How the records were compiled
Early Settlers
Includes Census substitutes,
Wellington Burgess rolls (1842-1843) and Jury rolls
Burial/Cremation Records
Spanning over 150 years
World War 1
Nominal rolls, Reserves, Defaulters and others
Electoral Rolls
5 significant electoral rolls from 1881, 1893, 1896, 1911 and 1925
Marriage Records
From 1841–1956
Smaller Speciality Indexes
Miscellaneous collections
New Zealand Early Settlers Locator
This index comes from several sources:
- The Brett's Historical series
- Census substitutes
- Jury rolls
- Wairau Petition
The Brett's Historical series
"Brett's Historical Series: Early History of New Zealand, From Earliest Times to 1840" by R. A. A. Sherrin. From 1840 to 1845,' by J. H. Wallace. MDCCCXC.
This is one of the sources for Early Settler information and has some abbreviations which may be of help as you search:
* Denotes the settlers brought land from Maori
J.P. after a name denotes the early appointed Justices of the Peace
W. M. stands for Wesleyan Missionary
C. M. C. stands for Church Missionary Catechist
The right to vote
In 1852, the British Parliament passed the New Zealand Constitution Act, establishing a General Assembly (Parliament). This comprised a Legislative Council appointed by the Crown, and a House of Representatives, which was to be elected every five years. The six provinces also had an elected Provincial Council.
New Zealand's first parliamentary elections were held in 1853. Not everyone had the right to vote in these early elections, but over the next half century New Zealand became one of the most democratic nations in the world.
Burgess Rolls
The 1842-1843 Wellington Burgess Rolls are held in Wellington City Archives.
They were published by Arthur H. Carman in "The Birth of a City: Wellington, 1840-43" (1970), with some details added from the newspapers. The rolls include the names of those who had paid a pound (20 shillings) for the privilege of being included on the roll, their address and occupation. The 1842 roll is longer, and Carman has added both the ship they arrived on and the year.
Census substitutes
New Zealand has not kept census records, making the electoral and jury rolls so important to researchers. However, we have included the very early census taken in the Hokianga by Busby in 1838 and Clendon in 1846, and a police census for Auckland in 1842-1846. These are a small footprint of early settlers which complements the census records of New Plymouth settlers taken in Dec 1852.
Jury rolls
Jury duty began in New Zealand on 23 December 1841. The jury rolls include all individuals who were qualified and liable to serve as jurors – every male British subject between the ages of 21 and 60 who resided in New Zealand. Any man convicted of treason, a felony or perjury was (unless he had received a free pardon) prohibited from serving on any jury.
Exempted from Jury Service were:
- members of the legislative Council
- anyone holding office by appointment of His Excellency the Governor
- Judges of any court
- ministerial officers
- coroners
- gaolers
- constables
- officers in Her Majesty's army or navy full pay
- clergymen priests and ministers of religion
- barristers and solicitors actually practising
- physicians and surgeons and apothecaries in actual practice
- all licensed pilots and masters of vessels employed in the service of the government.
Wairau Petition
The Wairau incident occurred on 17 June 1843. It refers to a clash between the New Zealand Company settlers and the local Maori Ngati Toa people regarding the settlement of the Wairau Valley.
This report is compiled from records in local newspapers (The Nelson Examiner, and The New Zealand Chronicle of 15 June 1844) The papers recorded information from over 500 Nelson citizens.
Burial Records
Burial Locator
The Burial Locator is not a complete transcription of full details of a burial, but rather points the researcher to a source/sources that may contain more detail.
More than one entry may appear for any one name as the records are collected from many sources and may include different information, abbreviations, presentation and style.
In all cases you should return to the source listed to find the original record.
The records span some 150 years for some cemeteries. There may be differences in spelling of family surnames. We have retained the spelling of the original record.
