The Victoria Clock Tower, also known as the Diamond Jubilee Clock Tower, is a heritage-registered clock tower

Clock tower

A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...

 located in Christchurch

Christchurch

Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...

, New Zealand. Designed by Benjamin Mountfort

Benjamin Mountfort

Benjamin Woolfield Mountfort was an English emigrant to New Zealand, where he became one of that country's most prominent 19th century architects. He was instrumental in shaping the city of Christchurch's unique architectural identity and culture, and was appointed the first official Provincial...

, it is registered as a "Historic Place – Category I" by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust

New Zealand Historic Places Trust

The New Zealand Historic Places Trust is a non-profit trust that advocates for the protection of ancestral sites and heritage buildings in New Zealand...

.

Canterbury Provincial Council Buildings

Mountfort designed the clock tower in ca 1858, to be placed on top of the first (wooden) section of the Canterbury Provincial Council Buildings

Canterbury Provincial Council Buildings

The Canterbury Provincial Council Buildings were the buildings of the Canterbury Provincial Council that administered the Canterbury Province from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. The buildings are the only purpose-built provincial government buildings in New Zealand still...

. The iron tower and clock was constructed in Coventry

Coventry

Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...

 and arrived in December 1860 in 147 boxes, but it was determined that the building structure would be unable to support the tower's weight. The clock was then placed in the stone tower of the Provincial Council Buildings in Armagh Street, and whilst its face

Clock face

A clock face is the part of an analog clock that displays the time through the use of a fixed numbered dial or dials and moving hands. In its most basic form, recognized universally throughout the world, the dial is numbered 1–12 indicating the hours in a 12-hour cycle, and a short hour hand...

 could not be seen, the chime

Chime (bell instrument)

A carillon-like instrument with fewer than 23 bells is called a chime.American chimes usually have one to one and a half diatonic octaves. Many chimes play an automated piece of music. Prior to 1900, chime bells typically lacked dynamic variation and the inner tuning required to permit the use of...

 could be heard for a distance of 2 miles. The clock was not in good repair, impacted by the sea journey, and it remained in the tower for a short time only. The iron tower, meanwhile, stood for several years in the courtyard of the Provincial Council Buildings.

With the abolition of Provincial Government in New Zealand in 1876, the clock tower became the property of the Crown, but it was transferred to Christchurch City Council

Christchurch City Council

The Christchurch City Council is the local government authority for Christchurch in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Christchurch. Since 2007, the Mayor of Christchurch is Bob Parker, who stood as an independent candidate...

.

High / Manchester intersection

After being stored for 30 years in a council yard in Worcester Street, it was decided that the tower would be used as part of a monument to Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee. A competition for a stone tower was held and won by the local architecture firm of Strouts and Ballantyne. The clock was returned to the United Kingdom for renovation, and the addition of chimes. In 1897 it was erected on a stone base at the intersection of Manchester Street, Lichfield Streets and High Streets and remained there until 1930 when it was removed due to it being deemed a traffic hazard and impediment. The Hamilton Borough Council

Hamilton, New Zealand

Hamilton is the centre of New Zealand's fourth largest urban area, and Hamilton City is the country's fourth largest territorial authority. Hamilton is in the Waikato Region of the North Island, approximately south of Auckland...

unsuccessfully tried to buy the clock tower at this point.

Montreal / Victoria intersection

It was relocated that year to its current location on a reserve at the intersection of Victoria and Montreal Streets and the clock was replaced.

Restoration work was carried out in 1930 as part of the relocation. Further restoration was carried out as a community project, financed by local businesses, in 1978. More substantial renovation was carried out in 2003–2004, including earthquake strengthening. The middle section of the tower was braced with steel, and rods were inserted into the stonework. The renovation budget was NZ$295,000.

Heritage listing

On 2 April 1985, the clock tower was registered as a Category I heritage item, with the registration number being 3670. The tower is significant, as it is a landmark in Christchurch, and it was part of Mountfort's original design for the Provincial Council Buildings. The tower is further a remarkable example of High Victorian ironwork, and its use as a monument to Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee are an indication of the colonial ties between New Zealand and Britain.

Earthquake Damage

The Clock tower was seriously damaged in the February 22nd 2011 Christchurch Earthquake, with the time (12:51pm) stopped on the clock's face.