No one needed to explain to ex-banker, now convict Jonathan Roberts, that Ripa Island had never been a place of great joy, even in the decades before he and his 39 other convict buddies found themselves there, breaking rocks that would build Fort Jervois. As Jonathan bit into the bread that was his lunch that …
Edward Jerningham Wakefield (1820 – 1879) Died of alcoholism Place of Death: Ashburton, Canterbury * Son of Edward Gibbon Wakefield – the Father of New Zealand – owner of The New Zealand Company and The Canterbury Association. * Cousin to the New Zealand Company/Canterbury Association surveyor Charles Orbin Torlesse. * 1848 – 1849 …
Sir Robert Heaton Rhodes (1861 – 1956) Died of old age Place of Death: Tai Tapu 1880’s – 1900’s Volunteer for the Canterbury Yeomen’s Cavalry 1896 – 1896 President of Canterbury Agriculture and Pastoral Association 1899 – 1925 Member of the House of Representatives 1902 – 1921 Member of …
Few New Zealanders have achieved such prominence or popularity, received such high honours, or been more sincerely admired and respected in their own lifetime than Heaton Rhodes. Blessed with intelligence, talent, good looks and wealth, he made the most of his advantages. He excelled at many things, and is remembered in Canterbury as the province’s …
Banks Peninsula whaler Edward Weller must have smiled to himself that October day in 1839. Maybe he even waved goodbye to those members of the Ngai Tahu who had foolishly sold him Banks Peninsula and the greater part of the Port Cooper (Canterbury) Plains for an old whaler’s boat and a few items of clothing. …
What actually inspired me to do the story of Godley Head was the old Maori term for the place, ‘Otokitoki’ which means ‘a place of axes’. My imagination was instantly stirred, but it proved to be one of the biggest anticlimaxes since I began to peel back Canterbury’s history almost 3 years ago. Standing like …
I love nothing more than coming across a description during my studies that brings alive an historical figure like never before. So, I thought I would share this one concerning our Founder, the man that did the long hours and pushed the pen to get Christchurch up and started, John Robert Godley. But first, the …
“I find that my notion of a distinct settlement in New Zealand, under the patronage of a powerful body in this country, desirous of spreading the Church of England, stands a good chance of being realized sooner than we expected. The subject has been fully considered, and at length something like practical conclusions have been …
What was left of the Crystal Palace Theatre was demolished in 1986, I would have been 10. My love for movies (and Christchurch’s history too actually) was planted in me when I was very young. During the school holidays, my mum and I would bustle down to the bus stop outside the Caltex Petrol Station …
George Gould (1825 – 1889) Died of old age Place of Death: Christchurch * Opened the first General Store in Christchurch. It was sited on the eastern corner of Colombo and Armagh Streets. This business was the beginning of today’s Pyne Gould Corporation and PGG Wrightson. Buried at the …