Abbreviations include:
N/R - Not recorded
B/R - Burial Record
M/I - Monumental Inscription
D/R - Death Registration
C/R - Cremation Record
D/N - Death Notice
I/M - In Memoriam Notice
P/K - Personal Knowledge
C - Cremation
S - Ashes Scattered.
More details can be found in the NZSG cemetery records fiche or handbook where a list of holdings identifies a particular transcription.
Burials Hillsborough
These records were created by Peter Nash. They include articles found, obituaries, parents of stillborn babies, nun's religious names, etc.
Sources include photocopies held by the Auckland Public Libraries, and headstone inscriptions from the NZSG (up to 2010).
Cremations and burials Purewa Cemetery
These records include comprehensive details for each individual. Further information may be available from their website.
www.purewa.co.nz
WW1 Service Records
These records cover personnel including Nominal Rolls, Reserves, Defaulters and others.
Nominal Rolls
These are the four volumes of the embarkation rolls of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force 1914-1919 produced by the Government Printer, Wellington. They cover Service Personnel both men and women. Further information on any particular entry can be obtained from the New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives, held at Archives New Zealand.
First Division Roll of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force Reserve
The New Zealand Government created this list in September 1916. It includes men, natural-born British Subjects, not less than 20 and under 46 years of age, who are unmarried, or who married since 1st May 1915 and have no child under 16 by a previous marriage, or who are widowers with no children under 16, or who are divorced or judicially separated from their wives and have no children under 16 years of age.
Native Reserve Lists
These lists are from the New Zealand Gazette 1918.
Military Defaulters List
This index was created from lists published in the New Zealand Gazette of 1919 to 1921.
Second Division Roll of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force Reserve
The New Zealand Government created this list from August to October 1917. The classification is based on the number of children of a reservist:
• Class A - Reservists who have no children or who failed to provide adequate maintenance for their children
• Class B - Reservists who have one child
• Class C - Reservists who have two children
• Class D - Reservists who have three children
• Class E - Reservists who have four children
• Class F - Reservists who have more than four children
New Zealanders who served with the Australian Imperial Force
The New Zealand Government Printer produced these nominal rolls in 1915 and 1916.
Guthrie Index
In 1996 Faye Guthrie of Victoria, Australia, compiled an index of New Zealanders who served with British and other forces from various lists held at National Archives, Wellington. Later more information has come to hand and the names and regiments have been updated where possible. Therefore the records will show the category as based on the Guthrie Index. The original index is available on microfiche.
Smith Index
This index was created by Lt Col Neil C Smith, of "Mostly Unsung Military History Research and Publications" Melbourne, from records held at archives of the Australian War Memorial and the Australian Department of Defence Army Office, of New Zealanders who served with the Australian Forces. There are similar entries to the New Zealand lists but also many additional entries.
Halpin Index
In 2002 John Halpin, of Auckland, spent some time at the Public Record Office in Kew, England, and has created an index of those New Zealanders who served with the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve.
British Section NZEF
The names of the soldiers in the "British Section NZEF" are from an undated list held by New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives. The names are "as far as can be ascertained" those who enlisted in England and embarked for Egypt on 12 December 1914. Information about each person is from
New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives.
Fijian Contingent
Christine Liava'a compiled the names of these soldiers who left Fiji on 5 August 1918 per
Talune for the Narrow Neck Camp, Devonport,
Auckland. Information about each person is from New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives.
Roll Of Honour Section 3
These names are from Section 3 of the
Roll of Honour, The Great War 19141918, published by W A G Skinner, Government Printer, 1924. It contains the names of those who "died from accident occurring, or disease contracted, while training with or attached to the New Zealand Expeditionary Forces in New Zealand". Information about each person is from New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives.
Stock Index
These names have been compiled by Terry Stock and are from various sources including New Zealand archives and others researching military history. Information about each person is from New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives.
Clement Index
These names have been compiled by Christine Clement from numerous sources including the archives of New Zealand, Australia and the UK,
as well as newspapers, books and many on-line sites. It is of those born in New Zealand, or with New Zealand connection or next-of-kin, who served in forces other than New Zealand.
