Papanui

Before European settlement Papanui, like much of Christchurch, was mostly marshy ground covered with native flax, toetoe and raupō brush. There was an abundance of forest birds which were hunted for food by the area's Māori inhabitants. It is believed in 1800 possibly as many as 5000 Māori lived in Canterbury, but from disease like measles and influenza, introduced through the early whaling settlements on Banks Peninsula, and through tribal wars the number had fallen to around 500 in 1840.[6] While most of the plains in the South Island of New Zealand were deforested by either the Māori or the so-called moa hunters in the mid-1300s, Papanui Bush was one of the few stands of pine and totara left in the Canterbury region at the time of European colonisation.

The Canterbury Association's surveyor Captain Joseph Thomas and his team of surveyors arrived in Lyttelton (originally named Port Cooper) on 15 December 1848 on the ship Fly. They began to survey the Port Hills and Canterbury Plains around what would become Christchurch and its suburbs. As chief agent for the association Thomas was also responsible for preparing the infrastructure for the arrival of the first settlers at Lyttelton in December 1850. The First Four Ships, Charlotte Jane, Randolph, Sir George Seymour and Cressy landed 773 colonists. By the first anniversary of the first landing fifteen more ships had arrived bringing the colonist population to 3,000. By 1876 the estimated population of the city and suburbs was around 23,000 with the number increasing to 44,000 by 1886.

When the pilgrims first began to settle in Christchurch in the early 1851, Papanui Bush attracted a number of sawyers who made a living from milling totara and pine timber for construction and fire wood. Near the bush a settlement sprung up along on the old Maori track leading north to Kaiapoi which eventually became the Main North Road. The settlement soon boasted a hotel, store, blacksmiths, clothing shop, butchers, chemist, dispensers,[7] and a school room appeared in 1853. Due to the pressing need for building materials in Christchurch, Papanui Road was one of the first roads built outside the city boundaries. The Papanui Bridge was also built over the Avon River in March 1852 to allow the timber to be brought by bullock drawn wagons directly into the Market Square near the city centre. In 1857 sawmilling had attracted a population of 692 to the Papanui village compared with 953 in Christchurch in the same year.[8]

By 1857 most of the trees in the area were felled and market gardening and orchards began to flourish. The land around Papanui proved to be remarkably fertile for farming once ditches and drains were dug to relieve the swampy areas. Gradually more immigrants settled in Papanui, crops were sown and sheep and dairy farms were established in the surrounding areas.[9] Exports of wheat and wool soon became the main source of income for the province. From the mid-1880s frozen mutton shipments, from the nearby Canterbury Frozen Meat Company in Belfast, to the U.K. grew steadily and eventually surpassed other exports to become the main export earner. In the 1890s butter shipments joined the export trade with the Fernleaf brand becoming as well known as 'Canterbury Lamb'. As settlement of Christchurch continued farms were sold for residential and commercial developments with Papanui being transformed into a suburb which became part of Christchurch city in 1923.

One of the first buildings in the area was the Sawyers Arms Hotel which was opened by an American named Robert Carr. The Hotel was built on the Main North Road near the corner of Sawyers Arms Road which derived its name from the hotel. Henry Roil was also "mine host" at the hotel in the early years as a partner of Carr's. The hotel burnt down twice, firstly in November 1874 and was reopened by the current licensee John Wild in June 1875. The second fire occurred in September 1898 and was rebuilt by the licensee John Cooper and was renamed The Phoenix (the beautiful bird rising from the ashes) for its third incarnation. This building was finally demolished in February 1989 in a Supermarket redevelopment with the site eventually being encompassed by the Northlands Shopping Centre.[10]

The Papanui Hotel was originally built in the early 1850s as a parsonage for the Reverend Bradley. The building was bought in 1859 by William Meddings, a local blacksmith and store keeper, who opened it as a hotel. In 1865 the hotel was bought by William Lawrence who rebuilt the front section in 1871. Lawrence passed the hotel on to his son William in 1898, and it is believed it remained in the Lawrence family ownership until 1906. The grounds boasted gardens, lawns, fruit trees, walkways and a skittle bowling alley. In 1957 a new public and lounge bar complex was built on the corner of the Main North Road and Winstone Avenue adjacent to the old building which was finally demolished in March 1969 having served as a landmark for 110 years.[11][12]

Papanui's location in the north western area of the city saved it from the worst of the liquefaction that was suffered by the eastern and southern areas. The Papanui Building (the first photo on this page) at 1 Main North Road was severely damaged by the first two main earthquakes and demolition commenced on 23 February 2011, the day after the second earthquake. All of the churches in the area were damaged to some extent. The St Paul's Vicarage was particularly badly damaged and has been demolished. St Paul's Anglican Church is still under repair with the scaffolding now being removed from the bell tower. A source close to the parish says it will reopen in September 2013. St Giles Presbyterian Church was also un-repairable and has been demolished. Only the parish centre now remains there. The status of St Joseph's Catholic Church and the Papanui North Methodist Church repair or demolition has still not been resolved. The Sanitarium factory was also significantly damaged and although production was halted for a while it is online with repairs being made. Many of the older shops in the Papanui Village were substantially damaged and demolished. It is pleasing to see the new buildings replacing the old broken ones.

