Port Hills

Map of a scheme suggested by the Port and City Committee showing a new road tunnel to Lyttelton: Picturing Canterbury

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Map of a scheme suggested by the Port and City Committee showing a new road tunnel to Lyttelton [1926?] Port and City Committee (Christchurch, N.Z.). File Reference CCL PhotoCD 16, IMG0001.
“An aerial view showing Christchurch in relation to the magnificent natural harbour of Lyttelton, and the proposed highway and vehicular tunnel through the barrier of the Port Hills which, in conjunction with the present railway, will enable the city to employ modern transport methods in the carriage of goods and passengers to and from the ships.”

Date: c.1926

Although a rail tunnel linking Lyttelton to Christchurch had been in existence since 1867, it wasn’t until 1956 that legislation was passed allowing for the construction of the Lyttelton Road Tunnel. Construction began in 1962 and was completed in 1964, opening on 27 February.

Do you have any photographs of the Lyttelton Road Tunnel? If so, feel free to contribute to our collection.

Kete Christchurch is a collection of photographs and stories about Christchurch and Canterbury, past and present. Anyone can join and contribute.

Map Of A Scheme Suggested By The Port And City Committee Showing A New Road Tunnel To Lyttelton

Hang gliding – Port Hills: Christchurch Photo Hunt 2017

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Photo Hunt 2017: Plains, Port Hills & Peninsula – Finding our way

This year the theme for Photo Hunt is Plains, Port Hills & Peninsula – Finding our way. However, the photos you submit are not limited to this theme. We invite you to share any of your photos and help grow the city’s photographic archive. All entries must be received by 31 October.

Christchurch City Libraries has produced a set of four postcards promoting the competition which are available from your local library. Each week during October we’ll be featuring one of the postcard images on our blog.

Hang gliding – Port Hills. Kete Christchurch. Hang_gliding_-_Port_hills_2966945852_o. Entry in the Christchurch City Libraries 2008 Photo Hunt. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 New Zealand License.

Unknown group hang-gliding on Port Hills.  We were passing by and saw them.  It was a relatively new sight in Christchurch in 1976.

Photograph by Irene Absalom.

Date: 1976.

File Reference: HWC08-SO100

Entry in the Christchurch City Libraries 2008 Photo Hunt.

About Kete Christchurch

Kete Christchurch is a collection of photographs and stories about Christchurch and Canterbury, past and present. Anyone can join and contribute.

From the Sign of the Takahe: Picturing Canterbury

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From the Sign of the Takahe. Kete Christchurch. PH13-135. Entry in the 2013 Christchurch City Libraries Photo Hunt. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 New Zealand License.

Taken from the Sign of the Takahe out a window across the Canterbury Plains to the Southern Alps.

Entry in the 2013 Christchurch City Libraries Photo Hunt.

Photo Hunt 2017: Plains, Port Hills & Peninsula – Finding our way

This year the theme for Photo Hunt is Plains, Port Hills & Peninsula – Finding our way. However, the photos you submit are not limited to this theme. We invite you to share any of your photos and help grow the city’s photographic archive. All entries must be received by 31 October.

Kete Christchurch is a collection of photographs and stories about Christchurch and Canterbury, past and present. Anyone can join and contribute.

100 years ago today: Sign of the Kiwi opens

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In June 1917, the new tea house at the summit of Dyer’s Pass was officially opened.

“The new house at Dyer’s Pass, now half an hour’s walk from the tram terminus, appears destined to be known just as the Rest House, although in some quarters it is called the Toll House. It is a tea house unique in New Zealand.” (Star, 9 June 1917)

The building, designed by Samuel Hurst Seager, was described in the Star as “An inviting flight of red stone steps leads to the entrance, an open porch, with big plate-glass windows at each end. Across the porch is a deep jarrah beam, bearing the quaint carved inscription:-”

Jog on, jog on, the footpath way,
And merrily hent the stile-a,
A merry heart goes all the day,
Your sad tires in a mile-a

The Sign Of The Kiwi   A Car And Excursionists In Front Of The Sign Of The Kiwi, Dyers Pass, Summit Road, Christchurch   Interior, Sign Of The Kiwi   Toll Gate And Lantern, Sign Of The Kiwi   Serenity & Shadow   Plinth Of The Sign Of The Kiwi, Dyers Pass, Port Hills, Christchurch

The Sign of the Kiwi, as it would later be known, was the third of four rest-houses that had been envisaged by Harry Ell as part of the Summit Road Scenic Reserve scheme. Unlike the other rest-houses, the Sign of the Kiwi, was planned to include a toll-house with the collected tolls going towards the construction of the remainder of the road. The Kiwi also provided tearooms, which Harry’s wife, Ada, took over managing in 1920. The collection of tolls and the management of the tearoom attracted some controversy and Harry would often write to the local papers letting his feelings be known about this subject.