John Wilson Index
These names have been compiled by John Wilson from the New Zealand Defence Force Personnel Archives held at Archives New Zealand. Those listed appear not to have embarked from New Zealand, did not see active service as they arrived after war had ended, or were members of the Permanent Staff.
New Zealanders who Died in the UK WW1
Index of New Zealanders who were buried in the United Kingdom during the WW1 conflict or shortly after, created by Graham Grist from many sources. About 820 records.
Further information on any entry may be obtained from the New Zealand Defence Force Archives, held at Archives New Zealand (Archway site).
Electoral Rolls
These records cover five significant New Zealand elections – 1881, 1893, 1896, 1911, and 1925. They are a rich source of New Zealanders at the time.
1881
In 1879, all men in New Zealand (except aliens and those in prison) were granted the right to vote for Members of the Provincial Councils and the House of Representatives. They needed to have resided in the Colony for one year and in the electorate for six months prior to the election.
"The New Zealand Electoral Atlas" by Alan McRobie (1989) contains maps showing changes in electoral boundaries from 1853-1987.
1893
This significant year in our history saw voting rights extended to include all women aged over 21 years. The Governor signed the Electoral Act on 19 September 1893. New Zealand became the first self-governing country in the world to grant the vote to all women when the elections were held in November.
However, women weren't able to stand as candidates or be elected as Parliamentarians until 29 October 1919 when the Women's Parliamentary Rights Act became law.
1896
Electoral boundaries had been redistributed. Seven old seats were abolished, and seven new electorates established. The vote was held in December and electors could only vote in the electorate in which they lived.
1911
The 1911 General Election saw over 590,000 people registered to vote. A record 83.5% of those registered exercised their vote on 7 and 14 December.
1925
This year saw the introduction of Compulsory Registration, although voting was not compulsory.
The right to vote was defined according to sex, age, nationality, and the possession of property in New Zealand. "Aliens" – those who weren't British subjects, such as the Chinese – were specifically excluded. Also excluded were those convicted of treason, a felony or another serious offence, unless he had either received a free pardon or completed his sentence. Maori men were allowed to register and vote, but in reality, most were excluded because their land was possessed communally, rather than under individual title.
Men who owned or leased property in different electorates were able to enrol and vote in each of them, a practice known as plural voting. Until 1881, elections in different seats were held on different days, which made it simpler for those men who qualified for plural voting.
Apart from a tiny minority of aliens and prison inmates, most of the non-Maori males excluded from voting were recent arrivals and transient workers such as farm labourers, timber workers and seafarers. They generally lived in boarding houses, tents, shacks, or aboard ship. As they didn't possess property, they weren't considered to be genuine settlers.
Marriage Records
Marriages 1841-1956
This is the first release of these records. It is an attempt to provide a location for marriages in New Zealand. There are a few marriages outside this date range that researchers may find helpful.
The records point to sources which may provide more details other than names, date, and location. There are some especially magnificent newspaper reports.
As many sources have been used and details misspelled, the Registrar General's Record has been cited as the definitive source.
Additions to this index are welcome.
Maori Marriages
These records were transcribed from microfiche released by the Registrar-General to cover the years 1911-1952.
The names were difficult to read, often confusing the names of the bride and groom.
These records need to be used with care.
Although this database does not link the couples, many of them are included in the RGO's current on-line index. You will need to be creative in your search to find the match. Often the surname and given name have been transposed.
Smaller Speciality Indexes
Returned Services Association (RSA)
These records include a variety of death notices of some service personnel published in the "Last Post" column of the RSA Review 1984-2013.
Sheep Owners
These records of New Zealand citizens who owned a particular number of sheep are useful to place folk in a district. The information was extracted from public lists published by the Annual Journal of the House of Representatives (AJHR) 1879-1919.
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