Northern suburb of Christchurch between Merivale and Bishopdale. From 1850 the sawmilling village of Papanui developed beside a rare patch of native forest, which was quickly cut out for timber and firewood. Papanui then became a residential and commercial village. Tramlines arrived in 1880 and there was a Papanui railway station on the main north line. Since the 1950s suburbs have sprung up beyond Papanui and Northcote, which were once on the city limits.
