Church of the Good Shepherd, Christchurch

Church of the Good Shepherd
Church of the Good Shepherd in March 2011
43°32′13″S 172°39′18″E / 43.5370°S 172.6551°E / -43.5370; 172.6551Coordinates: 43°32′13″S 172°39′18″E / 43.5370°S 172.6551°E / -43.5370; 172.6551
Location	Phillipstown, Christchurch
Country	New Zealand
Denomination	Anglican
History
Consecrated	31 May 1885
Architecture
Heritage designation	Category I
Designated	2 April 1985
Architect(s)	Benjamin Mountfort
Architectural type	Gothic Revival style
Completed	1885

The Church of the Good Shepherd in Phillipstown, Christchurch, New Zealand is the oldest and only surviving brick church designed by architect Benjamin Mountfort (1825–1898). It is registered as a "Historic Place – Category I" by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

History

The Church of the Good Shepherd in Phillipstown, Christchurch, after the 22 February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

The vicar of Phillipstown, Rev Hannibal James Congdon Gilbert, teamed up with an accountant (James Bowlker) and a storeman (Lewis Aylwin Carrell) to purchase the land for the church for £380 in September 1881. They onsold the Church Property Trustees for a nominal ten shillings in March 1883.^[1] The church, constructed in 1885, was designed in the Gothic Revival style with red brick with contrasting bands of stone, reflecting contemporary English architectural style^[2] A similarly detailed but larger church, St Johns Cathedral, was designed by Mountfort and built in Napier between 1886 and 1888.^[1] This was destroyed by the 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake and thus left the Church of the Good Shepherd as Mounfort's only surviving brick church.^[1]

During an earthquake in September 2010, the church suffered slight damage to its gables.^[3] Later that month, the church suffered significant damage to its interior due to vandalism.^[3] Major structural damage was caused the following February during the February 2011 Christchurch earthquake.

Heritage listing

On 2 April 1985, the church was registered by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust as a Category I historic place, with the registration number being 1855. It is significant as Mountfort's only surviving brick church.^[2]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Church of the Good Shepherd". The architectural heritage of Christchurch (Christchurch City Council Town Planning Division). http://christchurchcitylibraries.com/Heritage/Publications/ChristchurchCityCouncil/ArchitecturalHeritage/ChurchoftheGoodShepherd/ChurchoftheGoodShepherd.pdf. Retrieved 13 March 2011. 
2. ^ ^{a b} "Church of the Good Shepherd (Anglican)". The Register. New Zealand Historic Places Trust. http://www.historic.org.nz/TheRegister/RegisterSearch/RegisterResults.aspx?RID=1855. Retrieved 13 March 2011. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Gates, Charlie (22 September 2010). "Church hit by vandals". The Press. http://www.stuff.co.nz/the-press/news/4152901/Church-hit-by-vandals. Retrieved 13 March 2011.