The following lists events that happened during 1942 in New Zealand.

Population

* Estimated population as of 31 December: 1,636,400 * Increase since 31 December 1941: 5200 (0.32%) * Males per 100 females: 94.2

Incumbents

Regal and viceregal

Head of State A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

–

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

* Governor-General – Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Cyril Newall GCB OM

GCMG The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honour ...

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

Government

The life of the 26th New Zealand Parliament was extended for a further year (to 1942) due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, with the Labour Party in government. *

Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hungerf ...

–

Bill Barnard William Edward Barnard (29 January 1886 – 12 March 1958) was a New Zealand lawyer, politician and parliamentary speaker. He was a member of Parliament from 1928 until 1943, and was its Speaker from 1936 till 1943. He was known for his associ ...

( Democratic Labour Party) *

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

–

Peter Fraser Peter Fraser (; 28 August 1884 – 12 December 1950) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 24th prime minister of New Zealand from 27 March 1940 until 13 December 1949. Considered a major figure in the history of the New Zealand La ...

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

–

Walter Nash Sir Walter Nash (12 February 1882 – 4 June 1968) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 27th prime minister of New Zealand in the Second Labour Government from 1957 to 1960. He is noted for his long period of political service, havin ...

Minister of Foreign Affairs A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...

–

Frank Langstone Frank Langstone (10 December 1881 – 15 June 1969) was a New Zealand Member of Parliament, Cabinet Minister and High Commissioner to Canada. Biography Early life Langstone was born in Bulls probably on 10 December 1881. He was the fourth o ...

then

Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

–

Rex Mason Henry Greathead Rex Mason (3 June 1885 – 2 April 1975) was a New Zealand politician. He served as Attorney General, Minister of Justice, Minister of Education, and Minister of Native Affairs, and had a significant influence on the directio ...

* Chief Justice — Sir Michael Myers

Parliamentary opposition

* Leader of the Opposition – Sidney Holland ( National Party).

Main centre leaders

Mayor of Auckland The Mayor of Auckland is the directly elected head of the Auckland Council, the local government authority for the Auckland Region in New Zealand, which it controls as a unitary authority. The position exists since October 2010 after the amal ...

–

John Allum Sir John Andrew Charles Allum (27 January 1889 – 16 September 1972) was a New Zealand businessman and engineer, and was Mayor of Auckland City from 1941 to 1953. Biography Early life and career Allum was born in London and educated at Goldsm ...

* Mayor of Hamilton –

Harold Caro Harold David Caro (1 September 1887 – 10 June 1964) was the 23rd mayor of Hamilton, New Zealand and a Hamilton businessman. He was awarded the OBE in 1950. Biography He was born in Christchurch to Mrs Lewis Caro the eighth of ten children. H ...

Mayor of Wellington The Mayor of Wellington is the head of the municipal government of the City of Wellington. The mayor presides over the Wellington City Council. The mayor is directly elected using the Single Transferable Vote method of proportional representat ...

– Thomas Hislop *

Mayor of Christchurch The Mayor of Christchurch is the head of the municipal government of Christchurch, New Zealand, and presides over the Christchurch City Council. The mayor is directly elected using a First Past the Post electoral system. The current mayor, Ph ...

–

Ernest Andrews Sir Ernest Herbert Andrews (25 June 1873 – 9 November 1961) was a New Zealand teacher, printer and cricketer and local-body politician. He was on the Christchurch City Council from 1919 and Mayor of Christchurch from 1941 until his retirement ...

Mayor of Dunedin The Mayor of Dunedin is the head of the local government, the city council of Dunedin, New Zealand. The Mayor's role is "to provide leadership to the other elected members of the territorial authority, be a leader in the community and perform c ...

– Andrew Allen

Events

January–March

* 8 March – Japanese

Warrant Officer Warrant officer (WO) is a rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ranks, the mos ...

Nobuo Fujita (1911 – 30 September 1997) was a Japanese naval aviator and warrant flying officer of the Imperial Japanese Navy who flew a floatplane from the long-range submarine aircraft carrier and conducted the Lookout Air Raids in southern Oreg ...

of the Imperial Japanese Navy conducts aerial reconnaissance of Wellington. His Yokosuka E14y reconnaissance plane had been catapulted into the air from the Japanese submarine which stored the plane in a sealed foredeck hangar. After a successful daylight tour the submarine and plane headed north to make an inspection of Auckland on 13 March.

