The 1948 New Year Honours in New Zealand were appointments by King

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 Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952. ...

on the advice of the New Zealand government to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by New Zealanders, and to celebrate the passing of 1947 and the beginning of 1948. They were announced on 1 January 1948. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour.

Knight Bachelor

* The Honourable David Stanley Smith – judge of the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

, and chancellor of the

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

Order of Saint Michael and Saint George

Companion (CMG)

* The Right Reverend

Frederick Augustus Bennett Frederick Augustus Bennett (15 November 1871 – 16 September 1950) was a New Zealand Anglican Suffragan Bishop who served as the first Bishop of Aotearoa from 1928 to 1950. Early life Frederick Augustus Bennett was born on 15 November 1871 ...

– of Kohupatiki; Bishop of Aotearoa. For services to the

Māori people The Māori (, ) are the indigenous Polynesian people of mainland New Zealand (). Māori originated with settlers from East Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages between roughly 1320 and 1350. Over several ce ...

. * Dr Guy Hardy Scholefield – of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

; parliamentary librarian and Dominion archivist. File:Dr Guy Scholefield, 1929.jpg, Guy Scholefield

Order of the British Empire

Knight Commander (KBE)

;Civil division * Joseph Bernard Dawson – professor of midwifery and gynaecology,

University of Otago , image_name = University of Otago Registry Building2.jpg , image_size = , caption = University clock tower , motto = la, Sapere aude , mottoeng = Dare to be wise , established = 1869; 152 years ago , type = Public research collegiate u ...

Commander (CBE)

;Civil division * Robert Caughley – of Wellington; formerly general manager of the Alliance Assurance Company in New Zealand. For public services. * Walter Allison Gilmour – of

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

; pathologist, Auckland Public Hospital. * John Henderson – of Wellington; formerly director,

New Zealand Geological Survey GNS Science ( mi, Te Pū Ao), officially registered as the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited, is a New Zealand Crown Research Institute. It focuses on geology, geophysics (including seismology and volcanology), and nuclear sc ...

. ;Military division * Group Captain Cyril Eyton Kay –

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

Officer (OBE)

;Civil division * John Barr – of Auckland; chief librarian and director, Public Library, Art Gallery and Old Colonists' Museum, Auckland. * John Alexander Crawford – of

Cairo Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...

. For services to the New Zealand Forces in Egypt, 1939–1945. * Kanapu Haerehuka – of

Wanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whangan ...

. For social welfare services. * Aileen Annie Joyce – of Auckland; matron, St Helen's Hospital, Auckland. * Thomas Rowley Lees – of

Palmerston North Palmerston North (; mi, Te Papa-i-Oea, known colloquially as Palmy) is a city in the North Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Manawatū-Whanganui region. Located in the eastern Manawatu Plains, the city is near the north bank of the ...

; a member of the National Rehabilitation Council and chairman of the Palmerston North Rehabilitation Committee. * Mary Letitia Lindsay – of Timaru; matron, Timaru Public Hospital. * James Murphy – of

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

; Dominion vice-president of the Disabled Servicemen's League and president of its

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

branch. *

Henry Valder Henry Valder (14 August 1862 – 12 February 1950) was a New Zealand storekeeper, sawmiller and business reformer. Early life Valder was born in Southampton, Hampshire, England, in 1862, the son of Mary Collingridge and George Valder, a corn ...

– of

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

. For services in promoting industrial relations. * Wilfred Stanley Wallis – of

Rotorua Rotorua () is a city in the Bay of Plenty region of New Zealand's North Island. The city lies on the southern shores of Lake Rotorua, from which it takes its name. It is the seat of the Rotorua Lakes District, a territorial authority encompass ...

. For services to returned ex-servicemen. * John Wilson – of

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

; a member of the

Dunedin City Council The Dunedin City Council ( mi, Kaunihera ā-Rohe o Ōtepoti) is the local government authority for Dunedin in New Zealand. It is a territorial authority elected to represent the people of Dunedin. Since October 2022, the Mayor of Dunedin is Jules ...

for many years. ;Military division * Colonel (temporary) Charles Ritchie Burns –

2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

. * Lieutenant-Colonel (temporary) John Patrick Joyce –

Royal New Zealand Artillery The Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery is the artillery regiment of the New Zealand Army. It is effectively a military administrative corps, and can comprise multiple component regiments. This nomenclature stems from its heritage as an off ...

