Heritage

Christchurch: a chronology

A timeline of Christchurch events in chronological order from pre-European times to 1989.

Go to a year between 1700 & 1989

Begin at the beginning Start here

This week in history

January 29, 1875
Kaiapoi Woollen Mills founded.
January 31, 1921
New Zealand’s first regular airmail service begins between Christchurch, Ashburton and Timaru.
February 2, 1960
Burnside High School opens. For a long time it was the biggest high school in the Southern Hemisphere.
February 2, 1974
Commonwealth Games end with "the greatest middle distance race of all time". Tanzanian Filbert Bayi wins the 1500 metres in new world record time. Second was John Walker who also broke the existing record. The national records of five countries Tanzania, Kenya, Australia, Great Britian and New Zealand - were all broken in this race.
February 2, 1982
New central Public Library (designed by Warren and Mahoney) opens in Gloucester Street.
February 3, 1915
Canterbury Battalion sustains New Zealand’s first casualties of W.W.I at Suez Canal.
February 3, 1962
Peter Snell sets new world records for the half mile and 800 metres at Lancaster Park.
February 4-14, 1971
Great Moscow Circus performs in North Hagley Park.
February 4-5, 1868
Severe storm and gales. Several ships wrecked, floods throughout Canterbury. Waimakariri River overflows into the Avon causing serious flooding. Water flows a metre deep in Market Square (now Victoria Square).
February 4, 1876
Railway south completed to Timaru.
February 4, 1907
Serious fire on the Port Hills. Victoria Park plantation destroyed.

Notes