April–June

* 27 April –

Rationing Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular ...

on sugar and women's stockings is introduced. The allowance per person is of sugar per week, and one pair of women's stockings every three months. * 24 May – briefly operated off northern New Zealand in May 1942. ''I-21''s floatplane flown by Lt Ito Isuma conducted a reconnaissance flight over Thames and then Auckland on 24 May. * 29 May – Rationing on clothing, footwear and linen is introduced, with an allowance of 52 coupons per year. * 1 June – Tea rationing is introduced, with an allowance of per person per week. *12 June First US Troop arrived 1942 at

Waitematā Harbour Waitematā Harbour is the main access by sea to Auckland, New Zealand. For this reason it is often referred to as Auckland Harbour, despite the fact that it is one of two harbours adjoining the city. The harbour forms the northern and easter ...

in Auckland. * 24 June – A severe earthquake, the 1942 Wairarapa earthquake struck the lower North Island, followed by a severe aftershock on 2 August. Considerable damage resulted in Masterton, other parts of the Wairarapa, Palmerston North and Wellington.

July–September

October–December

* 9 December – 37 of the 39 female patients in Ward 5 at

Seacliff Lunatic Asylum Seacliff Lunatic Asylum (often Seacliff Asylum, later Seacliff Mental Hospital) was a psychiatric hospital in Seacliff, New Zealand. When built in the late 19th century, it was the largest building in the country, noted for its scale and extrava ...

(psychiatric hospital) are killed in a night-time fire – the country's worst fire disaster at that time. * 13 December –

Abel Tasman Abel Janszoon Tasman (; 160310 October 1659) was a Dutch seafarer, explorer, and merchant, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first known European explorer to reach New ...

's first sighting of New Zealand 300 years earlier is commemorated in

Hokitika Hokitika is a town in the West Coast region of New Zealand's South Island, south of Greymouth, and close to the mouth of the Hokitika River. It is the seat and largest town in the Westland District. The town's estimated population is as of ...

(initially this was planned for

Ōkārito Ōkārito is a small coastal settlement on the West Coast of New Zealand's South Island, southwest of Hokitika, and from . It is built at the southern end of the Ōkārito Lagoon at the mouth of the Ōkārito River. The settlement of The Fo ...

but this was changed after it was cut off by flooding) by a Dutch delegation led by Charles van der Plas and hosted by the New Zealand government

Date unknown

* Japanese submarines operate in New Zealand waters in 1942 and 1943. They send reconnaissance aircraft over Auckland and Wellington, but do not carry out any attacks.

Arts and literature

See 1942 in art,

1942 in literature This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1942. Events *January 1 – The U.K. Book Production War Economy Agreement comes into force. * February 20 – Jean Bruller's novella '' Le Silence de la mer'' ( ...

, :1942 books

Music

See:

1942 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1942. Specific locations * 1942 in British music * 1942 in Norwegian music Specific genres * 1942 in country music * 1942 in jazz Events *February 10 – Glenn Miller r ...

Radio

See:

Public broadcasting in New Zealand Public broadcasting in New Zealand is funded through New Zealand Government body New Zealand On Air, and consists of a number of television channels, radio stations, and websites. In addition to funding solely public media outlets, New Zealand On ...

Film

See: :1942 film awards,

1942 in film The year of 1942 in film involved some significant events, in particular the release of a film consistently rated as one of the greatest of all time, ''Casablanca''. Top-grossing films (U.S.) The top ten 1942 released films by box office gross ...

, List of New Zealand feature films,

Cinema of New Zealand Cinema may refer to: Film * Cinematography, the art of motion-picture photography * Film or movie, a series of still images that create the illusion of a moving image ** Film industry, the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking ...

, :1942 films

Sport

Most sports events were on hold due to the war.

Horse racing

Harness racing

New Zealand Trotting Cup The New Zealand Cup for standardbred horses, also known as either the New Zealand Trotting Cup or the New Zealand Pacing Cup is a Group One (G1) harness race held annually by the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club at Addington Raceway in Chri ...

: Haughty *

Auckland Trotting Cup The Auckland Pacing Cup which is sometimes referred to as the Auckland Trotting Cup or merely the Auckland Cup is a race held at Alexandra Park in Auckland, New Zealand for Standardbred horses. It is one of the two major harness races, along with ...

: Loyal Friend

Rugby

:Rugby union in New Zealand, All Blacks *

Ranfurly Shield The Ranfurly Shield, colloquially known as the Log o' Wood, is a trophy in New Zealand's domestic rugby union competition. First played for in 1904, the Shield is based on a challenge system. The holding union must defend the shield in challeng ...

Rugby league

New Zealand national rugby league team The New Zealand national rugby league team ( Māori: Tīma rīki motu Aotearoa) has represented New Zealand in rugby league since 1907. Administered by the New Zealand Rugby League, they are commonly known as the Kiwis, after the native bird of ...

Soccer

Chatham Cup The Chatham Cup is New Zealand's premier Single-elimination tournament, knockout tournament in men's association football. It is held annually, with the final contested in September. The current champions of the Chatham Cup are 2022 winners Auck ...

competition not held * Provincial league champions: ** Auckland: Mount Albert Grammar School Old Boys ** Canterbury:

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

** Hawke's Bay: Napier HSOB ** Nelson: No competition ** Otago: Army ** South Canterbury: No competition ** Southland: No competition ** Waikato: No competition ** Wanganui: No competition ** Wellington: Hospital

Births

* 5 January: Trish McKelvey, cricketer. * 12 January: Doug Graham, politician * 23 January: Phil Clarke (rugby union), rugby union player * 23 February:

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American politician and civil rights activist who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

, headmaster * 16 March: Gordon Whiting, Judge * 24 March:

Kerry Burke Sir Thomas Kerry Burke (born 24 March 1942) is a former New Zealand politician and Speaker of the New Zealand House of Representatives. He was a Member of Parliament for the Labour Party from 1972 to 1975 and again from 1978 to 1990, and late ...

, politician. * 21 April:

Geoffrey Palmer Geoffrey Palmer may refer to: Politicians * Sir Geoffrey Palmer, 1st Baronet (1598–1670), English lawyer and politician *Sir Geoffrey Palmer, 3rd Baronet (1655–1732), English politician, Member of Parliament (MP) for Leicestershire *Geoffrey Pa ...

, 33rd Prime Minister of New Zealand * 19 June:

Merata Mita Merata Mita (19 June 1942 – 31 May 2010) was a New Zealand filmmaker, producer, and writer, and a key figure in the growth of the Māori screen industry. Early life Mita was born on 19 June 1942 in Maketu in New Zealand's Bay of Plenty. Sh ...

, filmmaker * 18 July: Mike Ward, politician * 4 August:

David Lange David Russell Lange ( ; 4 August 1942 – 13 August 2005) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 32nd prime minister of New Zealand from 1984 to 1989. Lange was born and brought up in Otahuhu, the son of a medical doctor. He became ...

, 32nd Prime Minister of New Zealand * 25 September:

Peter Petherick Peter James Petherick (25 September 1942 – 7 June 2015) was a New Zealand cricketer who represented New Zealand in six Test cricket matches between October 1976 and March 1977 as an off-spinner. He is one of two New Zealand bowlers to achieve ...

, cricketer * 25 November:

Barbara Bevege Barbara Lynette Bevege (25 November 1942 – 29 April 1999) was a New Zealand cricketer who played as a right-handed batter and right-arm medium bowler. She appeared in five Test matches and 16 One Day Internationals for New Zealand between ...

, cricketer ** Susan Wakefield, Tax expert *

Judith Potter Dame Judith Marjorie Potter (born 23 August 1942) is a former High Court judge in New Zealand. Early life Potter was born in the Auckland suburb of Mount Albert on 23 August 1942, the daughter of Winifred Marjorie Potter (née Hall) and Phili ...

, high court judge. * Roger Walker. architect. :1942 births

Deaths

* 28 July: James Allen, politician and diplomat. * 15 July: Denis 'Sonny' Moloney, cricketer. * 17 July

Robina Nicol Robina Nicol (née Sinclair, 7 June 1861 – 17 July 1942) was a New Zealand photographer and suffragist. Life Nicol née Sinclair was born on 7 June 1861 in Shetland, Scotland. Her family emigrated to New Zealand in 1874. In 1885 she married ...

, photographer and suffragist * 27 August:

Francis Mander Francis Mander (1849 – 27 August 1942) was a member of parliament in New Zealand, first as an Independent Conservative and then, from 1909, as a Reform Party member. He won the Marsden electorate in Northland in the 1902 general e ...

, politician * 12 October:

Douglas Lysnar William Douglas Lysnar (30 April 1867 – 12 October 1942), known as Douglas Lysnar, was a New Zealand politician of the Reform Party (New Zealand), Reform Party. Early life He was born in Onehunga, Auckland, New Zealand on 30 April 1867. He ...

, politician. * 8 November:

Tim Armstrong Timothy Ross Armstrong (born November 25, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and producer. Known for his distinctive voice, he is the singer/guitarist for the punk rock band Rancid and hip hop/punk rock supergroup Transplants. ...

, politician. :1942 deaths

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1942 in New Zealand Years of the 20th century in New Zealand