Historic Canterbury / John Wilson.

Includes bibliographical references (p. 158) and index.

Another addition to this sumptuous historical series, Historic Canterbury is a beautifully produced book showcasing the history of the region through over 140 superb historic photographs, many not published before. Informative extended captions give a lively sense of richness and diversity of this region's past. Includes a short epilogue to cover the devastating September 2010 and February 2011 earthquakes which dramatically changed the region forever. 'Photography was in its infancy when Canterbury was founded and the photographs in this book take the story of Canterbury from its European beginnings into the mid 1970s. The last quarter of the twentieth century saw more dramatic changes in Canterbury than had been seen in the century's first 75 years. By 1975, Canterbury had already changed enormously since the first Canterbury Association settlers looked out over their new home from the top of the Bridle Path in December 1850, but the changes between 1975 and the new millennium were more dramatic and fast-paced than any in the Province's previous 125 years. The photographs in this book document the development of the province from its earliest years when a handful of hardy settlers founded Lyttelton, Christchurch and Canterbury's other towns, until the province found itself on the verge of the new world that emerged in the late twentieth century.'