The Auckland Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876.

Area

The province covered roughly half of the

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

of New Zealand. It was the largest of the six initial provinces, both by area and population. The southern boundary was mostly along the 39th latitude, which was an arbitrary line, as the country's interior was little known by Europeans. It was not subdivided during its existence; the

Taranaki Province ''For the current top-level subdivision of Taranaki in New Zealand, see Taranaki region'' The Taranaki Province was a province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Initially known as New Plymouth Province, ...

(originally named New Plymouth Province) was the only other that remained unchanged during its existence.

History

The six original provinces were established in 1853. At that time, about 30,000 Europeans were living in New Zealand, a third of them in the Auckland Province. An estimated 70% of the

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the C ...

population was within the Auckland Province. Although the population of

Otago Province The Otago Province was a province of New Zealand until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. The capital of the province was Dunedin. Southland Province split from Otago in 1861, but became part of the province again in 1870. Area an ...

(triggered by the

Central Otago Gold Rush The Otago Gold Rush (often called the Central Otago Gold Rush) was a gold rush that occurred during the 1860s in Central Otago, New Zealand. This was the country's biggest gold strike, and led to a rapid influx of foreign miners to the area – ...

) and then also the

Canterbury Province The Canterbury Province was a Provinces of New Zealand, province of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. Its capital was Christchurch. History Canterbury was founded in December 1850 by the Canterbury Assoc ...

surpassed Auckland's, the northernmost area of the country became most populous again by 1901. The provincial system was abolished in 1876. Auckland Province was from then used as an administrative district by the

Department of Lands and Survey The Department of Lands and Survey was a former government department in New Zealand that managed the administration of Crown land and its survey and mapping requirements. History Establishment The department was established in 1876 with the appo ...

, but the area was later subdivided into the North Auckland, South Auckland, and Gisborne land districts. The 39th latitude was subsequently replaced by boundaries that took landforms into account, and as a consequence, parts of the former Auckland Province are now in the

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 ...

and

Hawke's Bay Hawke's Bay ( mi, Te Matau-a-Māui) is a local government region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region's name derives from Hawke Bay, which was named by Captain James Cook in honour of Admiral Edward Hawke. The region is ...

land districts, and part of the former

Wellington Province Wellington Province, governed by the Wellington Provincial Council, was one of the provinces of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. It covered much of the southern half of the North Island until November 18 ...

is in the South Auckland Land District.

Anniversary Day

New Zealand law provides a public holiday for each province's anniversary day.

Auckland Anniversary Day Auckland Anniversary Day is a public holiday observed in the northern half of the North Island of New Zealand, being the area's provincial anniversary day. It is observed throughout the historic Auckland Province, even though the provinces of New ...

generally occurs in late January, on the Monday closest to 29 January, and is still observed throughout the historic province.

Auckland Provincial Council

Auckland Provincial Council was the elected body of Auckland Province. From its second session onwards, the council used the

General Assembly House The General Assembly House, colloquially called "Shedifice" by the members of Parliament, was the first building to house the New Zealand Parliament in Auckland. It was in use by Parliament from 1854 until 1864 during the time that Auckland was t ...

for its meetings. It shared the use of this building with the

New Zealand Parliament The New Zealand Parliament ( mi, Pāremata Aotearoa) is the unicameral legislature of New Zealand, consisting of the King of New Zealand ( King-in-Parliament) and the New Zealand House of Representatives. The King is usually represented by h ...

from 1854 until 1864 during the time that Auckland was the

capital of New Zealand Wellington has been the capital of New Zealand since 1865. New Zealand's first capital city was Old Russell (Okiato) in 1840–41. Auckland was the second capital from 1841 until 1865, when Parliament was permanently moved to Wellington after an ...

. From 1858, the province owned the building, but continued to make it available to parliament.

