Christchurch: A Chronology to 1989

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

Go to a year between 1700 & 1989

October 15, 1881: Lancaster Park opens. This privately owned development was built so that sports clubs could charge admission fees to games.
October 15, 1979: Visit by King Tupou IV and the Queen of Tonga.
October 16, 1988: Victoria Square Amphitheatre opens.
October 17, 1861: Christchurch Club building opens. Designed by B.W.Mountfort and Isaac Luck, it was probably New Zealand’s first club.
October 19, 1978: Visit by President Walter Scheel of West Germany.
October 20, 1948: "Pleasure Garden" art controversy begins when a Frances Hodgkins painting (done in about 1933) is exhibited at "the Group" show. This fierce debate on art style was joined by people throughout New Zealand. It raged for 3 years until the City Council accepted the painting as a gift on September 3, 1951.
October 20, 1987: World-wide share market crash affects Christchurch Stock Exchange .

Information for this resource was based on the second edition of John Densem’s Christchurch chronology: a history of settlement. Environmental Policy and Planning Policy Unit, Christchurch City Council, 1990.
More about the Christchurch Chronology.
This resource includes links to various other local history resources on our websites and images from our photographs collection - clicking on the image will take you to a larger version of that image.