Southland Province
Encyclopedia
The Southland Province was a province of New Zealand
Provinces of New Zealand
The Provinces of New Zealand existed from 1841 until 1876 as a form of sub-national government. They were replaced by counties, which were themselves replaced by districts.Following abolition, the provinces became known as provincial districts...

 from March 1861 until the province rejoined with Otago Province
Otago Province
The Otago Province was a province of New Zealand until the abolition of provincial government in 1876.-Area:The capital of the province was Dunedin...

 in 1870.

History

When provinces were formed in 1853, the southern part of New Zealand belonged to Otago Province
Otago Province
The Otago Province was a province of New Zealand until the abolition of provincial government in 1876.-Area:The capital of the province was Dunedin...

. Settlers in Murihiku
Murihiku
Murihiku is a Māori name describing a region of the South Island in New Zealand. Traditionally it was used to describe the portion of the South Island below the Waitaki River, but now is mostly used to describe the province of Southland. The name means "the tail end of the land" in...

, the southernmost part of the South Island purchased from Māori in 1853 by Walter Mantell
Walter Mantell
Walter Baldock Durrant Mantell was a 19th century New Zealand scientist, politician, and Land Purchase Commissioner. He was a founder and first secretary of the New Zealand Institute, and discovered and collected Moa remains....

, petitioned the government for separation from Otago. Petitioning started in 1857, and the Province of Southland was proclaimed in 1861. It was named Southland despite the wishes of settlers and Māori, who preferred Murihiku.

The province started to accumulate debt, whereas Otago prospered due to the Central Otago Gold Rush
Central Otago Gold Rush
The Central Otago Gold Rush was a gold rush that occurred during the 1860s in Central Otago, New Zealand...

. By the late 1860s, most settlers wanted to become part of the Otago Province again, and this was achieved in 1870.

Area

The province was much smaller than the present day Southland region. The area was bounded by the Mataura River
Mataura River
The Mataura River is in the Southland Region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is 190 kilometres in length.The river's headwaters are located in mountains to the south of Lake Wakatipu. From there it flows southeast towards Gore, where it turns southward...

 (east), the Waiau River
Waiau River, Southland
Waiau River is the largest river in the Southland Region of New Zealand. It is the outflow of Lake Te Anau, flowing from it into Lake Manapouri 10 kilometres to the south, and from there flows south for 70 kilometres before reaching the Foveaux Strait eight kilometres south of Tuatapere...

 (west), and a line from Eyre Peak to Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri
Lake Manapouri is a lake in the South Island of New Zealand. Its name is Maori for "sorrowful heart", though this name is misapplied due to an early cartographical error...

 (north). Stewart Island
Stewart Island/Rakiura
Stewart Island/Rakiura is the third-largest island of New Zealand. It lies south of the South Island, across Foveaux Strait. Its permanent population is slightly over 400 people, most of whom live in the settlement of Oban.- History and naming :...

 was purchased by the Crown in 1863 and added to the area. The capital and largest settlement of Southland Province was Invercargill
Invercargill
Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city in New Zealand, and one of the southernmost cities in the world. It is the commercial centre of the Southland region. It lies in the heart of the wide expanse of the Southland Plains on the Oreti or New River some 18 km north of Bluff,...

.

Railways

The Southland Province began a number of railway projects. The branch to Bluff
Bluff Branch
The Bluff Branch is a railway line in Southland, New Zealand that links Invercargill with the port of Bluff. One of the first railways in New Zealand, it opened in 1867 and is still operating...

 (Which was known as Campbelltown until 1917) opened on 5 February 1867. It was built to international standard gauge of 1,435 mm (4 feet 8.5 inches), wider than the national gauge of 1,067 mm (3 feet 6 inches) gauge. When the central government passed legislation setting a single standard for track gauges, the line was converted to the new gauge in a single day, 18 December 1875. The railway later became part of the New Zealand Railways Department
New Zealand Railways Department
The New Zealand Railways Department, NZR or NZGR and often known as the "Railways", was a government department charged with owning and maintaining New Zealand's railway infrastructure and operating the railway system. The Department was created in 1880 and was reformed in 1981 into the New...

.

Anniversary Day

Founded: 1 April 1861 http://www.statoids.com/unz.html

New Zealand law provides an anniversary day for each province.

Superintendents

The Southland Province had three Superintendents
Superintendent (politics)
Superintendent was the elected head of each Provincial Council in New Zealand from 1853 to 1876.-Historical context:Provinces existed in New Zealand from 1841 until 1876 as a form of sub-national government. After the initial provinces pre-1853, new provinces were formed by the New Zealand...

:
No. from to Superintendent
1 3 Aug 1861 Nov 1864 James Alexander Robertson Menzies
James Alexander Robertson Menzies
James Alexander Robertson Menzies was the first Superintendent of the Southland Province in New Zealand from 3 August 1861 to November 1864 during its breakaway from Otago Province...

2 13 Mar 1865 Nov 1869 John Parkin Taylor
John Parkin Taylor
John Parkin Taylor was a 19th century New Zealand politician in Otago and Southland.He represented the Dunedin Country electorate in the New Zealand Parliament from 1858 to 1860, when he retired....

3 10 Nov 1869 Sep 1870 William Wood
William Wood (New Zealand)
William Wood was a 19th century New Zealand politician.He represented the Invercargill electorate in Parliament from 1866 to 1870, when he retired, and then the Mataura electorate from 1876 to 1878, when he resigned....


Legislation

  • 1861 Breaks away from Otago Province
    Otago Province
    The Otago Province was a province of New Zealand until the abolition of provincial government in 1876.-Area:The capital of the province was Dunedin...

  • 1870 Reunited with Otago

External links

  • A page containing a map of the old provincial boundaries is available here.
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