Resources for Researchers


Useful Websites

As well as exploring the Christchurch Anglican Diocesan Archives, researchers of matters Anglican will find the following websites useful:

Diocese of Waiapu – to be confirmed

Diocese of Waikato – Some material (eg Baptism, Marriage and Burial Records are held at the John Kinder Theological Library) contact judith.bright@kinderlibrary.ac.nz in the first instance

Hocken Library for the Dunedin Diocesan Archives for the Otago area – Invercargill City Libraries and Archives https://ilibrary.co.nz for the Diocese of Dunedin Southland area

Diocese of Christchurch Baptism Registers

The following Registers have been transcribed and are now available online through Putake. 

Two groups of volunteers continue this work, so please check back from time to time for updates.

Putake can be accessed by a subscription at https://putake.recollect.co.nz/

Addington                                       1865-1893

Akaroa                                             1851-1876

Amberley/Leithfield                      1864-1869

Ashburton                                       1873-1879

Avonside                                         1856-1880

Burnham                                         1865-1887

Christchurch Cathedral              1881-1944

Christchurch-St Michael             1851-1857

Christchurch-St John                  1866-1874

Flaxton                                             1867-1931

Geraldine/Temuka                       1863-1875

Governor’s Bay                              1852-1895

Hokitika                                            1866-1872

Kaiapoi                                            1854-1876

Leeston                                            1873-1895

Lyttelton                                           1851-1858

Oxford/Cust                                    1865-1880

Papanui                                           1850-1866

Ross                                                  1867-1878

Sheffield                                           1874-1895

Southbridge                                    1865-1878

Springston                                       1875-1888

Timaru                                              1860-1867

Waimate                                          1871-1878

Woodend                                        1858-1883

Diocese of Christchurch Confirmation Registers

Bishop Harper’s Register            1856-1890

Diocese                                           1901-1908

Lyttelton                                          1855-1871

Country Baptism Book

This is the name for a Baptism Register that covers a number of individuals and locations:

H J C Christchurch [Bishop Harper] 1857-1883 and 1889

  • Includes Canterbury, and Otago and Southland

Henry William Harper 1858-1864

  • When Harper was based at the Malvern Hills Station

H Stratford, Layreader

  • Clyde/Dunstan 1865

Croasdaile Bowen, William Wellington Willock, Robert Simeon Jackson, James West Stack, Edward Artherton Lingard, Francis Knowles

  • Various locations 1865-1883

Digitised Church Newspapers

The following newspapers contain information about the Anglican Diocese of Christchurch can be found at The John Kinder Theological Library Heritage Resources:

Pumotomoto
The Church Quarterly Paper 1861 – 1866
The Church Magazine 1876-1877
The New Zealand Church News 1870-1910

Church News 1911 – 1946
Church and People  1946-1976 (national)
Anglican Action 1980-2009 
Anglican Taonga 1999-2018 (national)

Proceedings of General Synod 1850-2010
Diocesan Year Books – various years, more will be added over time

School Archives

The following schools have archives:

  • Christ’s College
  • Craighead Diocesan School
  • Cathedral Grammar School, held at the Christchurch Anglican Diocesan Archives, access must be agreed to by the school.
  • St Michael’s Church Day School, some records are held at the Christchurch Anglican Diocesan Archives, access to some material must be agreed by the school.
  • Victory Memorial School, some material is held by the Christchurch Anglican Diocesan Archives.

Digitised Parish Registers

Church Registers from throughout New Zealand are gradually being added to Putake which can be found on the John Kinder Theological Library website: https://kinderlibrary.recollect.co.nz

This is a subscription-based website, and once subscripted there is access to digitised Registers with transcriptions and, transcriptions alone and indexes. The Anglican Diocese of Christchurch has contributed twelve Baptism Registers to date with another fourteen in various stages of preparation.

Known Churches in the Diocese of Christchurch from 1856

Ever wondered if there was a list of different churches with the same name in our Diocese? You can now download one here.