.

To learn more about restricted records, go to the record ordering screen in ARCHWAY. And click the ‘more detail’ link below each listing. This will tell you why a record is restricted, and who you need to contact to gain permission to access the record. Access can only be provided with the written permission from the agency responsible for the restriction.

Some records are restricted by Archives New Zealand for preservation reasons. In these cases reproductions of the material are often accessible. Searching OnlineArchwayRecords are listed in ARCHWAY as they were written at the time, and as a consequence Māori names are often spelled incorrectly or are run together as one word. Spellings and phrasings may have changed over time, reflect regional dialects, or a person’s name might be entered using initials or an alias. So, when searching for people, places, landmarks, or events it is best to try different possible variations, without macrons.

For example; Wanganui /Whanganui Ngai Tahu / Kai Tahu / Ngaitahu / Kaitahu pa / pah hauhau*/ hau hau* Maori* / Maaori / native* / aboriginal*/ half

caste* / halfcaste* /landless Maori reserve*/ native reserve* /  Maori

register*

The asterick symbol (*) acts like a wildcard and may bring up more relevant results. i.e. Maori* will search for Maori, Maoris and Maoritanga.

Social MediaMost records at Archives New Zealand have not been digitised. Those accessible on ARCHWAY can be viewed and downloaded via the ARCHWAY record listing and the 'record online' tab.

Digitised content is also available through our social media channels. These let you access, share and use our holdings for free.

Research guide 14Research guide 14Research guide 14Research guide 14

June 2018

In this guide Adoption Births, Deaths & Marriages Census-type Records Court Records 19th Century Correspondence Photographs Schools Ngā Pākanga - War Whakapapa Work and Employment

Please note: Over time information changes and is subject to continuous updating and amendment. Archives New Zealand receives transfers from government agencies intermittently. Please contact our Wellington office - research.archives@dia.govt.nz for further information.

Records are held in Wellington unless specified as Auckland, Christchurch, or Dunedin.

Archives New Zealand Head Office 10 Mulgrave Street, PO Box 12 050, Thorndon Wellington 6144 Telephone: 04 499 5595 research.archives@dia.govt.nz

Auckland Regional Office 95 Richard Pearse Drive, Mangere PO Box 201 103, Auckland Airport, Manukau 2150 Telephone: 09 270 1100 Facsimile: 09 276 4472 auckland.archives@dia.govt.nz

Christchurch Regional Office 15 Harvard Avenue, Wigram PO Box 642, Christchurch 8140 Telephone: 03 377 0760 Facsimile: 03 365 2662 christchurch.archives@dia.govt.nz

Dunedin Regional Office 556 George Street, PO Box 6183, Dunedin North Dunedin 9059 Telephone: 03 477 0404 Facsimile: 03 477 0422 dunedin.archives@dia.govt.nz

Websites: Home: www.archives.govt.nz Archway: www.archway.archives.govt.nz

Version 2.0

WHAKAPAPAIntroductionArchives New Zealand collects records created by government departments. It is responsible for deciding which records are kept permanently and ensures that important official records are properly cared for and accessible to the public.

The records at Archives New Zealand date from as early as the 1820s and include significant documents such as He Whakaputanga o te Rangatiratanga o Nu Tireni / Declaration of Independence of the United Tribes of New Zealand, and Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi. There are other records which may contain information concerning people and whakapapa.

Records held by Archives New Zealand are generally arranged according to the government department that created them. When preparing to research whakapapa, it may be useful to ask “What government department might my tipuna have had contact with?”

This research guide focuses on the groups of records of most use to people researching whakapapa. Most are listed on our electronic finding at ARCHWAY. Once a record of interest is found, research can be done at the relevant Archives New Zealand office or through a Remote Research enquiry. Please note we do not interloan records between our offices.

Most records relating to Māori are held in the Wellington office of Archives New Zealand, but some are held in the other offices’, particularly Auckland. These are noted throughout this research guide. Information on the records that follow are organised by topic and/or type of record.

AccessSome records have open access, but others are restricted.

Restrictions are placed on records by the agency that created them. The reason is primarily to protect privacy, but sometimes other restrictions apply.

FlickrMore than 3,000 digital copies of records have been uploaded to the Archives New Zealand Flickr page - www.flickr.com/archivesnz/ These include photographs, artworks and paper files, and are arranged by themed albums. Albums that might be of interest to whānau, hapū, iwi and whakapapa researchers include:Te Ao MāoriNew Zealand Wars

Unless stated otherwise, these images are covered by Creative Commons licensing, Attribution. You are free to share and adapt the images, but must give appropriate credit to Archives New Zealand (for more information see – Creative Commons - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/)

YouTube On our YouTube channel you can watch, share or remix digitised material from the National Film Unit (NFU). Established in 1941, the NFU made government funded films until 1989, including the weekly newsreel Weekly Review, and the monthly feature Pictorial Parade.

Māori often feature in the films. Where possible iwi, hapū, marae and individuals have been ‘tagged’ and can be searched for in our playlists. “Te Ao Māori – The Māori World” will be most useful for whānau and whakapapa researchers.

FacebookThrough the Archives New Zealand Facebook page researchers can read our Facebook Notes. These are blog posts written by Archives New Zealand staff and include information about how to research and access records, our holdings and the work we do https://www.facebook.com/ArchivesNewZealand/

ADOPTIONMāori ‘adoptions’, or whāngai, consisted of the custom of sending children to other members of the hapū or whānau to be raised. Whangai being a person adopted informally in terms of tikanga Māori and brought up as the adopting parents own child without formal adoption being concluded by any court.

Under the Native Health Act 1909 Māori could no longer use the whāngai system for adopting children.  Customary Māori adoption was theoretically prohibited after 1909.

