the first Carlton Hotel. It’s rumoured that he got the name …
In 1939, Lesley Miller moved his successful fabric and fashion business into a specially built five story building on Tuam Street. Just fifteen years before, what would become the Millers Department Store had begun in Greymouth. Two years later, Lesley uprooted his family and business and made the move to Christchurch. It would be a …
Painfully shy, and extremely uncoordinated, it was the love of a great adventure that pushed the 20 year old Edmund Percival Hillary up Canterbury’s Mount Ollivier (pictured in 2014) – in what would become his first major climb. The year was 1939. Born in Auckland on 20th July 1919, it was a school trip to …
In 1939, the statue of James Edward Fitzgerald – Canterbury’s first Superintendent – is unofficially unveiled in a student prank. The statue was a gift to the city from Richard Edward Green but disagreements between the C.C.C and the Christchurch Beautifying Assoc had caused the statue to sit in storage. The Christchurch Domains Board – …
On 26th February 1938, the Summit Road was opened. Harry Ell will always be remembered as a great lover of the Port Hills. He was born in Christchurch in 1862. He grew up on his parents farm in Halswell. From an early age, he became passionate about Christchurch’s natural heritage and its endangered species. It’s …
On 7th June 1937, the Citizen’s War Memorial was unveiled in Cathedral Square; a gift to the city from Christchurch business man, George Gould II. The son of early settler, George Gould Senior, he was from proud stock. His father had been the first to erect a building in Christchurch which became the first general …
On 17 December 1935, the Christchurch City Council purchased 230 hectares off the Boag family to establish a city airport. At the time of purchase, the 230 hectares was still a part of the Boag family farm of Burnside – this history now acknowledged in the naming of the suburb. William Boag had arrived in …
On 14 December 1934, the foundation stones for the Scarborough and New Brighton Clock Towers are laid. The towers were a gift to the city from Christchurch builder, Richard Edward Green. Both clock towers are built to honour his father, Edmund Green, who set up the first telegraph service in New Zealand. Irene Leaver, the …
On 16th January 1934, the Cantabs that were out shopping or having their lunch in Victoria Square were delightfully surprised when the ‘Wirth Circus’ elephants took to the Avon River to cool down their legs and have a drink. This took place between Victoria (now the Hamish Hay Bridge) and Armagh Street bridges. The marketing …
