The following lists events that happened during 1954 in New Zealand.

Population

* Estimated population as of 31 December: 2,118,400. * Increase since 31 December 1953: 43,700 (2.11%). * Males per 100 females: 101.2.

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 ...

–

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

, Queen of New Zealand, from 6 February 1952 *

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

– Lieutenant-General The Lord Norrie GCMG

GCVO The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

CB DSO MC, from 1952 to 1957

Government

The

30th New Zealand Parliament The 30th New Zealand Parliament was a term of the New Zealand Parliament. It was elected at the 1951 New Zealand general election, 1951 general election on 1 September of that year. 1951 general election The 1951 general election was held on S ...

expired this year. The National Party was elected to a third term in office under

Sidney Holland Sir Sidney George Holland (18 October 1893 – 5 August 1961) was a New Zealand politician who served as the 25th prime minister of New Zealand from 13 December 1949 to 20 September 1957. He was instrumental in the creation and consolidation o ...

on 13 November. *

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 ...

–

Matthew Oram Sir Matthew Henry Oram (2 June 1885 – 22 January 1969) was a New Zealand politician of the National Party. He was the 13th Speaker of the House of Representatives, from 1950 to 1957. Early life Oram was born in 1885 at Christchurch. His mo ...

from 1950 to 1957 *

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 is not ...

–

from 13 December 1949 to 20 September 1957. *

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

–

Keith Holyoake Sir Keith Jacka Holyoake, (; 11 February 1904 – 8 December 1983) was the 26th prime minister of New Zealand, serving for a brief period in 1957 and then from 1960 to 1972, and also the 13th governor-general of New Zealand, serving from 1977 ...

from 13 December 1949 to 20 September 1957. *

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", " ...

–

until November, followed by

Jack Watts Jack Watts may refer to: * Jack Watts (baseball) (active 1913–1921), American baseball catcher * Jack Watts (politician) (born 1909), New Zealand politician *Jack Watts (footballer) (born 1991), Australian rules footballer See also *John Watts (d ...

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 cou ...

–

Clifton Webb Webb Parmelee Hollenbeck (November 19, 1889 – October 13, 1966), known professionally as Clifton Webb, was an American actor, singer, and dancer. He worked extensively and was known for his stage appearances in the plays of Noël Coward, in ...

from 19 September 1951 to 26 November 1954, followed by Tom Macdonald * Chief Justice — Sir Harold Barrowclough

Parliamentary opposition

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

–

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 ...

(

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

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 amalga ...

–

John Luxford John Hector Luxford (28 May 1890 – 8 April 1971) was a New Zealand lawyer and Mayor of Auckland City from 1953 to 1956. Biography Born in Palmerston North, Luxford qualified as a solicitor in 1913 and then during the First World War joined t ...

from 1953 to 1956 * Mayor of Hamilton –

Roderick Braithwaite Roderick Alastair Macdonnell Braithwaite MBE, (13 August 1901 – 3 April 1963) was a New Zealand politician. He was mayor of Hamilton from 1953 to 1959. Early life and family Braithwaite was born in Dunedin on 13 August 1901, one of the younge ...

from 1953 to 1959 * Mayor of Wellington –

Robert Macalister Sir Robert Lachlan Macalister (2 December 1890 – 23 May 1967) was the Mayor of Wellington from 1950 to 1956, and had been the acting mayor for five months in 1948 during the absence overseas of Will Appleton. Biography Early life and career Ma ...

from 1950 to 1956 *

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, Phil ...

– Robert M. Macfarlane from 1938 to 1941 and again from 1950 to 1958 *

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 ...

– Leonard Morton Wright from 1950 to 1959

Events

* 12 January: 50,000 people mass in Wellington as

attends the state opening of Parliament. * 30 January: The Royal tour by Queen Elizabeth II and The Duke of Edinburgh concludes at Bluff as they depart on the SS Gothic *23 June – Teenagers

Pauline Parker Pauline may refer to: Religion *An adjective referring to St Paul the Apostle or a follower of his doctrines *An adjective referring to St Paul of Thebes, also called St Paul the First Hermit *An adjective referring to the Paulines, various relig ...

and Juliet Hulme are arrested for the

murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...

of Parker's mother. *20 September – the

Mazengarb Report The Mazengarb Report of 1954, formally titled the ''Report of the Special Committee on Moral Delinquency in Children and Adolescents'', resulted from a ministerial inquiry (the Special Committee on Moral Delinquency in Children and Adolescents). T ...

on Moral Delinquency in Children and Adolescents is presented to Parliament. *8 November – eighteen-year-old golf amateur Bob Charles causes a sensation by beating a top international field to win the New Zealand Golf Open *13 November – the National Party wins re-election at a

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

Hastings Hastings () is a large seaside town and borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east to the county town of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to the north-west ...

becomes the first town in New Zealand to fluoridate its water supply.