Access to adoption records is restricted. Furthermore, the adoption records held by Archives New Zealand (see Research Guide 11 – Welfare) are only a small proportion of all adoption records. Most records are held by the Department of Internal Affairs, Births, Deaths and Marriages.

Researchers are advised to work through Adoption Services of the Department of Child, Youth and Family. Their contact details are:

Oranga Tamariki Ministry for ChildrenPhone (in NZ): 0508 326 459Email: webadoption@ot.govt.nz

Website: https://www.orangatamariki.govt.nz/

Te Kooti Whenua Maori (Māori Land Court) and AdoptionUnder the provisions of the Native Land Act 1909 Part IX, Te Kooti Whenua Māori / Māori Land Court was empowered to make adoption orders and these may be recorded in Māori Land Court Minute Books. (For further information, see Info Sheet 5 – Māori Land Court Minute Books).

If a reference to an adoption is located in a Māori Land Court Minute Book, researchers may then need to contact the relevant Māori Land Court district office where the actual adoption record is held.

Page 2

Ralph Hotere, prints, National Film Unit production stills [AAPG 25263 W3939 Box 11].

Māori Affairs Department and AdoptionMāori Affairs Department files contain some records relating to Māori adoptions. Access to these records is restricted. However, notifications of adoption were also published in the New Zealand Gazette from 1902 to 1956, and brief information may be found there.

Child Welfare and AdoptionThe Child Welfare Division of the Education Department also created one Māori adoption record:

Field Work – Other than State Wards – Māori Welfare – Adoptions 1923-1952

[ACGB 8300/4/15/2]

BIRTHS, DEATHS AND MARRIAGESCivil registration of births, deaths and marriages has been compulsory for Māori only since 1911 (marriages) and 1913 (births and deaths). Before these dates, church registers may be the only record of Māori births, deaths and marriages, and even after those dates, not all Māori registered these life occasions.

The Births, Deaths and Marriages branch of the Department of Internal Affairs holds all recorded registrations. For further information, copies of registrations/certificates, and the costs involved, contact:

Central Registry Births, Deaths and Marriages PO Box 10 526 Wellington 6143

Wellington Counter: Archives New Zealand Ground Floor 10 Mulgrave St Wellington 6144

Phone (in NZ):  0800 22 52 52   Phone (international):  64 4 474 8150

Email:  bdm.nz@dia.govt.nz

Searches for specific people registrations, though not actual records, with some date restrictions, can be made at BDM Historical Records

Other records relating to births, deaths and marriages are held at Archives New Zealand.

BirthsBirth RegistersThe registers held in Wellington come from small places ranging from Ahaura to Wharekahika. Other offices may hold some local registers. These are listed on ARCHWAY, restrictions may apply.

Vaccination RegistersUnder the Vaccination Act 1863 every child born in New Zealand was to be vaccinated within 6 months of birth. Local Registrars of Births, Deaths and Marriages acted as Vaccination Inspectors, recording vaccination details or exemptions for children born in their districts. The Vaccination programme applied to Māori and European.  The only preventative health programme carried out by the government before 1900 was the vaccination of smallpox, but this was prescribed sporadically.

The registers include entries for all children born in the district, whether vaccinated or not. In some cases vaccination details were recorded in the Register of Births rather than in a separate Vaccination Register.

Vaccination Registers are arranged by number of entry in the Register of Births. They include the names of the child and parents, the child’s dates of birth and of vaccination, and the name of the medical practitioner. Most registers are indexed.

Auckland Office:Coromandel Register 1874-1888

[BACL 14408/1a]

Hikurangi Register 1911-1915 [ABQU 15417/1a]

Huntly Register 1894-1913 [BAHB 11180/1a]

Onehunga Register 1903-1916 [AATJ 18110/1/a]

Omaha Register 1893-1913 [AAAA 24593 A1781/1/a]

Owhango Register 1912-1917 [BAHH 11124/1a]

Te Awamutu Registers 1875-1921 [BACZ 24938 A1784/20/a]

Waihi Registers 1895-1915 [BAFV 13779/1]

Waipū Register 1874-1915 [ABQU 15416/1a]

Page 3

Wellington Office:Aorere Register 1905-1914

[AAPP 26320 W5973/215]

Ashhurst Registers 1896-1921

[AAXX 21517 W5462/111-112]

Blenheim and Wairau Registers 1881-1915

[ABYB 21714 W5445/188-190, 234, 299-300]

Dannevirke areaNorsewood Registers 1876-1913

[ABPQ W4287/100 & ABPQ W4287/101]

Wainui Registers 1887-1914 [ABPQ W4287/102]

Weber Registers 1897-1903 [ABPQ W4287/103]

Fielding Registers 1876-1919

[ABYD 25166 W5935/86-89]

Masterton Registers 1873-1920 (gaps)

[AAOF 22010 W5447/472 & 612]

Mauriceville Register 1895-1916

[AAOF 22324 W5447/472]

Napier Registers 1877-1921

[AAOW W3244/252-255]

Nelson Registers 1874-1921

[AAPP 26319 W5973/213-214]

Christchurch Office:Charleston Register 1874-1910

[CAIF CH446/142]

Mt Cook/Fairlie Record Books 1874-1917

[CAHY CH648/11 68-69]

Timaru Registers 1890-1918 [CAHY CH24/147]

Waimangaroa Magistrates Court (near Westport) Register 1894-1916 [CAIS CH620/6]

Dunedin office:Balclutha Register 1892-1921

[DACM 20723 D443/316]

DeathsArchives New Zealand holds a handful of death registers. However, the most useful sources of information relating to deaths are Coronial Inquest and Probate records. These are Court records. For more detailed information – see Research Guide 2 – Personal Identity.

Coroner’s Inquest RequestsMost deaths did not generate a Coroner’s Inquest. Such an inquiry was normally held in cases of sudden death, where the cause was not immediately clear, or there was suspicion of foul play. Drowning’s were often not investigated by a Coroner.

