154 Worcester Street, Christchurch Central City, Christchurch, Christchurch City

Christchurch Club

Sitting pretty on Latimer Square and high on the heritage list for quintessentially Canterbury reasons, is the rural gentlemen's answer to the nearby merchant-friendly Canterbury Club.
This club dates to the 1850s, with the buildings going up in 1860, it was a town base for the wealthy run-holders of the Canterbury Plains. It is said that the club was based upon the same foundations as London's Victorian era clubs, a place for gentlemen to meet, talk, gamble and drink away from their families.

The gents of the club chose the architect of the day, Benjamin Mountfort to build their Italian villa style premises from timber, many of his other buildings were Gothic and of stone, though the Gothic does shine through in various features. Heritage New Zealand describes the club as the 'informal seat of power in Canterbury in the 19th Century', and this can easily be imagined with the knowledge that the richest and most influential men belonged here and many were involved in politics.

The Christchurch Club states that the earthquakes of 2011 provided them an opportunity to rebuild in a modern and luxurious fashion and they certainly have achieved at that. An archaeological dig associated with the rebuild found fascinating facts mainly contradicting the folklore associated with the club and it's famous high life and fare, as artifacts uncovered were all rather ordinary.

If you can get a hold of a copy, a book by Gordon Ogilvie called "The Shagroons Palace, A History of the Christchurch Club" must be a good read.

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