Superintendents

The Auckland Province had nine Superintendents:

Speakers

The Provincial Council had three Speakers:

Members

In 1853 the province had 6 electorates, with 24 members: *

City of Auckland Auckland City was a territorial authority with city status covering the central isthmus of the urban area of Auckland, New Zealand. It was governed by the Auckland City Council from 1989 to 2010, and as a territory within the wider Auckland R ...

, 6 members *

Suburbs of Auckland This is a list of suburbs in the Auckland metropolitan area, New Zealand, surrounding the Auckland Central Business District. They are broadly grouped into the local government areas that existed from 1989 to 2010. Auckland central This ar ...

, 4 members * Pensioner Settlements, 4 members * Northern Division, 4 members * Southern Division, 4 members *

Bay of Islands The Bay of Islands is an area on the east coast of the Far North District of the North Island of New Zealand. It is one of the most popular fishing, sailing and tourist destinations in the country, and has been renowned internationally for its ...

, 2 members For its last session of 1873–76, it had 43 members: * Albertland: John Shepherd *

Auckland East Auckland East was a New Zealand electorate, situated in the east of Auckland. It existed between 1861 and 1887, and again between 1905 and 1946. History The Auckland East electorate was established for the 1860–1861 election, when the City ...

William John Hurst William is a male given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norm ...

Joseph Dargaville Joseph McMullen Dargaville (1837 – 27 October 1896) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament from Auckland, New Zealand. Early life Joseph McMullen Dargaville was born in Cork, Ireland, the son of Anderson Dargaville, a physician, and his wif ...

, Philip Aaron Philips *

Auckland West The former New Zealand parliamentary electorate on the western inner city of Auckland, was known as City of Auckland West from 1861 to 1890, and then Auckland West from 1905 to 1946. Population centres From 1861 to 1884 the electorate compris ...

: James Thomas Boylan, Patrick Dignan, David Goldie,

Frederick Prime Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederi ...

, William Swanson *

Hugh Carleton Hugh Francis Carleton (3 July 1810 – 14 July 1890) was New Zealand's first member of parliament. Early life Carleton was born in 1810. He was the son of Francis Carleton (1780–1870) and Charlotte Margaretta Molyneux-Montgomerie (d. 1874). ...

Coromandel Coromandel may refer to: Places India *Coromandel Coast, India **Presidency of Coromandel and Bengal Settlements ** Dutch Coromandel *Coromandel, KGF, Karnataka, India New Zealand *Coromandel, New Zealand, a town on the Coromandel Peninsula *Coro ...

Alfred Cadman Sir Alfred Jerome Cadman (17 June 1847 – 23 March 1905) was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party. He was the Minister of Railways from 1895 to 1899 in the Liberal Government. Early life Cadman was born in Sydney, Australia, in 1847 ...

* Eden: Andrew Beveridge,

William Buckland William Buckland Doctor of Divinity, DD, Royal Society, FRS (12 March 1784 – 14 August 1856) was an English theologian who became Dean of Westminster. He was also a geologist and paleontology, palaeontologist. Buckland wrote the first full ...

* Hokianga: John Sheehan * Kaipara: Henry Lloyd * Mangonui: William Thomas Ball *

Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film * Newton ( ...

: Rev. Thomas Cheeseman, Thomas Macready *

Onehunga Onehunga is a suburb of Auckland in New Zealand and the location of the Port of Onehunga, the city's small port on the Manukau Harbour. It is south of the Auckland CBD, city centre, close to the volcano, volcanic cone of Maungakiekie / One Tree ...

: John Lundon,

Maurice O'Rorke Sir George Maurice O’Rorke (2 May 1830 – 25 August 1916) was a New Zealand politician, representing (as George O’Rorke) the Auckland seat of Onehunga, and later Manukau, and was Speaker of the House of Representatives. He was a committed ...

* Opotiki: William Kelly * Otamatea: Murdoch McLeod *

Pakuranga Pakuranga is an eastern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. Pakuranga covers a series of low ridges and previously swampy flats, now drained, that lie between the Pakuranga Creek and Tamaki River, two estuarial arms of the Hauraki Gul ...