Coronial files usually include statements by witnesses, legal and official documentation, and the Coroner’s verdict about the cause of death. The records held in Wellington cover the whole country and date from the 1840s to 2000, although early records are incomplete and access to later records is restricted for 50 years.

AccessAccess to Coroners’ Indexes and Registers is open, but access to Coroners’ Inquest Reports (files) is restricted for 50 years from the date of death, for files from 1962 onwards. For permission to access restricted files, the first approach should be made to:

Coronial.Information@justice.govt.nz

Or write to:

Operations Manager,  Coronial Services of New Zealand, The Information Advisor, Business Services Unit, Specialist Courts, DX Box SX10044, WELLINGTON

Microfilm 1888-1938Coroners’ Inquest Reports/files 1888-1938 have been microfilmed and are available in the Wellington office. [MICRO 5388-5592]

Microfilm 1963-1975The Justice Department destroyed most Coroners’ Inquest Reports/files 1963-1975, but copies are held on microfilm [MICRO 4907-5018]. A few originals, especially from 1971, are also held. The microfilms are listed on ARCHWAY and can be found using a name search.

However, the microfilms are held in cold storage and most belong to the restricted period, so they are not accessible. To access unrestricted Coroners’ Inquest Reports/files please contact Research Services.

Probate RecordsProbate files contain the documentation required for the granting of probate on a will, that is, for the legal administration of an estate after the death of a person.

Page 4

Archives New Zealand holds many probate registers and files. Each office holds those for its region, except where Courts have retained their own records. Most of these can be found with a name search on ARCHWAY.

However, not everyone who left a Will has a probate record. A Will was probated if its value was above a certain level set by the government at the time. A Will not dealt with by the courts, usually because of the comparatively low value of the estate, was administered privately by a solicitor.

Wills were usually probated, within a few months of death, in the Supreme/High Court nearest to where the deceased person lived, though sometimes there was a delay. Occasionally a will was probated in more than one court.

Up to about 1908 the old style District Courts also administered Probates, so their records and those of Supreme Courts may need to be searched.

Wills of Māori could be probated through the Māori Land Court (Head or District Offices). Others are in the records of Māori Affairs or Māori Trustee (Head or District Offices). See ‘Deceased Estates’ [AAMK 869] for example.

Up to about 1950 date, if a person died intestate (without making a Will) or if the Public Trust Office administered the estate, then the Will was probated in the Wellington High Court. (For more information, see Research Guide 2 – Personal Identity).

Digitised ProbatesOur probate files are currently being digitised as part of a joint project between Archives New Zealand and FamilySearch. In time, probate files over 50 years old will be made available online, free of charge, for searching, viewing, and printing, via the FamilySearch website.

To search for digitised probate records, visit FamilySearch's probate search page. Researchers will need to create a free account with Family Search to access the site. Instructions on how to search probates can be on the Archives New Zealand website.

Te Kooti Whenua Māori and Te Tumu Paeroa (Māori Land Court and Māori Trustee)

If a Will cannot be located in the general probate system (above), it may be worth searching the Māori Land Court and Māori Trustee records. Wills relating to Māori were sometimes probated through those offices.

Te Kooti Whenua MāoriPrior to the Māori Land Court Act 1894 the Supreme Court had power to grant probate or letters of administration.  The Māori Land Court Act 1894 gave the Māori Land Court exclusive power to grant probate or letters of administration.

By section 79 of the Māori Land Court Amendment Act 1967 jurisdiction to grant probate or letters of administration reverted to the Supreme Court.  The Māori Land Court Amendment Act 1967 took effect on 1 April 1968.

The Māori Land Court registries still hold many wills for Māori.  The Auckland Supreme Court (Agency BBAE) records before 1894 include some Māori probates.

As with adoption records, although a reference to a Probate may appear in a Minute Book, the actual Probate record is held regionally by a Māori Land Court District Office.

The Māori Land Court in Wellington – Office of the Chief Registrar - don’t hold any court records but they can help you identify which office you need to contact:

Street address:Level 7, Fujitsu Tower141 The TerraceWellington

Postal address:SX11203WellingtonTelephone: +64 4 914 3000Email: mlcnationaloffice@justice.govt.nz

Te Tumu PaeroaRecords of the Māori Trustee also include some Probate and succession files, including a number of files that relate to deceased estates from the 1930s to 1993. Some can be found on ARCHWAY by name - [AAMK 869 W3074/11/-]

Access to these records is restricted for 40 years from the date of file closure, or for 100 years from the date of the individual’s birth, whichever is longer. For access to restricted records, contact:

The Chief ExecutiveTe Puni Kokiri / Ministry of Māori DevelopmentPO Box 3943Wellington 6140Telephone: +64 4 819 6000Email: info@tpk.govt.nz

Page 5

MarriagesArchives New Zealand holds Notices of Intention to Marry, 1856-1956 for the whole country and these include many Māori, especially after 1911.

A card index for marriages up to 1881 is located in the Wellington Reading Room. For marriages after 1881, researchers will need to know the place and approximate date of marriage, because the volumes are organised chronologically in three-month blocks and geographically from North to South. (For further information on these records, see Research Guide 2 – Personal Identity).

CENSUS-TYPE RECORDSArchives New Zealand does not hold official census records, most of which have been destroyed. However, various lists of Māori and where they lived, often labelled `census’ were gathered, especially in the 19th century. Only records which include individual names are listed below:

RegionalAparima (Riverton)Aparima Census, 1852 (copy) in Murihiku Block, Aparima Reserve - The Papers of Horomona Paatu, Special File No. 16

[ACIH 16046 31/20a]

Rēkohu / Wharekauri (Chatham Islands)Census of Māori and Moriori, 1864 (in te reo; compiled by Captain William Esdaile Thomas; arranged by district; gives names and hapū)

REPRO 1715 and [ABGP 7532 W4900/1]

Another census was compiled by Captain Thomas in 1867, and the returns published in “A Report on the Chatham Islands by Mr Halse” – AJHR, 1867, pp. 7-8.

