The Press first appeared on the 25th of May 1861 from a small cottage owned by Rev. John Raven. That land sat on the west side of Montreal Street between Worcester and Gloucester Streets opposite what is now the Christchurch Art Gallery.
James FitzGerald created The Press after disagreeing with the Lyttelton Times editor Crosbie Ward about a proposed rail tunnel. John Watts-Russell provided £500 for the venture while Rev. John Raven organized practical details like securing a printer and printing press.
The main office suffered severe damage during the 2011 Christchurch earthquake which forced production to shift to a printing plant near Christchurch Airport until June 2012. That central building became one of the first in the Christchurch CBD to be rebuilt and operational again.
The Press decided to subsidize two small Leyland diesel railbuses that began service on the 3rd of August 1936 leaving Christchurch at 2:20 am. These vehicles traveled down the Midland Line reaching Greymouth by 6:40 am before continuing along the Ross Branch to Hokitika arriving just before 8:00 am.
Current ownership rests with media business Stuff Ltd which manages multiple regional titles today after Fairfax New Zealand purchased INL in 2003. The company sold to Independent Newspapers Ltd in 1987 before merging with Nine Entertainment Co in December 2018.