Sanitarium Factory and gardens (2008)

For much of the 20th century, Papanui was a light industrial area. In 1900, Edward Halsey, a baker trained at Sanitarium in Michigan in the United States, emigrated to New Zealand and began making health foods in a wooden shed in Papanui, including Granola, New Zealand's first breakfast cereal. Halsey's business was successful, and the Sanitarium Health Food factory was built on the side of Halseys shed in 1919. It is still in operation today; however it was rebuilt in 1966 after being destroyed in a fire. Over recent decades Sanitarium's Harewood Road factory has been awarded many honours for its prize winning gardens.[14]

The building of the Firestone (now Bridgestone) tyre factory, in Langdons Road, was commenced on land, some of which was a 5-acre orchard purchased from the Cone family, in 1945. Firestone produced New Zealand's first pneumatic tyre in 1948. This factory remained the only tyre manufacturer in the South Island.[15]
On 23 October 2009, it was announced that Bridgestone's Australia and New Zealand manufacturing operations were to close. The announcement affected 275 jobs in Christchurch.[16] In November 2010 the Company has returned 3.2 acres of the former orchard land alongside the railway line to the city to be used as a public wetlands.[17]

The delicatessen meat company, Verkerks, built a factory on Vagues Road in 1961, and has been stocking the small goods shelves ever since.[18]

Though both of these factories are still in operation today but not so for the Ovaltine factory on the Main North Road and the Birdseye Frozen Foods factory which used to be sited next to the railway line in Harewood Road.

The original Papanui shopping village is located at the Papanui Junction.

Northlands Shopping Centre opened in Papanui in 1967. It covers 32,201 m², with 103 shops and 1,251 carparks.[19] The mall's anchor tenants are The Warehouse, Pak'nSave, Countdown and Farmers.[20]

The area is home to one of the oldest parishes on the Canterbury plains. Established in 1853, St Paul's Anglican Church on Harewood Road was enlarged twice before being rebuilt using Kauri timber in 1877 to the design of the notable architect Benjamin Mountfort. In 1880 a peal of five bells was presented to the church by Mr J T Matson. This was the first ring of bells suitable for change ringing to be installed in New Zealand and is the only ringable set in the country of eight bells housed in a wooden tower. St Paul's has the additional distinction of being the only parish church in New Zealand with bells for change ringing – the other rings are in cathedrals. The original ring of five bells was ordered in 1878. Some time later, ringing was suspended because the tower was no longer strong enough but a new one was constructed in 1912 and it was again strengthened in 1981 by an internal steel frame. The set is a light weight ring for change ringing with the tenor at 317 kg which protects the tower. A sixth bell was added in 1970 and two more in 1983.

The second oldest church in the area is the Papanui Methodist Church which was established in 1859. The second church was built in 1870 and the third and present church was opened in 1913 on the corner of Harewood Road and Chapel Street.[21]

This was followed By St Giles Presbyterian Church which was first built in 1877 on the Main North Road three doors past the current Catholic church. In 1895 the church was further enlarged but this eventually proved to be insufficient and in 1924 a new church was built on the corner of Papanui Road and Frank Street.[22]

St Joseph's Catholic Church conducted services in the St Josesph's School Chapel, designed by Mr Jacobson and built on Vagues Road, from 1878 until the current church was built on the corner of the Main North Road and Vagues Road in March 1922. The Parish was formally established in 1924 with Fr Hanrahan as the first incumbent priest.[23]

The Papanui Baptist Church was established in 1958 and is located on Sawyers Road opposite to Morrison Avenue.[24]

The Papanui Seventh-day Adventist Church is located on Grants Road adjoining the Christchurch Adventist School.[25]

There are numerous reserves and parks within the suburban boundaries, the two most notable of these are as follow:

The Papanui Domain sited on Sawyers Arms Road where the Papanui Bush was clear felled in the 1850s. It is predominantly used for rugby league and softball, with the rugby league clubrooms adjoining on the southern boundary. In the early days it was also used for cycle racing.

St James Park, most likely named after its road frontage, is predominantly used for croquet, cricket and soccer. It is probably one of the most beautiful parks in the city with tree lined walkways and gardens. The park in the heart of Papanui is probably the best location to see over-wintering monarch butterflies. On a warm sunny late autumn or early winter's day head to the children's play ground and look into the largely leafless old trees. There you will see monarchs clustering together often holding on to the remaining leaves for support. It ís a great spot for a picnic beneath the trees with monarchs fluttering in the air above.[26]

In the 1920s the residents wanted a fitting memorial to the fallen soldiers of World War I. Duly the Memorial Hall and Library (pictured above) was built and opened in the heart of Papanui 1923. This building served as the Town Hall, library and picture theatre for over 50 years, until it was demolished in the late 1970s with the land reverting to a reserve. In 1997 the Returned Services Association prevailed upon the Council to redevelop the site as a war memorial reserve and to include the names of the fallen soldiers from World War II.