Te Tairāwhiti (East Coast)East Coast District Tribal Register (indexed), 1878. Organised by iwi, then hapū and place; gives name and gender, includes adults and children. [ACIH 16056/16/26]

[ View on ARCHWAY ]

Whakatū (Nelson)Nelson District Census - Statistical returns of the Aboriginal Natives residing in the district of Nelson for the year ending December 31st, 1849

[ACHY 8954/5/2]

Te Wai Pounamu / Rakiura (South Island / Stewart Island)Census of Native population, 1868, in “Schedule of Native Reserves in the South Island, etc., pp.

63-96 (South Island and Stewart Island, names organised by place)

[AECW 18692/19/19]

South Island Census of Māori Landholders c1879Part 1 [ACIH 16074/8/13a] Part 2 – Otago-Southland, is not heldPart 3 [ACIH 16074/9/13b]

Accounts and Papers – Schedule of Accounts and Papers laid upon table – Crown Grants issued to middle island half-castes, 1882

[AEBE 18507/200]

Returns of Natives and half-castes in the South Island – those owning over 50 acres, those unprovided with land (Schedule F), those insufficiently provided with land (Schedule G), 1891 [ACIH 16079/1/5]

South Island landless Natives Claims Register, 1889-1917 [ABWN 8923 W5278/88]

South Island Landless Native – Alphabetical List of Owners, 1895 [ABWN 8923 W5278/1]

Native Land Register South Island Landless Natives, c1900 [ABWN 8923 W5278/87]

List of Awards to Landless Natives in the Middle Island, 1902-1930 (district, name, abode)

[ABWN 8923 W5278/66] - (221.1 & 221.2)

South Island Landless Natives, 1908 (includes many printed lists) [ACGT 18190/365]

Page 6

East Coast District Tribal Register[ACIH 16056/ 16/26].

MA13 Boxes 19 – 21These boxes contain a huge variety of lists of people in places, mostly South Island half-castes, relating to those who have land and those who claim land, from 1848 to the later 19th century.

[ACIH/16046/19/12b]For example; Return of half-castes living within the Ngaitahu and Murihiku Blocks in 1848-9 and 1853-4

[ACIH/16046/19/12b] - Part 2]

Copy of list of half-castes residing at the Neck, Stewart Island in June 1864 and Supplementary Return of half-castes who have probably received land. [ACIH 16046/20/12d] - Part 4 6a-21]

WairarapaReturn of Native population, Wairarapa, 1849 (lists iwi, marae, 16 principal rangatira)

[ACFP/8217/35/[108]/1849/186]

Wellington RegionTribal Census of Te Aro, 1842 in Despatches from the Principal Agent, Wellington, 1842 (list of males, females and children in the area)

[AAYZ 8971/2/2 ] - pp 192-200]

Census of the Native population in the district of Port Nicholson corrected up to the first of July 1842, in Edmund Halswell, Protector of Aborigines for the Southern District, to Colonial Secretary (organised by marae: Waiwhetu, Pitoni, Ngauranga, Kaiwharawhara, Pipitea, Kumutoto, Te Aro [Taranaki, Ngatiruanui] – gives names of women, men and children)

[ACGO 8333 14/[14]/1842/1299]

WhanganuiReturn of Native population, Whanganui River, 1851 (lists marae, iwi, hapū, principal Rangatira, kaiako) [ACFP 8217/45/[58/1851/284]

Tribal Registers, 1877-1878, from the Upper Whanganui and Whanganui Districts are arranged by iwi, hapū and residence (lists by name, gender, adults and children)

[AEDK 18743/2/3 & 3/4]

Māori Census (upper Whanganui River), c1874 (handwritten lists `return of natives’ by kainga and other papers, with list of names for Ngatiterangita, Ngatihaumuiapaparangi / Ngatihau, Ngapoutawa / Ngatipongia and Ngatituhaka / Te Opekotia)

[AEDK 18743/1/2] GeneralTauiwi, Hauraki-Coromandel area, 1871

[AECW 18683/1/[40]]

Māori Census records, series [ACIH 16056]:

Compiled from the dictation of Paora Toki, 1871; Ngati Kahungunu, Ngati Poro [as written] and Nga Rauru giving the locality, ‘tribe’ and ‘heads of hapu’.

1881 - Information collected to help identify entitlement to land; actual census sheets included. [ACIH 16056/12/17 ]

1901, 1906 and 1911- correspondence, but often detail about local work for the census

[ACIH 16056/13/18]

COURT RECORDSArchives New Zealand holds records from courts around the country, covering a variety of topics from civil and criminal cases to bankruptcy and divorce. These records are held regionally in the four offices of Archives New Zealand, except for Colonial files which are all in Wellington. Access to court records varies, depending on the type of record. The following types of court records may be particularly useful in whakapapa research:

Coroner’s Inquest RequestsThe records held in Wellington cover the whole country and date from the 1840s to 2000, although early records are incomplete and access to later records is restricted for 50 years.

(For more information, see page 5 of this guide or Research Guide 2 – Personal Identity).

Divorce RecordsDivorce registers and files are a useful group of court records which sometimes include a surprising amount of whānau information. These are held regionally in the four Archives New Zealand offices’. Some Divorce files are listed on ARCHWAY, but many are not.

If a Divorce is not listed on ARCHWAY, a search must be made in the Index to a Divorce Register in order to find a file number. Since Divorce Registers apply to one court only, researchers need to know where the Divorce took place, and an approximate date is helpful.

Access to Registers and their indexes is open. Access to files is restricted for 60 years from the date of file closure, apart from the couple involved. (For more information, see Research Guide 2 – Personal Identity).

