Christchurch Club

Last updated

The Christchurch Club building in 2019 Christchurch Club, Christchurch, New Zealand.jpg
The Christchurch Club building in 2019

The Christchurch Club is a historic private members' club in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand. The older of the two Christchurch clubs, it was founded by rural landholders in 1856; the rival organisation, the Canterbury Club, was a breakaway that was founded by urban professionals in 1872.

The Christchurch Club, originally simply known as The Club, was founded by wealthy runholders in 1856. [1] George Ross was one of the founding members. [2] At first, premises were rented in Durham Street for members who were visiting Christchurch to use. [3] Benjamin Mountfort, Christchurch's pre-eminent architect, was engaged to design the club's building for the site adjacent to Latimer Square on Worcester Street. The design is unusual and unique for Mountfort, and is thought to be a compromise between an Italian Palazzo architecture preferred by the club members that can be found in the Travellers and Reform Clubs in London, and Mountfort's preference for a Gothic architecture. The chosen Italian Villa style was seen as relatively informal yet elegant and rural. The building was erected in 1861–62. Due to the composition of its membership, the Christchurch Club was "an informal seat of power in nineteenth century Canterbury". The building was registered by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust (since renamed to Heritage New Zealand) on 2 April 1985 as a Category I historic place. [1]

The Christchurch Club building suffered significant damage in the 2010 and 2011 earthquakes, and as of April 2016 operates out of the George Hotel while the historic premises are under repair. [4] There have been a number of attempts over the decades for the two Christchurch clubs to merge again, and the last such proposal was discussed in 2013. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ChristChurch Cathedral</span> Church in Christchurch Central City, New Zealand

ChristChurch Cathedral, also called Christ Church Cathedral and (rarely) Cathedral Church of Christ, is a deconsecrated Anglican cathedral in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It was built between 1864 and 1904 in the centre of the city, surrounded by Cathedral Square. It became the cathedral seat of the Bishop of Christchurch, who is in the New Zealand tikanga of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isaac Luck</span>

Isaac Luck was a New Zealand architect. A professional builder, he arrived in Lyttelton on the Steadfast in 1851. He was the third chairman of the Christchurch Town Council. He was the brother-in-law of and in partnership with Benjamin Mountfort, and was the less well-known architectural partner for the design of the Canterbury Provincial Council Buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canterbury Museum, Christchurch</span> Museum in Christchurch, New Zealand

The Canterbury Museum is a museum located in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand, in the city's Cultural Precinct. The museum was established in 1867 with Julius von Haast – whose collection formed its core – as its first director. The building is registered as a "Historic Place – Category I" by Heritage New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Mountfort</span> English architect, emigrant to New Zealand (1825–1898)

Benjamin Woolfield Mountfort was an English emigrant to New Zealand, where he became one of the country's most prominent 19th-century architects. He was instrumental in shaping the city of Christchurch's unique architectural identity and culture, and was appointed the first official Provincial Architect of the developing province of Canterbury. Heavily influenced by the Anglo-Catholic philosophy behind early Victorian architecture, he is credited with importing the Gothic revival style to New Zealand. His Gothic designs constructed in both wood and stone in the province are considered unique to New Zealand. Today, he is considered the founding architect of the province of Canterbury.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centre of Contemporary Art</span>

Centre of Contemporary Art is a curated art gallery in the centre of Christchurch, New Zealand. The gallery is governed by the Canterbury Society of Arts Charitable Trust.

Architecture of New Zealand is the built environment of regions, cities and towns of New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Anderson (mayor)</span>

John Anderson was the second Mayor of Christchurch in New Zealand 1868–1869, and a successful businessman. He had a close connection with three buildings that have later received Category I heritage registrations by Heritage New Zealand. Two of these buildings were demolished following the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Trinity Avonside</span> Church in Christchurch, New Zealand

Holy Trinity Avonside was a heritage-listed Anglican church located in Linwood, Christchurch, New Zealand. It was registered as a "Historic Place – Category I" by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. It was "damaged beyond the point of repair" in the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake and was demolished the following September.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Our City, Christchurch</span> Former civic offices in Christchurch, New Zealand

Our City, more formally Our City O-Tautahi, also known as the Old Municipal Chambers, is a Queen Anne style building on the corner of Worcester Street and Oxford Terrace in the Christchurch Central City. It is a Category I heritage building registered with Heritage New Zealand. From 1887 to 1924 it was used by Christchurch City Council as their civic offices, providing room for meetings of the council and for housing staff, before they moved to the Civic. It was then used for many decades by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce and served as the main tourist information. It was last used as an exhibition and events centre before being damaged in the Christchurch earthquakes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Paul's Church, Christchurch</span> Church in Christchurch, New Zealand