: Ponsonby John Raleigh Peacocke *

Papakura Papakura is a southern suburb of Auckland, in northern New Zealand. It is located on the shores of the Pahurehure Inlet, approximately 32 kilometres south of the Auckland CBD. It is under the authority of the Auckland Council. Papakura is a M� ...

: William Hay * Parnell:

Benjamin Tonks Benjamin Tonks (1832 – 27 June 1884) was a 19th-century mayor and Member of Parliament in Auckland, New Zealand. Tonks was elected to the Parnell electorate of the Auckland Provincial Council in 1871. He represented Parnell in the 6th and ...

Reader Wood Reader Gillson Wood (1821 – 20 August 1895) was a 19th-century New Zealand politician. An architect by trade, he designed the 1854 General Assembly House built as New Zealand's first meeting house for the House of Representatives. Early life ...

* Raglan: Thomas Wilson * Ramarama: Joseph Crispe * Takapuna:

George McCullagh Reed George McCullagh Reed (1831 – 13 November 1898) was a New Zealand presbyterian minister, journalist and newspaper proprietor. Reed was born in County Monaghan, Ireland in about 1831. He received his education from Queen's College, Belfast, ...

* Tamaki: Robert Nair Ryburn *

Tauranga Tauranga () is a coastal city in the Bay of Plenty region and the fifth most populous city of New Zealand, with an urban population of , or roughly 3% of the national population. It was settled by Māori late in the 13th century, colonised by ...

: George Morris *

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

Lemuel Bagnall Lemuel John Bagnall (1844 – 30 April 1917), was a New Zealand businessman and politician who was Mayor of Auckland City from 1910 to 1911. Biography Early life and career Bagnall was born in New Glasgow, Prince Edward Island, Canada. Along w ...

, John Brown, William Carpenter,

William Turnbull Swan William Turnbull Swan (27 August 1827 – 15 March 1875) was a 19th-century politician in Auckland, New Zealand. Swan was born in Serampore, West Bengal, India in 1827. At the time, the area was part of Danish India. His elder brother Thomas ...

, William Davies * Turanganui: James Woodbine Johnson *

Waikato Waikato () is a Regions of New Zealand, local government region of the upper North Island of New Zealand. It covers the Waikato District, Waipa District, Matamata-Piako District, South Waikato District and Hamilton, New Zealand, Hamilton City ...

: William Australia Graham *

Waipa Waipa may refer to: New Zealand * Waipa (New Zealand electorate), a former electorate * Waipa District, a territorial local authority * Waipā River, a waterway Elsewhere * World Association of Investment Promotion Agencies The World Associatio ...

: Henry Byron, Hungerford Roche * Wairoa and Mangapai: William Ormiston * Waitemata:

Allan Kerr Taylor Allan Kerr Taylor (30 December 1832 – 14 April 1890) was a notable New Zealand landowner and businessman. He was born in Negapatam, India in 1832. His second wife was Sophia Taylor (née Davis). His father was General William Taylor. Personal ...

* Waiuku:

Ebenezer Hamlin Ebenezer Hamlin (1844 – 4 June 1900) was a member of parliament in New Zealand, and an independent conservative. Early life and family Hamlin was born in Orua on the Manukau Harbour to the Rev James Hamlin, a missionary who had arrived in Ne ...

* Warkworth: William Pollock Moat * Whangarei: Robert Douglas

Legislation

Auckland Provincial Ordinances 1854–1875
* Public Buildings Act 1875

Footnotes

Notes

References

* *

External links

Map of the old provincial boundariesResults of 1861 election
an
Superintendent electionResults of 1862 Superintendent election
{{Authority control Provinces of New Zealand States and territories established in 1853 1876 disestablishments in New Zealand History of the Auckland Region 1853 establishments in New Zealand Former subdivisions of the Auckland Region