Page 7

Estate RecordsProbates and WillsProbate records contain the documentation required for the legal, administration of a will and an estate after a person’s death. Many wills relating to Māori were sometimes probated through Te Kooti Whenua Maori (Māori Land Court) and Te Tumu Paeroa (Māori Trustee). (For more information, see page 5 of this guide or Research Guide 2 – Personal Identity).

Succession Order RegistersNative and Māori Succession Order Registers are another possible source of information. From the Inland Revenue Department, these record payment of succession duties by successors or inheritors after a death. Only when this duty had been paid was the succession legally allowed.

The Registers are indexed by the name of the deceased. They often contain the following details: name of the deceased names of successor(s), and usually where the

property was situated value of succession duty assessed date of payment Māori Land Court memo reference.

The volumes include name indexes at the front, except for two volumes (1920-1926) for which separate indexes have been created

[AAEC 658/1 & 2]

Access to pre-1921 registers are open. However, access to registers from 1921 onward are restricted under the Inland Revenue Act 1974, section 13.

Wellington Office:Wellington Office holds a national set of Native Succession Registers, 1911-1964

[AAEC 659/1-20]

Auckland Office Registers of (Māori) Succession Orders 1887 – 1964 [BBCB 4243]

Testamentary RegistersUnder the Stamp Act 1875 every administrator of a will was required to file a statement, with either the District Commissioner of Stamps or Deputy Commissioner of Stamps, giving details of all personal property which belonged to the deceased at the time of their death.

After duty was paid the Commissioner would issue the grant of administration. This would be

forwarded by the Registrar of the district Supreme Court, to whoever was entitled to receive it.

Access to pre-1921 registers are open. However, any registers that include entries from 1921 probates are fully restricted. Photocopying is prohibited.

Auckland Office:Auckland District 1876 – 1968 [BBCB 4208] 

The Inland Revenue office in Gisborne holds the Gisborne Testamentary Registers.

Christchurch Office:Testamentary Registers (Māori) - Native succession order registers, 1911-1956

[CATS CH291/22-25]Dunedin:Otago District 1876 – 1983 [DAGI 9010]Southland District 1895 – 1983

[CATS 18241 D477]

Wellington:Nelson District Duty 1867 - 1969 [AAEC W4006]Wellington District 1876- 1962 [AAEC 611]New Plymouth District 1876 - 1916

[AAEC 18268]Taranaki 1867 - 1881 [AAEC 18269]Napier/Hawkes Bay District 1876 - 1922

[AAEC 6488]

Wellington holds duplicate Testamentary Registers for the rest of New Zealand, 1876 – 1962.

19TH CENTURY CORRESPONDENCE19th century correspondence has captured the day-to-day business of government. Correspondence includes letters, field reports, and despatches to and from departments. It records the issues and events of the period as well as other valuable and interesting information.

LettersPeople wrote to government for various reasons. A lot of the information in these records concerns their business with the Crown, but there are also many letters which contain personal information. They are of interest in various ways: researching te reo Māori dialects, family history, and local history. Topics include:

Reports on disturbances between Māori and European settlers.

Protests and petitions by Māori over land sales. Gaol reports, and petitions to be released from

gaol Requests for assistance from the Colonial

Secretary

Page 8

Not all correspondence has been listed on ARCHWAY and letters in te reo are often only listed to box level. Registers and Indexes can be used to search for these.

Registers and IndexesIn the 19th Century and up to about 1913, most government departments recorded inward correspondence in Registers and Indexes, and these are held by Archives New Zealand. Each inward letter was entered in a register and given a register number. Indexes are organised by name, while registers are organised by register number in date order and contain slightly more information. Both indexes and registers can be used to locate the correspondence files of a particular department.The archives of the Māori Affairs Department, for example, contain a series of indexes and a series of registers, both of which refer to correspondence files.

[ACIH 16036][ACIH 16037][ACIH 16038]

Unfortunately, much of the Māori Affairs inward correspondence for the later 19th Century (about 1868-1891) were either badly damaged or destroyed, along with other records, in the Hope Gibbons building fire in August 1952.

However, the pre-1913 Indexes and Registers still exist, recording the topics of missing letters. Like those for most government departments, are available for public use in the Register Room at Archives New Zealand, Wellington.

Other Registers of Interest Register of Chiefs, dated about 1865. Entries

give name, iwi, age and place of residence as well as a Pākehā assessment of the Chief’s character and behaviour. Organised by district, it covers most of the North Island and Nelson

[ACIH 16056/15/25]

PHOTOGRAPHYArchives New Zealand in Wellington holds many photographic images, over 300 000 from the National Publicity Studios alone. These images are held in various formats and can be difficult to access. 

Photographs held at the Wellington office include: National Publicity Studios – many digitised and

available on ARCHWAY. [AAQT] Education Photographs, including Native and

Māori schools – see page 10. Patents and Copyrights, including Māori portraits

taken by Elizabeth Pulman [AEGA] Railway Photographs [AAVK and ABIN]

Forestry Photographs [AAQA] Agriculture Photographs [AANR] War Photographs – various agencies Police and Prison – various agencies

For more detailed information about our photograph holdings and how to access them please see the Research Guide 9 – Photographs – Wellington.

PublicationPermission to publish, which is free, is needed before any image sourced from Archives New Zealand is published. Please apply to the Group Manager of Access Services, providing the full archives reference and description of the file, and stating the title and format of the publication/website/documentary.

RestrictionsRestrictions apply to many records. Negatives and small contact (test) prints are held in secure, temperature controlled stack areas. Access to them is through the Preservation Section of Archives New Zealand. Please organise access by first contacting or talking to an Archivist.