Arts and literature

See

1954 in art Events from the year 1954 in art. Events *November 18 – Publication of ''Yves Peintures'' (in Madrid), the first public showing of Yves Klein's work. * December – Pablo Picasso begins painting his ''Les Femmes d'Alger'' ("The Women of Algier ...

1954 in literature This article contains information about the literary events and publications of 1954. Events *January – Kingsley Amis's first novel, the comic campus novel ''Lucky Jim'', is published by Victor Gollancz Ltd in London. *January 7 – The Geo ...

Music

See:

1954 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1954. Specific locations *1954 in British music * 1954 in Norwegian music Specific genres * 1954 in country music * 1954 in jazz Events *January 14 – First documented us ...

Radio

*2 January – First radio episode of '' It's in the Bag'', hosted by Selwyn Toogood 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

The Seekers The Seekers were an Australian folk-influenced pop quartet, originally formed in Melbourne in 1962. They were the first Australian pop music group to achieve major chart and sales success in the United Kingdom and the United States. They were ...

See: :1954 film awards,

1954 in film The year 1954 in film involved some significant events and memorable ones. Top-grossing films United States The top ten 1954 released films by box office gross in the United States are as follows: International Events * A reproduction of " ...

List of New Zealand feature films This is a list of feature films and pre 1910 short films produced or filmed in New Zealand, ordered by year of release. Key * * = Funded in part by the New Zealand Film Commission. * † = Year given is date of principal photography rather th ...

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 * ...

, :1954 films

Sport

Athletics

* 20 February:

Yvette Williams Dame Yvette Winifred Corlett (née Williams; 25 April 1929 – 13 April 2019) was a New Zealand track-and-field athlete who was the first woman from her country to win an Olympic gold medal and to hold the world record in the women's long jum ...

breaks the world

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...

record by jumping at Gisborne. * Edwin Rye wins his first national title in the men's marathon, clocking 2:35:45 on 6 March in

Hamilton, New Zealand Hamilton ( mi, Kirikiriroa) is an inland city in the North Island of New Zealand. Located on the banks of the Waikato River, it is the seat and most populous city of the Waikato region. With a territorial population of , it is the country's fou ...

British Empire and Commonwealth Games

Chess

* The 61st National Chess Championship is held in Wellington, and is won by

Ortvin Sarapu Ortvin Sarapu (born Ortvin Sarapuu; 22 January 1924 – 13 April 1999), known in New Zealand as "Mr Chess", was an Estonian-born chess player who emigrated to New Zealand and won or shared the New Zealand Chess Championship 20 times from 1 ...

of Auckland (his third successive title).

Horse racing

Harness racing

* New Zealand Trotting Cup – Johnny Globe *

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 ...

–

Caduceus The caduceus (☤; ; la, cādūceus, from grc-gre, κηρύκειον "herald's wand, or staff") is the staff carried by Hermes in Greek mythology and consequently by Hermes Trismegistus in Greco-Egyptian mythology. The same staff was also ...

Lawn bowls

The national outdoor lawn bowls championships are held in Christchurch. * Men's singles champion – Robin Andrew (Onehunga Bowling Club) * Men's pair champions – N.A. McNabb, C.L. Spearman (skip) (Christchurch RSA Bowling Club) * Men's fours champions – J. Rothwell, H.L. Rule, W. O'Neill,

Pete Skoglund Thomas Theodorus "Pete" Skoglund (25 July 1905 – 2 October 1968) was a New Zealand lawn bowls player. At the 1950 British Empire Games in Auckland he won the men's fours bronze medal alongside teammates Arthur Engebretsen, Noel Jolly and Fr ...

(skip) (Otahuhu Bowling Club)

Rugby union

* The All Blacks played four Test Matches on a tour of Europe: ** 9 January, Lansdowne Road, Dublin: New Zealand 14 – 3 Ireland ** 30 January, Twickenham, London: New Zealand 5 – 0 England ** 13 February, Murrayfield, Edinburgh New Zealand 3 – 0 Scotland ** 27 February, Stade Colombes, Paris: New Zealand 0 – 3 France

Soccer

* The national men's team undertook a 10-match tour of Australia, which included 3 internationals. They played one warm-up match prior to the tour. ** 31 July, Wellington: NZ 6 – 0 Wellington ** 3 August, Adelaide: NZ 3 – 2 South Australia ** 7 August, Adelaide: NZ 3 – 1 Australian XI ** 11 August, Melbourne: NZ 1 – 2 Victoria ** 14 August, Melbourne: NZ 2 – 1 Australia ** 18 August, Granville: NZ 0 – 3 Granville ** 21 August, Sydney: NZ 4 – 1 New South Wales Benge (2), Charlton, Olley ** 25 August, Brisbane: NZ 2 – 2 Queensland Smith, Steele ** 28 August, Brisbane: NZ 1 – 4 Australia' ** 29 August, Newcastle: NZ 1 – 1 Northern Districts Smith ** 4 September, Sydney: NZ 1 – 4 Australia ** 5 September, Bulli: NZ 4 – 4 South Coast * The Chatham Cup is won by Onehunga who beat Western of Christchurch 1–0 in the final. * Provincial league champions: ** Auckland:

North Shore United North Shore United Association Football Club is an amateur football club based in the North Shore, Auckland. They compete in the Northern League, where they last won the competition in 2019. Their home ground is Allen Hill Stadium, which is lo ...

** Bay of Plenty: Mangakino Utd ** Buller: Millerton Thistle ** Canterbury: Western ** Hawke's Bay: Hastings Wanderers ** Manawatu: Palmerston North United ** Nelson: Settlers ** Northland: Otangarei United ** Otago:

Northern Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ra ...

** Poverty Bay:

Eastern Union Gisborne City AFC was an association football club in Gisborne, New Zealand. Founded in 1939 as Eastern Union, the club changed its name to Gisborne City after winning the Central Districts League at the first attempt in 1967. As Eastern Union, ...

** South Canterbury: Northern Hearts ** Southland: Brigadiers ** Taranaki: Old Boys ** Waikato: Huntly Thistle ** Wanganui: New Settlers ** Wellington:

Stop Out Stop Out Sports Club, commonly known as Stop Out, is an association football club in Lower Hutt, New Zealand is based at Hutt Park, Moera in Lower Hutt. History The Stop Out organisation started in 1919 with the aim of providing recreation to T ...

Births

* 17 February: Brian Houston, New Zealand-born Australian pastor. * 17 March: Peter Dunne, politician * 30 April:

Jane Campion Dame Elizabeth Jane Campion (born 30 April 1954) is a New Zealand filmmaker. She is best known for writing and directing the critically acclaimed films ''The Piano'' (1993) and '' The Power of the Dog'' (2021), for which she has received a tot ...

, film director. * 11 May: Murray Haszard, technology entrepreneur. * 20 May:

Julie Brougham Julie Claire Brougham (née D'Ath; 20 May 1954 – 9 December 2021) was a New Zealand equestrian, competing in dressage. She became New Zealand's oldest Olympic competitor when she competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro at age 6 ...

, Olympic equestrian (died 2021) * 15 June: Larry Ross, motorcycle speedway rider. * 17 June: Trevor Mallard, politician * 5 July: John Wright, cricket player and coach * 24 October:

Tu Wyllie Tutekawa "Tu" Wyllie (born 24 October 1954) is a former New Zealand politician and rugby union player. A first five-eighth, Wyllie represented Wellington at a provincial level, and played one match for the New Zealand national side, the All Blac ...

, politician * 18 November: Evan Gray, cricketer * 24 December: Graham Sligo, field hockey player :1954 births

Deaths

* 7 May:

Cyril Brownlie Cyril James Brownlie (6 August 1895 – 7 May 1954) was a New Zealand rugby union player. He was educated at Sacred Heart College, Auckland, unlike his brothers, Maurice and Laurie, who attended St Patrick's College, Wellington. The brothers ...

, rugby union player. * 26 May:

Frederick Doidge Sir Frederick Widdowson Doidge (26 February 1884 – 26 May 1954) was a journalist in New Zealand and England, then a National Party member in the New Zealand House of Representatives. Biography Early life and career Doidge was born in Co ...

, former cabinet minister and New Zealand High Commissioner (London) * 1 June: Charles E. Major, politician. * 5 June:

Alexander Stuart Alexander Stuart may refer to: *Alexander Stuart (scientist) (1673–1742), scientist, winner of the Copley Medal *Alexander Hugh Holmes Stuart (1807–1891), United States Secretary of the Interior between 1850 and 1853 *Alexander Stuart (Australi ...

, politician * 1 August:

Arthur Stallworthy Arthur John Stallworthy (18 April 1877 – 1 August 1954) was a New Zealand politician of the United Party, and a Cabinet minister. Biography Early life and career Stallworthy was born in 1877 in Auckland, New Zealand. He was the eldest son o ...

, politician. * 7 December: George William Smith, athlete, rugby union and league player. *

John Buckland Wright John Buckland Wright (1897–1954) was a British printmaker, painter and draughtsman. He worked principally as an etcher and engraver, and was self-taught. Biography Buckland Wright was born on 3 December 1897 in Dunedin, New Zealand. He moved ...

, engraver.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:1954 in New Zealand Years of the 20th century in New Zealand