Antigua Street – Named after Antigua, a colonial bishopric, Antigua in the West Indies. The section of the street south of Moorhouse Avenue was formerly named Windmill Road. Named after the flourmill erected in 1856 by William Derisley Wood (1824-1904). It was on the site of the Canterbury Brewery which was demolished following the earthquakes of 2010/2011. One of the original streets of Christchurch named in 1850 by surveyors Captain Joseph Thomas (b. 1803?) and Edward Jollie (1825-1894). The names were taken from bishoprics listed in Burke’s Peerage. Windmill Road as an alternative name appears in an advertisement in the Star in 1868. William Feathery (1829?-1910) bought the windmill there in 1866 and moved it to Leithfield where it stood behind Leith’s hotel. Officially re-named Antigua Street in 1909. A good amount of information from the library website.
One end has the Antigua Boat sheds which is a cafe and the punts leave from here. Today is the first time in ages that I have been able to walk this street without having to dodge roadworks. Where the Brewery used to be is now a big empty section where they plan to build a sports stadium. Between Moorhouse Ave and Brougham St it is a mixture of businesses and houses. Many old houses that are looking rundown. The new cycleway attracted lots of protests. Note I originally wrote this several months ago and work has now started on the sports stadium. Opposite the sports stadium building site several buildings have been demolished and the empty sections are now Wilsons Car Parks.
Lytteltonwitch's Walking the streets of Christchurch Project 