In the 1940s the building was closed by the Department of Lands and Survey with responsibility for it being handed over to the Christchurch City Council after 1948. The building was then used as a custodian’s house and modified so that the only public access was to the porch. In 1989 the council began restoration of the Sign of the Kiwi to its original state and it was opened again as a refreshment and information centre.

The building was damaged in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake but after undergoing repairs it was reopened in January 2017.

Read more about the Sign of the Kiwi, Harry Ell and the Summit Road.

Follow our tweets from @100chch to discover life and events 100 years ago in Christchurch and Canterbury.

Thanks Harry!

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Head and shoulders portrait of Henry George Ell, 1914
Henry George Ell. S P Andrew Ltd :Portrait negatives. Ref: 1/1-013861-G. Alexander Turnbull Library, Wellington, New Zealand. http://natlib.govt.nz/records/22750368

Thank you, Harry Ell.

Without your dedicated work over many years, the residents and tourists in Christchurch wouldn’t have the wonderful reserves of the Port Hills to walk, cycle and play in.

Henry George Ell was a husband, father, soldier, stationer, politician, prohibitionist, conservationist, and was the driving force behind the establishment of the reserves on the Port Hills, and the building of the Summit Road. By the time of his death in 1934, some 500 acres of reserves had been created, with the help of his “Ell’s Angels”. His Summit Road scheme was a very important employer in the time of the Depression, although he himself was a known as a tough taskmaster.

His vision was to have a series of resthouses along the Summit Road for use and enjoyment of people walking – hence the Sign of the Takahe (built last, and finished in 1949 after his death), Sign of the Bellbird, Sign of the Kiwi and Sign of the Packhorse. The resthouses were designed by Samuel Hurst Seager.

Dr Cockayne and Harry Ell [1904] CCL PhotoCD 6, IMG0058
Dr Cockayne and Harry Ell
[1904] CCL PhotoCD 6, IMG0058
Along with his work on the Port Hills, Harry Ell served as a Christchurch City Councillor (1903, 1917-19), and a Member Parliament (1899-1919) where he worked to improve schooling, the banking system, access to Old Age Pensions, and was instrumental in the passing of the Scenery Preservation Act. He is really remembered for his work as conservationist: he wanted to preserve forests to conserve soil and water, and create reserves and afforestation programmes to ensure adequate timber supplies and to provide better training for scientific foresters.

More resources

A slice of India on the Port Hills

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ImageIt is embarrassing to admit, but I may well be the only person in Christchurch who never realised that the suburb of Cashmere was named after the Indian region.

The only justification I can come up with for this is that nowadays Cashmere in India is usually spelt Kashmir, and that I pronounce it with the stress on the second syllable rather than the first.  So the connection between the two is really not *that* obvious.  Plus I live on the other side of town… Well, that’s my story, and I’m sticking to it!

So I was surprised to discover, while reading the Sydenham Cemetery Tour Guide written by Richard Greenway, our resident genealogy and cemetery guru, that, not only was Cashmere named after the Indian state, but that it was home to one of the first community of Indians in New Zealand.

Most came in 1859 as servants for John Cracroft Wilson, who, prior to transferring to New Zealand, had been a magistrate in India. In 1870 Wilson had what was later known as the Old Stone house built for the Indian workers to live in.

Wilson was an interesting character:  “he was a benevolent squire to the people who lived on or near his estate” and “allowed his labourers land and stock, provided houses for those who retired in his service and granted freedom to men whose time [of indenture] was up”; however he also took to court any workers who absconded, so that he might get them back to Cashmere.

The Indian workers became part of the wider community, with some, notably Ramchun Soman and his sister Rose, marrying European New Zealanders.

Their memory is preserved in the many Indian street names  in the area:

  • Shalamar Drive,
  • Bengal Drive,
  • Darjeeling Place,
  • Delhi Place,
  • Indira Lane,
  • Lucknow Place,
  • Nabob Lane,
  • Nehru Place,
  • Sasaram Lane.

Were you aware of Cashmere’s Indian connection? CoverIf, like me, you are fascinated by this discovery, you might enjoy the following links: