Strand Lane – Named after the Strand Picture Theatre which later became the Plaza A right-of-way between Hereford Street and Cathedral Square. It ran alongside the Strand Picture Theatre. The theatre was opened in 1917. The land was acquired by the City Council in 1925 as it was thought it would provide access to the women’s rest rooms from Hereford street. Named in 1929.A reasonable amount of information from the library website. In 1929 Papers Past mentioned the naming of the right of way but it sounds like it had been used as a right of way for many years. There were complaints about it being closed during 1931 while the women’s restrooms were being built. There were many shops mentioned in the 1930s and some of them were Peacocks, Majestic Radio Agency, La Moderne, and a dolls hospital. I obviously didn’t walk this lane as it no longer exists. My memories of the lane is from my days of working at the ANZ that was next to the lane. There was still a restroom in the lane when I worked here and I also remember the shop Strands Bags.

Shands Lane and it is too new to be on the library website. It is a right of way that runs behind the restaurants and bars on Oxford Terrace. It runs from Hereford St to Cashel St and it is probably named after Shand’s Emporium. Shand’s Emporium was on Hereford St close to where this new lane is. Shand’s Emporium was in an old wooden building and was moved to Manchester St. We lost so many historic buildings that it was great to have one saved.

Gloucester Street – Named after Gloucester, an English bishopric. 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. First mentioned in The Lyttelton Times in 1852 when 1/4 acre sections are advertised for sale there. A reasonable amount of information from the library website and nothing that I can add about the name of the street. Papers Past had a huge amount of entries so I mostly concentrated on the years before 1870.Some of the businesses on the street were F & E Pavitts Timber Yard, Mr Neeves Depot and Gas Company. A few shops such as Smith , Raikes & Co, W H Hargreaves and Nesbit’s Shop. John Coe had a shop and house called Albion House. A few hotels mentioned such as Central Hotel and Shakespeare Hotel. In 1865 there was a public notice about Lyttelton Times and that telegraphic information about shipping arrivals will be posted in front of the publishing of the Wards & Reeves. In 1859 Mr C E Cooper became an agency office for the Lyttelton Times. In 1865 the new Jewish Synagogue was opened and there is a mural on a wall where it used to be. It was near Cambridge Tce. At least one letter to the editor in 1869 complaining about the filthy state of the street especially near the theatre. In 1868 there were several complaints about the drains being either too small to cope with the water or choked with weeds. Also in 1868 Mr Coker wanted compensation for the damage done to his premises by floods and he threatened legal proceedings. It was declined on the basis that the grounds were below the level of the road. In the 1860s there were lots of mention of disordering behaviour including prostitutes. In 1863 the music hall was mentioned and by 1864 it was called Royal Princess Theatre. The current Theatre Royal built in 1908 is the third building for the theatre and on the opposite side of the road from the previous two theatres. In 1863 there was a long article about the money spent on the Gloucester St bridge and in 1864 there was an article about James Wylde who was the designer of the Gloucester St bridge. I walked this street from Fitzgerald Ave to Rolleston Ave. At the Fitzgerald Ave end there were a couple older derelict houses. There were lots of modern apartments this end as well and some looked like possible social housing. Loved the Gloucester – Worcester Park and they had bug houses here. Opposite the park was Christchurch East School. Then walked past Latimer Square and on the opposite there is still empty sections. As you get closer to the centre of the city there are newer buildings including Turanga which is obviously one of my favourite buildings. I am a huge reader. I then had to detour as the street is blocked by the new convention centre that is being built. Not everyone approves of this building. At the other side of the convention building it is the river with the historic bridge. Then on the other side of the river is the modern Deloitte building and I am not sure if I like it or not Found out recently that the design of the building represents the Avon River’s winding course. Then the Jewish Synagogue mural, CoCa art gallery and then an entry to the Christchurch Art Gallery car park. On the opposite side of the road is the WEA which is a building I am familiar with as I go to History classes there. There are modern apartments with names like Regent Court and St James Court. Cross Montreal Street and there are many lovely older houses and many of the buildings belong to Christ College. The old Girls High caretaker’s house is in very poor condition and the land now belongs to Christ College.

Peterborough Lane and nothing on the library website for this lane. It looks like a right of way and the postal address is actually 340 Durham St. It is on google maps and obviously named after the nearby Peterborough St. It has a sign saying Peterborough Lane but not sure that it has official standing as a street or right of way. Didn’t actually walk it as there isn’t a footpath and it felt like a private driveway.

Clarkson Ave – formerly Clarkson’s Avenue. Named after David Clarkson (1828-1889). Clarkson established the drapery business Dunstable House in 1854. In 1872 the business became J. Ballantyne & Co, drapers and clothiers. Clarkson’s Avenue first appears in street directories in 1885. Becomes Clarkson Avenue in 1962.A small amount of information from the library website. This tiny street runs from Cashel St to Lichfield St and there are a couple businesses here plus an empty section. It is near Fitzgerald Ave end of the Central City. Smokey T’s is on the corner of Clarkson Ave and Cashel St and they were very busy yesterday being Mother’s Day. There is one lonely house here but I couldn’t find out any information about this house. The style of the house would put it’s age between 1890 to 1920. There was very little information about this street on Papers Past and the earliest mention that I found was dated 1882 when a Mr J Carnahan was selling up his furniture and household effects. In 1926 there was talk of widening the street and in 1937 there was an application for a garage to be built on the corner of Lichfield St and Clarkson Ave. I couldn’t find more than 3 or 4 families living here. I can find no record of David Clarkson living in this area but he possibly owned the land. David Clarkson was a builder and a draper. This is a strange combination but it obviously worked as he was a successful businessman. David Clarkson lived at Dunstable House which was on the corner of Colombo St and Cashel on the site of Ballantynes.

Cashel Street in the Central City- Named after the bishopric of Cashel. One of the original streets of Christchurch named in 1850 by Edward Jollie (1825-1894) and Captain Joseph Thomas (b. 1803). The names were taken from bishoprics listed in Burke’s Peerage. The Rt. Rev. Robert Daly, Bishop of Cashel and Waterford (1783-1872), was John Robert Godley’s uncle. First mentioned in The Lyttelton Times in 1851.A small amount of information from the library website and nothing that I can add about the name of the street. Note this is only covering the street from Rolleston Ave to Fitzgerald Ave. There was a huge amount of information on Papers Past and decided to mostly limit my research to before 1860. Some of the businesses mentioned were Sucklings Shoe Shop, A E White selling cattle, Hallensteins Bros, John Anderson blacksmith, Mrs Watson dressmaker and her husband Mr Watson tailor, J Skillicorn wedding rings and bridal attire, Mr Thompson Christian books and bibles, Michael Sharp bricklayer, White Hart Inn and Auction Rooms, Joseph Denham baker, A Knight coal Merchant, Rees and Dorset painters, Thackers Store and J S Gundry Surgeon and accoucheur late surgeon of the Barque Steadfast. Richard Parker who ran a General Store had a huge amount of entries. In 1855 Mr H E Tyson was offering board and residence at Durham House on the corner of Cashel St and Manchester St. In 1854 there was a girls school set up in a house and the headmistress was Mrs F Thompson. In 1852 D Inwood opened a new Bakehouse next to Dr Gundry’s premises. Clarkson and Artkinson drapery shop was where Ballantynes is now sited. Clarkson and Atkinson eventually dissolved their partnership and Clarkson carried on the business in a building called Dunstable House. This business was sold to William Pratt who then sold the business to Ballantyne family. They extended the building in 1897 and this building was destroyed in the famous tragic fire in 1947. The surveyor Charles Fooks lived on the street. The corner of Cashel St and Colombo St opposite Ballantyne’s store was known as Hobday’s Corner. Hobday Building burnt down in 1888 and a new building was built in 1889 and I suspect it was the old Beaths and DIC building. In 1973 and 1974 I worked at Mrs Popes and this business moved to Cashel St in 1914 and previous to this they were on Colombo St near Victoria Square. Other places I remember were Fails Cafe, Whitcoulls, Copenhagan Bakery, Hannah’s Shoe Shop, Suckling’s Shoe Shop, Murray’s Chemist and Zetland Hotel which became Cafe Bleu. Many of my bookcrossing friends will remember Cafe Bleu as we had many bookcrossing meet ups here including during conventions. I ran into Joe the owner of Cafe Bleu last year and he is very happy to be retired. The Cafe was destroyed in the earthquakes. I also knew this area well from when I worked in the Square from 2004 to 2009,I started walking from Rolleston Ave and at this end there are many buildings housing out of town cancer patients. This includes Ronald McDonald House. There is an Art Deco building called College Flats and it was opened in December 1937. The most recognisable structure is the Bridge of Remembrance and then it is Cashel Mall. This area was a street when I worked here in the 1970s and I can’t remember when it became a pedestrian mall. I was going to get an icecream at Rollickin Gelato but they had a huge queue because of Mother’s Day. Some of the shops here are clothing shops, souvenir shop and Ballantynes. At the Westpac I chatted to a couple who were admiring the lego display of the Strip. A friend of mine made the display and is that area of Oxford Tce still called the Strip. Cross Colombo St and there is the ANZ and even more shops. The tram goes through Cashel Mall and stops near High St. There is an entrance to Shades Arcade from Cashel Mall. There is lots of empty spaces and at Madras St I was surprised to find that the road was blocked off so I had to detour around this. The road is closed between Madras St and Barbadoes St. Many businesses here and some of them were Les Mills, Elim Church, Alliance Francaise, Oriental Warehouse, Radio NZ and a motel. Too many businesses for me to remember them all and I also can’t remember all the businesses that were here from before the earthquakes. When I returned from living in the UK the Restart / Container Mall was in Cashel Mall and I actually quite liked it.

Lichfield Street – Named after the Bishopric of Lichfield in England. One of the original Christchurch streets named in 1850 by Captain Joseph Thomas (b. 1803?) and Edward Jollie (1825- 1894). The names were taken from bishoprics listed in Burke’s Peerage. First mentioned in The Lyttelton Times in 1852 when 1/4 acre sections are advertised for sale there. [Until 1910, numbering of the street went from east to west, from 1910, west to east. A small amount of information from the library website and nothing that I can add about the name of the street. Another street that had thousands of entries on Papers Past so concentrated before 1860. Some of the people who lived here were William Wilson, David Clark Anderson watchmaker, Alexander Johnston blacksmith, William Steer carpenter, George Robert Hart printer, William Scarlett joiner, Mrs Brown dressmaker, Henry Flavel tailor, Frederick Brown labourer and Charles Edward Cooper gentleman. Sections were for sale in 1852 and 1853. In 1859 a Day and Boarding Academy was set up by James White who was an experienced teacher from England. It was near the nursery owned by William Wilson. In 1860 R Smith set up the New American Portrait Galley doing Collodion portraits. The new Oddfellows Hall was opened in June 1859 and it was on the 1862 map of Christchurch and was near Colombo St. There seemed to be more residential properties here rather than businesses compared to nearby streets. I also looked at entries for the 1940s and by this time there were mostly businesses on the street. Some of the business names were Glassons Warehouse, Wellington Woollen Company, J Rattray and sons Ltd, McFarlane and Co, Bing Harris Co, Mason Struthers and Co and Lordship Hotel. I was amused that Midland Motors was refused permission to build a bus exchange here in 1945. The Central Fire Station was on this street plus the City Council Testing Station. There was a billiard parlour, Presbyterian bookroom and something called the Welcome Club. I can remember Rattray and Bing Harris businesses. Lots of entries for J Lamb and son funeral business and Hutchison White Ltd. The street is closed between Madras St and Barbadoes St and I had to detour around. The street runs between Oxford Tce and Fitzgerald Ave. There is a temporary fire station at the Fitzgerald St end and then VTNZ and Resene Paints, A car yard called Toys on Wheels and Domino Pizza then a big gap before you come to the bus exchange, Hoyts building, entrance to Ballantynes, Police Station, Law Courts, Lichfield Car Park and entrance to Riverside Market. There was a modern building near the Fitzgerald end of the street which I quite liked and it isn’t often that I like modern buildings. I worked in the Square from 2003 to 2009 and I remember the Salvation Army shop and office on this street and it would have been close to where the police station is now sited. I vaguely recall an outdoor shop near the Salvation Army shop. The Lichfield car park has been rebuilt on the same site as the original car park. I think that I have only used the new car park once as I prefer to walk into town. It was rare that I used the old car park but did use it occasionally when I was undergoing chemo as I found it too tiring to walk to work chemo week. I can’t remember what other buildings were on this street before the earthquakes yet I walked this area fairly frequently.

Bedford Row – Bedford Row was once the grass covered centre of the extensive nurseries belonging to William Barbour Wilson (1819- 1897) from which trees were obtained for the main four avenues. Wilson was a nurseryman, businessman and local politician. First mentioned in The Press in 1877, appears on an 1879 map and first appears in street directories in 1883. The council took over Bedford Row, formerly a private street, making it a public street on 10 October 1892. This is reported in the Star. This decision cannot have been ratified as The Press in 1960 reports its recognition then.A reasonable of information from the library website. I have searched Papers Past and Ancestry website and I have no idea where the name of this street came from. William Wilson and his wife were from Scotland with no connection to Bedford in England. There was a Bedford Row in London and it is possibly named after this street.In 1877 William Wilson sold his land which was known as Wilson’s Garden fronting Cashel St, Lichfield St, Manchester St, Madras t and a new street Bedford Row. In 1878 new street to be taken over by City Council and is known as Bedford Row. It is full width and formed 12 months ago prior to selling of sections and was paid for by the owner. The council had received a petition from property owners requesting the council to take over the street subject to the usual terms. In 1879 there was a letter to the editor complaining about the broom and gorse on the vacant sections. Larrikins and school boys playing truant used the area. Worse still were the drunken men and dissolute women who made this their regular rendezvous. In 1880 the directors of the Temperance Hotel Company purchased sections to built a hotel. This is a hotel that doesn’t sell alcoholic drinks. In 1894 there was a court case about a trust deed where it was noted that William Wilson laid out a roadway on his property as a means of communication from the back of the buildings. Road remained open for nearly 30 years but no right of way had been set up against it. There was discussion about public use of this roadway. This unofficial road obviously became Bedford Row.William Wilson took out ads to say that his was moving his business to Ferry Rd area but he was charged with fraud in 1876 it was a very long article and a bit confusing. Sounded like he was executor of a will for Charles Brown Turner but used funds for himself. His wife separated from him in 1877 and it sounds like she continued living in the family home as it was in her name. There was a court case in December 1878 where William was charged with attempting to break into her home and he used threatening language. He was also charged with abusive and threatening language towards Dr John Frankish who was William’s brother-in-law. It sounded like William was abusive and violent towards his wife over a long period of time especially when he had been drinking. William died in the Terminus Hotel in 1897 and the article didn’t state if he was living at the hotel but it sounded like it. The obituary said he was born 1819 in Scotland and came to NZ in August 1850 in the ship Mariner. Planted a nursery garden on the Botanical Garden Reserve on which land there is now the Star and Garter Hotel. In 1868 he was the first mayor of Christchurch. Leaves a widow and 6 sons and 7 daughters. Funeral left from The Grove for Linwood cemetery. The Grove was the house that was in his wife’s name. In 1899 William’s widow Elizabeth was in England and through her lawyers in NZ requested that his bankruptcy be annulled. She must have returned to NZ as she died in 1912 and is buried in Linwood cemetery. Elizabeth was possibly the owner of the City Hotel. It sounds like there weren’t any houses here only businesses and many were connected to fruit and produce. In 1923 there was a letter to the editor complaining the refuse on the street because of the several fruit markets in the area. NZ Farmers Co-op had a cool store here. In 1920 Ken England had cars on display on this street. In 1928 there a a spacious warehouse central depot for the relief of those suffering from the effects of unemployed. This street eventually became the place to go for the nightlife and Sammys Jazz Review Bar was one name that I found. I only vaguely remember this street and only went there a couple of times. The buildings here were badly damaged in the earthquakes and they were demolished. I actually have walked this street twice and the first time I hadn’t realised as there isn’t any sign with the street name. There are lots of ugly modern apartments here and the addresses of them are Madras St going by the letterboxes. I would hate to live here as you are too close to your neighbours and parking would be terrible. Around the corner from Bedford Row is a row of more very modern apartments and the signpost says Bedford Terrace. Bedford Terrace is too new to be on the library website.

Kilmore Street in the Central City- Named after an Irish bishopric, Kilmore, near Cavan. One of Christchurch’s original streets named in 1850 by Captain Joseph Thomas (b. 1803?) and Edward Jollie (1825- 1894). The names were taken from bishoprics listed in Burke’s Peerage. John Robert Godley lived at Killegar Park, in County Leitrim, near Kilmore Cathedral. First mentioned in The Lyttelton Times in 1852 when 1/4 acre sections are advertised for sale there. A small amount of information from the library website and nothing that I can add about the name. Huge number of entries on Papers Past so I mostly concentrated on pre 1900. In 1860 there were building allotments for sale but the earliest date I found for selling sections was in 1854. From 1861 there were houses as well as land for sale. In 1863 the council / road board called for tenders for metalling the road but it was metalled until 1868. We complain these days about the council but it wasn’t much different in the early days when Christchurch was much smaller. They can’t have done a good job as in 1870s there were complaints about the state of the road. There were also complaints about the bad state of the footpaths and side channels in 1868 and 1869.The 1860s and 1870s there were many complaints about drainage and 1864 there were several cases of fever due to defective drains. Same year a Mr Worth was warned about keeping pigs on his property. In 1865 there were complaints about filthy discharge and a disagreeable smell coming from the brewery belonging to Mr Moore. In 1870 Moore & Co of Phoenix Brewery completed a large malthouse. Several brothels on the street in the 1860s and one was called The White House and it was owned Martin Cash. Usually the women are named inn connection with the brothels such as Catherine Greaves, Hetty Barnes and Martha Jones alias Brown. Joseph Bailey owned several buildings on the street and there was at least one hotel the Britannia Hotel. There was a jeweller Mr Swindell and many other businesses but as there were thousands of ads I will confess to giving up on looking at them. In 1865 children playing in the garden of a vacant house found a skull and bones. Several more were found and it was possibly a Maori burial ground. I couldn’t find out what happened to the bones. There was Nurse Haste’s maternity home at 137 Kilmore St in the 1920s and many birth notices mention it. The Caledonian Hall was on Kilmore Street in the 1920s. There was a dance hall and skating rink in the 1930s and 1940s that had strict police controls because of the many complaints from nearby residents about the behaviour of the people using the building. The street runs from Fitzgerald Ave to Park Terrace and probably the most well known building is the Town Hall. Forte Health Hospital also has an entrance here. I remember seeing The Normal School being demolished and there were protesters there who were against it being demolished. The street runs past Cranmer Square. The Convention Centre used to be here opposite the Town Hall but this is a wasteland these days. There are modern apartments as you get closer to Park Terrace and Cathedral Grammar School has land on the corner of Kilmore St and Park Terrace. There are some brand new high rise apartments are being built between Durham St and Cranmer Square. A few older houses at the Fitzgerald Ave end with dates from 1880 to 1930 but most houses date from 1970s onwards. Many built from 2015 to 1020 and they are ugly apartments squeezed onto small sections.

Oxford Tce in Central City- Brightlings Lane was incorporated into Oxford Terrace. Named after Christ Church, Oxford University. Brightlings Lane was named after John Brightling (1842-1928) One of the original Christchurch streets named in 1850 by surveyors Captain Joseph Thomas (b. 1803?) and Edward Jollie (1825-1894) in March 1850. John Robert Godley (1814- 1861) studied at Christ Church. First mentioned in The Lyttelton Times in 1852 when 1/4 acre sections are advertised for sale there. Brightling established a carrying firm. In the 1890s he built, and then bought, the City and Suburban Tramway Company to New Brighton via North New Brighton. Brightlings Lane first appears in street directories in 1894 but was in existence as early as 1881. The address of a Jonathan Bruce is given in the electoral roll of that year as Brightlings Right-of-way. Brightlings Lane intersected with Oxford Terrace and lay between Willow and Hurley Streets. Disappears from street directories in 1953 when it is “included in Oxford Terrace”. A reasonable amount of information from library website. Huge amount of information on Papers Past. In 1853 and 1854 Joseph Allan a shoemaker was living here. In 1862 trees were planted along Oxford Terrace from Inwood Mill to Montreal Street bridge and it cost £13 10s 6d which worked out at 6d per tree. The street was metalled in 1868 but there was still complaints about the state of the road in the 1870s plus complaints about the footpaths. The Baptist Church had thousands of mentions on Papers Past and was occasionally called the Baptist Tabernacle. Other buildings mentioned were Oddfellows Hall which was on Gloucester St corner. The Foresters Hall and the Primitive Methodist Church. There were at least two stables and one was Carew’s Stables and the other Shailer’s Stables. Several hotels mentioned including British Hotel, Mills Hotel, Royal Hotel, Warwick Hotel, British Crown, White Hart and of course Oxford Hotel which many of us knew as Oxford on Avon. Bookcrossers who attended the World Convention in 2009 in Christchurch will remember Oxford on Avon as our venue for the farewell meal on the Sunday night. The City Council Yard was on Oxford Terrace from early 1870s. I was amused to read about how many men were fined for letting cows and horses wander on the street. There was the usual mention of brothel and houses of ill fame. One woman Annie Driscoll was charged with stabbing Mary Ann Lackett and Annie was described as an old offender. I am sure that I came across her name when researching other central city. Mary Ann Lackett survived the stabbing. There was flooding in 1865 and 1868. In 1880s and 1900s there was a nursing home called Cora Villa at 326 Oxford Terrace and many birth notices mentioned it. The hotels were often used for coroners courts and the saddest was in 1869 when a new born baby’s body was found in the Avon River. In the 1910s there was a hockey team called Oxford Tce and there was a Oxford Terrace literary society. The street runs from Fitzgerald Ave to Riccarton Ave and you have walk through Victoria Square. There are many fairly modern apartments between Kilmore St and Barbadoes St. Between Barbadoes St and Fitgerald Ave it is now the Red Zone. The Margaret Mahy Playground is between Manchester St and Madras St and the playground is where the Centennial Pool used to be. Once you get through Victoria Square you walk past the new Convention Centre being built and then it is all the bars and restaurants including Riverside Market. As you walk towards the hospital there is a mixture of new buildings and damaged buildings. The buildings are obviously on one side of the street as the terrace follows the river. Between Montreal St and Durham St beside the river is the Earthquake Memorial and there are steps down to the memorial. From the Hospital to Margaret Mahy there is now a walkway called the City Promenade. I have been known to feed the eels in the area opposite the bars and restaurant.