College (now known as the University of Canterbury) was established in New Zealand. It was here Bickerton taught Ernest Rutherford where the two became lifelong friends and Bickerton became a mentor to Rutherford. Bickerton was offered the position of Chair of Chemistry and after acceptance he arrived with his wife and four children in Christchurch, New Zealand in June 1874. His new job was made harder without any lecture rooms, and few students due to science not being taught at secondary schools at the time. To increase interest he held night classes for adults, and basic chemistry classes for school children. Like London his reputation grew and he became known as a brilliant teacher. In 1878 he formed his Partial Impact theory that he would try and prove for the rest of his life. The theory explains the appearance of bright new stars appearing in the sky due to two dark bodies colliding in space and forming a temporary bright third star as they move past each other. Locally it was thought to be a major astronomic breakthrough, though it failed to gain international support. Bickerton himself believed that the idea would eventually get acceptance from the scientific community, and pursued the theory throughout his life. Towards the end of the 19th century he was blamed for digressing into his own theory too often in class, and this was used as a reason by the Board of Governors to try to remove him from his position. Bickerton was often at odds with the Board due to his different teaching style, socialist views, and disrespect towards the church. In 1894 the Board launched an enquiry into how his department was run, but thanks to influential friends Bickerton kept his job. Unfortunately for him in 1902 the Board of Governors finally removed him from his job, Bickerton's social, political and religious views proved too different from those of the Board. In September 1877, Bickerton stood for election to Christchurch City Council and was successful. Together with four other councillors, he resigned a year later in protest over the election of former mayor and convicted fraudster William Wilson. Wainoni home In 1884, Bickerton and his family moved into a new home near New Brighton, Christchurch that he named Wainoni. It became a centre for the social life of students at the Canterbury College. The property included a small theatre, a vast garden, and