Local History
Explore local history - the people and places of Ōtautahi.
The Christchurch Documentary Project
Photographers show ever-changing Christchurch: the central city, Bishopdale, the seaside suburbs, Halswell, and Woolston!
Featured event
Ordinary treasures, Extraordinary exhibition
Behind the scenes of a very special exhibition of taonga on loan by Alexander Turnbull Library in Wellington.
Local history events
Featured topics
Christchurch Street and Place Names
Explore this resource that explains the origins of Christchurch street and place names.
Chch 100 years ago
100 years ago in Christchurch & Canterbury. Follow @100chch on Twitter.
Māori place names
Resources to help find Māori place names in Christchurch and New Zealand.
Christchurch Photo Hunt 2019 - The Winners
Photo Hunt 2019 was an outstanding success with a record number of entries — 543 entries.
Popular resources
Local history resources
Local history resources
An annotated bibliography of published sources on the history of Christchurch, Lyttelton and Banks Peninsula.
Discovery Wall
Discovery Wall: Royal visits
A photo gallery of royal visits to Christchurch on our Discovery Wall website.
Digital maps
Digital maps
This is a collection of digital images of historical maps. The maps focus mostly on Christchurch and Canterbury.
Picturing Canterbury
Queuing at Lancaster Park for Canterbury-Lions tickets
Three teenagers sitting outside Lancaster Park queuing to get the best tickets for the rugby match,1971. An image from the Discovery Wall.
Cooking steak: Picturing Canterbury
Municipal Electricity Department workers cooking steak in St Albans in 1964. An image from the Discovery Wall.
Camping at Hanmer River: Picturing Canterbury
Family camping at Hanmer River, Christmas/New Year 1958. An image from the Discovery Wall.
Discovery Wall
Tūranga is the home of NZ’s largest digital touchwall. Find out more, and how you can contribute to this unique heritage resource.
Tī Kōuka Whenua
Explore the vibrant past of Christchurch and the wider Canterbury region that extends back many hundreds of years before 1850.
