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Story: Nation and government

The New Zealand provinces, 1867

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The New Zealand provinces, 1867

Under the system of government set up for New Zealand in the 1850s, there was both a central government and six provincial governments. Each province had its own elected council and superintendent. The three original provinces in the North Island were Auckland, Taranaki and Wellington. Hawke’s Bay broke away from Wellington in 1858.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: MapColl-830cba/1867/Acc.6568

by W. & A. K. Johnston

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

John Wilson, Nation and government – From colony to nation, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/map/2456/the-new-zealand-provinces-1867 (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by John Wilson, published 3 March 2009, updated 1 September 2016.