St Paul's Church in Cashel Street, Christchurch, was a Category I heritage building registered by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. It was demolished after the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of St Michael and All Angels, Christchurch</span> Church in Christchurch Central City, New Zealand

The Church of St Michael and All Angels is an Anglican church in Christchurch, New Zealand. The church building at 84 Oxford Terrace, Christchurch, is registered as Category I by Heritage New Zealand. Its freestanding belfry is registered separately.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Saviour's Chapel</span> Church in Lyttelton, New Zealand

St Saviour’s at Holy Trinity is an Anglican church in Lyttelton, Christchurch, New Zealand. St Saviour's Chapel was relocated from West Lyttelton to Christchurch's Cathedral Grammar School in the 1970s. Following the earthquakes and the demolition of Holy Trinity Church, Lyttelton, St Saviour's was returned to Lyttelton to the site of Holy Trinity in 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Luke's Church, Christchurch</span> Church in Christchurch, New Zealand

St Luke's Church in Christchurch was registered as a Category II historic place with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. Built on one of the five sites set aside in the central city in the original survey of Christchurch for the Anglican church, it was demolished in July 2011 following damage sustained in the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Octagon, Christchurch</span> Restaurant in Christchurch, New Zealand

The Octagon, Christchurch, the former Trinity Church or Trinity Congregational Church designed by Benjamin Mountfort, later called the State Trinity Centre, is a Category I heritage building listed with Heritage New Zealand. Damaged in the 2010 Canterbury earthquake and red-stickered after the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake, the building was threatened with demolition like most other central city heritage buildings. In June 2012, it was announced that the building will be saved, repaired and earthquake strengthened.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel Farr (architect)</span>

Samuel Charles Farr was a 19th-century builder and architect in Christchurch, New Zealand. He intended to emigrate from England to Auckland, but significant shipping problems saw him end up in Akaroa in 1850 instead. From 1862, he lived in Christchurch. Farr has a number of firsts against his name: the first marriage in Canterbury, he designed Akaroa's first church, designed New Zealand's first iron verandahs, and he started Sunday schools in Canterbury. As a leading member of the Acclimatisation Society, he stocked almost every lake and river in Canterbury with fish and was instrumental in introducing the bumblebee to New Zealand. His most notable building was Cranmer Court, the former Normal School, in the Christchurch Central City; this building was demolished following the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Paul's Anglican Church, Papanui</span> Church in Christchurch, New Zealand

St Paul's Anglican Church is a Category II listed heritage building in the Christchurch, New Zealand suburb of Papanui.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canterbury Club</span> Gentlemens Club in Christchurch, New Zealand

The Canterbury Club is a historic gentlemen's club in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It was founded by urban professionals in 1872 as a breakaway club from the Christchurch Club, which had been set up by large rural landholders in 1856.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Community of the Sacred Name</span>

The Community of the Sacred Name is a community of nuns in the Anglican Church in Aotearoa New Zealand and Polynesia. CSN Sisters currently live in Christchurch, Ashburton, Nukualofa and Suva. The former Motherhouse of the community including convent, chapel and novitiate stood in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Riccarton House</span> Historic building in Christchurch, New Zealand

Riccarton House is an historic building in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is part of the Riccarton estate, the first area in Christchurch lived in by white settlers, after which the suburb of Riccarton is named. The house was commissioned by Jane Deans, the widow of Canterbury pioneer John Deans, and finished in 1856. It was twice extended; first in 1874, and the work carried out in 1900 more than doubled the size of the house. The Riccarton estate has in stages become the property of Christchurch City Council and Riccarton House itself was sold by the Deans family to the city in 1947. Damaged by the earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, the repaired and renovated building was reopened in June 2014. Riccarton House is used as a restaurant and for functions, and a popular market is held on Saturdays in front of it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Worcester Street, Christchurch</span> Street in Christchurch, New Zealand

Worcester Street is a road in the central city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It runs from the intersection of Rolleston Avenue in the west, and terminates in the east at the intersection of Woodham Road in Linwood. Between Rolleston Avenue and Cambridge Terrace, it is known as Worcester Boulevard.

References

  1. 1 2 "Christchurch Club". New Zealand Heritage List/Rārangi Kōrero. Heritage New Zealand . Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  2. Macdonald, George. "George Arthur Aemilius Ross". Macdonald Dictionary. Canterbury Museum . Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  3. "About". The Christchurch Club. Archived from the original on 15 April 2016. Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  4. Phillips, Jock (3 September 2014). "Country towns – Origins". Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand . Retrieved 9 April 2016.
  5. Smith, Cullen (12 June 2013). "Christchurch clubs eye merger as 'superclub'". The New Zealand Herald . Retrieved 9 April 2016.

43°31′52.23″S172°38′29.65″E / 43.5311750°S 172.6415694°E / -43.5311750; 172.6415694