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Story: Memorials and monuments

Godley statue: unveiling, 1867

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Godley statue: unveiling, 1867

Thomas Woolner's statue of John Robert Godley, the founder of the Canterbury settlement, was unveiled on 6 August 1867 before a crowd of 2,000. It was the first memorial statue in New Zealand. The memorial was originally sited in the middle of Cathedral Square in Christchurch.

Using this item

Canterbury Museum

Reference: 1944.78.319

by Alfred Charles Barker

Permission of Canterbury Museum, Rolleston Avenue, Christchurch, New Zealand must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Jock Phillips, Memorials and monuments – 19th-century memorials, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/32514/godley-statue-unveiling-1867 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Jock Phillips, published 14 March 2012, updated 26 March 2015.