Creation
New provinces were formed by the New Zealand Constitution Act 1852 (UK). This Act established the first six provinces of Auckland, New Plymouth, Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury, and Otago. Each province elected its own legislature known as a Provincial Council, and elected a Superintendent who was not a member of the council. The councils elected their speaker at their first meeting after elections.
The Act also created a national General Assembly consisting of the Legislative Council appointed by the Governor and the directly elected House of Representatives. These provinces came into effect on 17 January 1853 and the regulations defining the boundaries of the provinces were gazetted on 28 February. Electoral regulations were gazetted on 5 March.
Elections were open to males 21 years or older who owned freehold property worth £50 a year. Elections were to be held every four years. The New Zealand Constitution Amendment Act 1857 provided for the appointment of a Deputy Superintendent.
The Constitution Act provided for the creation of additional provinces, and when the spread of European settlements between the original centres of provincial government and the outlying settlers grew, the General Assembly passed the New Provinces Act 1858.
This Act allowed any district of between 500,000 and 3 million acres (12,000 km2) of land with a European population of no fewer than 1,000 people to petition for separation provided that at least 60% of electors agreed. As a result, Hawke's Bay Province separated from Wellington on 1 November 1858; Marlborough Province from Nelson on 1 November 1859; and Southland Province from Otago on 1 April 1861. New Plymouth also changed its name to Taranaki under the same Act.
Stewart Island/Rakiura, which had since 1853 not been part of any province, was annexed to the Province of Southland on 10 November 1863.
Provinces established under this act elected their Superintendents in a different way. Members of the Provincial Council would elect a suitable person listed on the electoral roll as Superintendent by majority. If such a person was an elected member, this would result in a by-election to fill the vacancy.
| Province | Formed date | Formed from | Dissolution date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auckland | 17 January 1853 | New Ulster | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| New Plymouth | 17 January 1853 | New Ulster | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Hawke's Bay | 1 November 1858 | Wellington | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Wellington | 17 January 1853 | New Ulster | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Nelson | 17 January 1853 | New Munster | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Marlborough | 1 November 1859 | Nelson | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Westland | 1 December 1873 | Canterbury | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Canterbury | 17 January 1853 | New Munster | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Otago | 17 January 1853 | New Munster | 1 November 1876 | Provinces abolished |
| Southland | 25 March 1861 | Otago | 5 October 1870 | Reunited with Otago |
Read more about this topic: Provinces Of New Zealand, 1853 To 1876
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