. * Squadron Leader Noel Alfred Vear – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Member (MBE)

;Civil division * Ada Emily Beer – of Gisborne. For patriotic services. * John Bryce Berry – of

Kaikohe Kaikohe is the seat of the Far North District of New Zealand, situated on State Highway 12 about 260 km from Auckland. It is the largest inland town and highest community above sea level in the Northland Region. With a population of over ...

. For social welfare services in Northland. * Pansy Helen Auld Chapman – of Auckland; charge nurse, Auckland Plunket Rooms. * William Alfred Henry Corfield – of Auckland; constructive manager, His Majesty's New Zealand Dockyard, Auckland. * Dorothy Louisa Derig – of Auckland. For patriotic and social welfare services. * John William Fenton – of Kaitangata; formerly mayor of Kaitangata. * Elsie Louisa Muriel Julius – of

Greymouth Greymouth () (Māori: ''Māwhera'') is the largest town in the West Coast region in the South Island of New Zealand, and the seat of the Grey District Council. The population of the whole Grey District is , which accounts for % of the West Coas ...

; sister in charge, maternity annex, Greymouth. * Kenneth McKenzie – of Geraldine; formerly chairman, Geraldine County Council. * The Reverend Leslie Bourneman Neale – of Dunedin; formerly president of the

Methodist Church of New Zealand The Methodist Church of New Zealand ( mi, Te Hāhi Weteriana o Aotearoa) is a Methodist denomination headquartered in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is a member of the World Methodist Council. History The Methodist movement was started by John W ...

, superintendent of the Dunedin Central Mission. * James Baxter O'Neill – secretary, New Zealand Swimming Association. * Mirika Wehipeihana – of

Ōpunake Ōpunake is a small town on the southwest coast of Taranaki in New Zealand's North Island. It is located 45 kilometres southwest of New Plymouth. Rahotu is 16 km to the northwest. Manaia is 29 km to the southeast. State Highway ...

; district health nurse. * William Trickey Woods – of Christchurch. For services to ex-servicemen. ;Military division * Acting Telegraphist Lieutenant William Lewis Brewer –

Royal New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; mi, Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, , Sea Warriors of New Zealand) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act ...

. * Lieutenant-Colonel (temporary) John William Barry – New Zealand Regiment. * Major and Quartermaster Thomas Joseph Cronin – New Zealand Regular Force. * Major Adam James Moore – New Zealand Regiment. * Captain John Henry Leedham Trenwith – New Zealand Temporary Staff. * Flying Officer Richard Langsford Brewer – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Warrant Officer Albert Ernest Chapman – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

British Empire Medal (BEM)

;Military division * Electrical Artificer, Fourth Class, Alfred Ernest Crooks – Royal New Zealand Navy. * Ernest Robert Jackson – canteen tenant, Royal New Zealand Navy. * Private (temporary Warrant Officer Class I) Donald Hughes Cross – New Zealand Regiment. * Private (temporary Warrant Officer Class I) David Charles McGill – New Zealand Temporary Staff. * Private (temporary Staff-Sergeant) Victor James Keane – New Zealand Temporary Staff. * Flight Sergeant James Robert John Begg – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Sergeant Tom Lewis Dimmock – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Sergeant William Henry James – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Sergeant Basil Frederick White – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

Air Force Cross (AFC)

* Squadron Leader Cyril Henry Baigent – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Warrant Officer Douglas Owen Holloway – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Lieutenant Alexander McLeod Morgan Thomas – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Lieutenant Mervyn Windsor Wrennall – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

King's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air

* Flying Officer John Duncan Garrett – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Warrant Officer Frederick Hazel – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flying Officer Joseph Cassidy Naera – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Lieutenant James Patrick O'Donnell – Royal New Zealand Air Force. * Flight Sergeant Leslie Gordon Woods – Royal New Zealand Air Force.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:New Year Honours 1948 New Year Honours 1948 awards 1948 in New Zealand New Zealand awards