TE KOOTI WHENUA MĀORI (MĀORI LAND COURT)In 1865 the New Zealand Parliament passed;

An Act to Amend and Consolidate the Laws relating to Lands in the Colony in which the Māori Proprietary Customs still sexist and to provide for the ascertainment of the Titles to such lands and for Regulating the Descent thereof and for other purposes.

[30th October, 1865]

Page 9

Te Tokanganui-a-Noho Marae Te Kuiti[ABWN 23196 W54801 / 7b]

This was `The Native Lands Act 1865’, successor to an ineffective 1862 Act. It set up the Native (later Māori) Land Court of New Zealand, to be the Court of Record for investigation into Māori land titles and succession.

Minute BooksArchives New Zealand holds copies of Māori Land Court Minute Books from 1865 to 1975 for the whole country. A database of all Minute Book holdings has been created. A paper copy is available at the Reading Room desk in Wellington and Archives staff can find a digital version of the database.

Along with information on land, adoptions and probates, these minute books also include whakapapa given by witnesses and successors in order to prove their entitlement to land. Although, researchers should be aware that evidence was given with a purpose – to hold onto or acquire land – and that it may not be accurate.

There is overlap between districts. Many Waikato-Maniapoto cases were held in Auckland (Taitokerau), and Tauranga minute books are under Waikato-Maniapoto. Some South Island cases were held in the North Island.

Many copies are held, in microfilm (some to after 1975) and reproduction forms. All are listed on ARCHWAY .

A few items, notably whakapapa and maps, have been separated from their Minute Books for preservation reasons, and these SEPS are available through their ARCHWAY listings. Most files relating to the Minute Books are still held by the Māori Land Court.

Searching the Māori Land Court Database For searches before 1910, it is easiest to use the Māori Land Court database via public kiosks in the reading rooms. It would be helpful to know the appropriate Māori Land Court district. Created by the University of Auckland, the database can also be searched at some public and university libraries.

The database can be searched by name, land block or by hapū or iwi. If searching by a person’s name, it is important to try every possible name the person may have been known by, and every possible spelling of each name.

There is no detailed indexing of Māori Land Court Minute Books after 1910. Researchers will need to know the area and a close date. Archives New Zealand staff can help researchers find the most likely Minute Books.

(For more information, see Info Sheet 5 – Māori Land Court Minute Books).

SCHOOLSMāori / Native SchoolsIn 1880 the Department of Native Affairs transferred the control of Māori education to the Education Department. That department administered separate Native/Māori Schools up to 1969 when many were abolished and the rest transferred to Education Board control.Records of approximately 450 Native/Māori Schools are held in the Auckland office of Archives New Zealand. Most records come from the Northern Regional Office of the Department of Education; a few schools transferred records directly. The many records include:

Attendance returns can be found with Registered Subject files [BAAA 1001]

Registers of Admission, Progress & Withdrawal [BAAA 1004]

Register of Attendance [BAAA 1006] Examination Registers [BAAA 1007] Register of Progress & Achievement

[BAAA 1011]

The Hawke’s Bay Education Board archives, also held in Auckland, contain registers of admissions for Waiomatatini (Māori) school.

[YCAK 1365/1a-d]

General Primary SchoolsMany Primary School records up to the early 1980s, from Education Boards, are held regionally within the four offices’ of Archives New Zealand. It is usually necessary to know the name of the school which a person attended, the dates, and the Education Board which administered the school.

These records include various registers, mainly of Admissions, but sometimes of Examinations (Proficiency) and Daily Attendance. There are also variously named Class Schedules or Lists, mainly annual lists for the Standard classes. These registers usually give ages in years and months.

(For further information, see Research Guide 5 – Education).

Page 10

NGĀ PĀKANGA – WARNew Zealand WarsRecords of the Army Department (AAYS) contain papers relating to the Māori War (New Zealand Wars) period.

Series 8661 is concerned with the formulation and maintenance of the Colonial Defence Force, the Military Settlers, and other Colonial units.

[AAYS 8661]Series 8660 papers do not necessarily date from the wars but relate to matters arising from that period. [AAYS 8660]

Records from the New Zealand Wars can be found within other department series and 19th Century correspondence – see below and page 9 of this guide.

New Zealand War Medal (Series 8661)This medal was awarded to most British who served in New Zealand in the 1840s and 1860s. However, it was only awarded to colonial troops, including some Māori who fought for the crown with the Māori Contingent, who applied and could prove they had come under enemy fire. Many files contain character references and information about the battles fought in.

The Wellington office holds an alphabetical New Zealand War Medal card index for soldiers who applied for or were awarded the medal. These cards have been listed and can be found with keyword searches on ARCHWAY, using a person’s name. Many peoples’ first names are entered by initial.

The New Zealand War Medal Card Index in the Wellington reading room may also note if a person is mentioned in Series 8638:

Inwards letters and registered files of the Colonial Defence Office, the Militia and Volunteers, and the Defence Office. [AAYS 8638]

Two record series from Māori Affairs (ACIH) relate to the Commission on Compensation Claims arising from the Māori Wars.

[ACGO 8409 ] [ACIH 8602 ]

Māori PrisonersPapers Relating to Māori Prisoners of War and their Guards on the Chatham Islands

1866 [AAYS 8660/2/14] 1867 – 1869 [AAYS 8660 3/15 & 3/16]

Return of Māori Prisoners c1864. A list of Māori prisoners taken at Rangiriri, Rangiaowhia, Orakau and elsewhere, aboard the Hulk ‘Marion’. Provides name of individual, tribe and remarks. [AAYS 8661/71/5006]

Medical Reports on Troops Engaged in the Māori Wars and on Māori Prisoners of War November 1863 to March 1864. Weekly returns of sick and wounded Māori prisoners aboard the ‘Marion’. Lists diseases or illnesses suffered and describes condition of the patients but does not name individual patients.

[AAYS 8661/71/5009]

Rolls and ReturnsPayment of the Māori Contingent 1866. A correspondence file which includes a return of kūpapa claiming pay for service during the late expeditions under Major General Chute.

[AAYS 8638 CD1866/2815]

Acquittance Roll of Wairoa and Mohaka Natives Who Took Part in the Waikare Expedition April 1869. Provides details of name, period of service and total amount paid.

[AAYS 8660/7/ 28/19]

List of Prisoners Taken at Rangiriri 1863. Organised by iwi. [ACIH 16036 1863/383]

[View on Flickr ]

Māori War Pension Card Index [ABNU 6826]

Another list that may be of use is a Return of ill rebel natives who have subscribed to declaration of allegiance and delivered up arms from 5 February 1864 – 31 May 1864, published in the New Zealand Gazette, 15 June 1864, pp.267-270.

Military Personnel RecordsIndividual personnel files held are Archives New Zealand are listed by name on ARCHWAY.

Anglo-Boer War personnel files include very little information about actual service. The records are incomplete.

Page 11

List of Māori Prisoners taken at Rangiriri, Māori Affairs, [ACIH 16036 836 / 1863/383].

World War One personnel files not only include details of service, but also name and address of next of kin. WW1 records include members of the Pioneer Battalion.

World War Two records and later, including Māori Battalion records held by the New Zealand Defence Force, contact :

New Zealand Defence ForcePersonnel ArchivesPrivate Bag 905Upper HuttWELLINGTON 5140Telephone: +64 4 527 5270Email: personnel.archives@nzdf.mil.nzWebsite: NZ Defence Force

Anglo-Boer War 1899-1902Māori were originally excluded from serving in the South African war, although some did volunteer. They can be difficult to trace as many Māori used English names or anglicised versions of their own name.

Archives New Zealand holds only a few records of New Zealand’s involvement in this war. The records are erratic and incomplete. Surviving individual personnel files from the Anglo-Boer War are held at the Wellington Office – listed by name on ARCHWAY. Any other material relating to Māori is likely to be within the general files. (For further information, see Research Guide 3 – War).

Te Pakanga Tuatahi – World War OneArchives New Zealand holds registration and embarkation rolls for the Māori Contingent. These records provide details such as regimental number, rank, company, occupation, religion, where from, next-of-kin and some remarks about fitness or action.

Diaries, Routine Orders and Unit RecordsRecords of the day-to-day activities of the Māori Contingent. These records ARE NOT listed on ARCHWAY. Researchers should use the War Archive paper finding aids to place a manual order.

Unit Diaries [ACID 18432 WA97/1] Routine Orders [ACID 18432 WA97/2] Unit Records [ACID 18432 WA97/3]

includes field notebooks and some rolls;Nominal Roll 1914 -1916 [ACID 18432 3/1]Registration Roll 1914-1915

[ACID 18432 WA97/3/16]Nominal Rolls 1915

[ACID 18432 WA97/3/17]

Other Rolls and Lists Register of Māori 1918.

This register, compiled under the Military Services Act 1916, lists the name and occupation of all Māori men eligible for military service. The lists are organised by district with an index at the end of the volume (not listed on ARCHWAY).

[ACID 18432/1]

Māori Contingent Embarkation Rolls 1914-1918. Māori Affairs file giving name, occupation and next-of-kin. [ACIH 16036/376/ 19/1/473]

Māori Contingents and Reinforcements,1914-1918. [ACIH 16069/ 10h]

Māori Pioneer Battalion – casualties, decorations and awards, 1919-1928

[AAYS 8694/18/ 27/161]

Other records of the Māori (Pioneer) Battalion may be found under the Māori Affairs and Army Departments.

Returned ServicemenThe archives of the Māori Affairs Department contain a number files relating to returned servicemen. These include:

Survey, Māori Returned Servicemen 1914-1918. Includes full description of the survey, some completed forms from the Tairāwhiti district and material data from other districts. Information taken includes regimental number, name, address, age, form of assistance applied for, benefits received and additional remarks.

[ACIH 16036 W2459/ 19/1/387] Censuses of Surviving Returned Soldiers of

WW1 1958-1974. [ACIH 16036/ 70/1/4 - parts 1, 2 & 3]

Māori Soldiers’ Fund – Applications for Assistance, 1953-1962. Letters from Māori welfare officers and individuals regarding grants from the fund for education, housing etc. [ACIH 16036/ 70/2, parts 1-7]

Te Pakanga Tuarua – World War TwoArchives New Zealand holds a number of records relating to the 28th (Māori) Battalion, within the World War Two archives. These and other World War Two records can be accessed by subject through the War History Branch card index in the Reading Room, Wellington.

Further records relating to the 28th (Māori) Battalion and the Māori contingent can be found in the archives of a number of different government agencies, including the Māori Affairs Department, Army Department, External Affairs

Page 12

Department, Army Department and Ministry of Defence and cover a variety of topics as follows.

Personnel Files, access restrictions apply.[ABFK W3629]

Embarkation Rolls March 1940 to June 1948 [AAYS 8657/ 9-24; MICRO 5076]

Moana-nui-a-Kiwa Ngarimu, VC: Personnel file [AAAL 18806 W478 D.202/12196] Posthumous award of his Victoria Cross

[ACGO 8333/ 171/70/4-6] 28 Māori Battalion Unit Diaries, digitised on

ARCHWAY [ADQZ 18886/ DA 68/1/1-73]

Second World War Rehabilitation FilesServicemen Rehabilitation files detail how individual servicemen returned to civilian life after their military service, and are a great source for family information. [AADK 20203]

Because of privacy reasons these files are not automatically open. Researchers must first check if they need to gain permission to see the files.(For more information, see Research Guide 3 – War).

FilmArchives New Zealand holds film material relating to Māori and World War Two, particularly the commemoration and rehabilitation of soldiers. Reference copies of the following films can be viewed in the Wellington reading room or via our YouTube channel:

Ruatoria – Ceremony in Honour of Māori VC. Weekly Review No. 112, 1943 [RV 454]

Māori Battalion Returns. Weekly Review No.232, 1946 [RV 528]

Wairoa – Māori Battalion rehab farm trainees. Weekly Review No.402, 1949 [RV 698]

Also of interest is a film entitled What’s Cooking in Korea, which depicts Māori soldiers cooking a Christmas hāngi. New Zealand Mirror No.15, 1953 [RV 137]

PhotosMāori in the armed forces (includes Māori Battalion, Vietnam & Singapore)

[AAMK W3495 Box 23 f-q]Restrictions relate to copyright. Researchers may view images but not copy or publish them without permission.

Other PhotographyOfficial War photography was taken by the War History Branch of Internal Affairs. This is held at the National Library.

WHAKAPAPA

As noted above, Māori Land Court Minute Books may contain whakapapa, in either text or diagram form. Other departmental records also contain whakapapa for various iwi, hapū and whānau, including:

East CoastVarious Genealogies of iwi Māori

[ACIH 16056 /18/28 - Parts 1-11]A series of genealogies relating to East Coast iwi, Waikato iwi, Ngāti Uenuku, Ngāti Hinga, Ngāti Hineuru, Ngāti Hauiti, Ohuake, Timahanga, Otanga and Ngāti Hine. Copies have been made of these records and are available to researchers as REPROs, numbered 1734-1743.

Hawke’s BayThe following maps/plans can be located within the Statutory Branch Registered Maps

[Series 997] Tarawera Block – Tree of ownership, Parekaui

Tekapau whakapapa, tracing, c1867[AAFV 997/84/ H25]

Tarawera Block – Tree of ownership, whakapapa, tracing, c1867

[AAFV 997/84/ H26] Tarawera Block – Tree of ownership,

Tupururpuru whakapapa, tracing, c1867 [AAFV 997/84/ H27]

Tarawera Block – Tree of ownership, Kurapoto

whakapapa, tracing c1867 [AAFV 997/84/ H28]

Tarawera Block – Investigation into title, Hineuru whakapapa, tracing c1867 [AAFV 997/84/ H29]

[View on ARCHWAY ] .

Te Wai Pounamu / South Island Schedule of Native Reserves at Te Wai

Pounamu, c1868 - as well as lists of reserves and allotters’, this record includes a number of whakapapa tables towards the back of the volume. [AECW 18692/19/19]

Māori Genealogies, South Island (no date). A volume of genealogies, indexed by name.

[ACIH 16056/17 /27]

Other Notes on genealogy, history etc., prepared in

relation to the Awaoko Block, c1888 – contains various notes in te reo Māori.

[AEDK 18746/7/2/23, 2/4, 3/4 & 4/5] Whakapapa of Ngāti Mutunga (no date)

[ABWN 8879 W5280/183] Record in te reo Māori giving genealogies

(Kahungunu, no date) [ACIH 16064/21/ 54]

Correspondence

Page 13

Correspondence and evidence within Confiscation Papers (formerly held by Land Information New Zealand) often contain Whakapāpā.

Held at the Auckland Office: Waikato Confiscation Papers [Series 24497] Tauranga Confiscation Papers [Series 24590] Opotiki Confiscation Papers [Series 24693] Papers of the Ngaruawahia Compensation Court

(currently only listed to box level) [Series 26446] Inward correspondence of the Compensation

Court [Series 10687]

WORK AND EMPLOYMENTArchives New Zealand holds a variety of records relating to work and employment.

For some government departments, Archives New Zealand holds good collections of Service Schedules (cards), but for others, few personnel records are held.

Examples of work and employment records are below, but for more information and detailed listings see Research Guide 7 – Government Employment and Research Guide 8 – Making a Living .

Native/Māori AffairsA number of personnel files for Māori Affairs Department/Iwi Transition Agency employees. Many of these are listed by name on ARCHWAY .

Native Interpreters Persons employed in the administration of Native

Affairs. Māori Affairs, registers of service of members. Māori Affairs, personnel files (including senior

officials and Māori Land Court judges).

Schedule Classification Cards c1914-1982 – Iwi Transition Agency and Ministry of Māori Affairs.

RestrictionsAccess to Māori Affairs personnel records and records that contain information about an individual may be restricted. Please check the restriction status in the record listings.

For permission to access restricted records, researchers will need to apply to:The Chief ExecutiveTe Puni Kokiri / Ministry of Māori DevelopmentPO Box 3943WELLINGTON 6140Telephone: +64 4 819 6000Email: info@tpk.govt.nz

Māori Land CourtAppointments in the court and an index to Assessors can be found in the records of Māori Affairs. [ACIH Series 16051 ]

Register of appointments in the Native Land Courts 1874-1890. Includes Judges, Officers, Assessors, Interpreters and Trust Commissioners, indexed. [ACIH 16058/3/4]

Māori Wardens, Waikato-Maniapoto – Register 1952-1989. Held in the Auckland regional office

[BBCZ 4407 A96520/d/2]

OTHER GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTSThere are many different lists of public service employees in New Zealand, and the majority of them have been published in some form or other.

Public Service lists The annual lists date from 1913-1988, but there are a few earlier, especially in the AJHR (below). Copies are held in the Wellington Reading Room.

Appendices to the Journal of the House of Representatives (AJHR)The lists are found first under the code D 1866-1870, under G 1871-1872, and under H 1873-1875 and later. Please note that the number following the letter code varies.

For most years (1866-1875), the lists are alphabetical, except for lists of Māori in the Public Service which are roughly North to South.

Editions up to the 1950s can be viewed online at PapersPast.

Page 14

John Taiapa and Maori apprentices working on a carving for Expo 70, Rotorua.[AAQT 6539 W3537 A89244]