1851_New_Zealand_census
1851 New Zealand census
First national population census
The 1851 colony of New Zealand census was the first national population census held in the Crown colony of New Zealand. The day used for the census was Saturday 1 November 1851. The enumeration was left to the governments of New Ulster and New Munster, the two provinces into which the country was then divided and was ordered by the Census Ordinance of 1851.[1][2] The census, which only surveyed European New Zealanders, revealed a population of 26,707.[3]
| First census of the Colony of New Zealand | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ||||
1851 census "Blue Book" statistics for "New Munster" (South Island). | ||||
| General information | ||||
| Country | Colony of New Zealand, British Empire | |||
| Results | ||||
| Total population | 26,707 | |||
| Most populous | Auckland (9,430) | |||
| Least populous | New Plymouth (1,532) | |||
General Census of 1851
- December 1851. (Reports appeared in Auckland Provincial Government Gazettes, 1853 and 1854.)[4]
Data availability
The Blue Books were statistical information from New Zealand's early Colonial period (1840–1855). They have information about population, revenue, military, trade, shipping, public works, legislation, civil servants, foreign consuls, land transactions, churches, schools, and prisons.[5]
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Population counts for the New Zealand districts. The original six were Auckland, New Plymouth, Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury, and Otago, though in 1858 New Plymouth was renamed Taranaki.
Birthplace
Population of New Zealand colony in 1851.[6][7]
| Birthplace | Population |
Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | New Zealand | - | 12.3 |
| Totals, Overseas-born | - | 87.7 | |
 | England | 13,485 | 50.5 |
 | Scotland | – | 12.7 |
| Ireland | – | 16.5 |
 | Wales | – | 0.4 |
| Totals, British Isles | – | 84.4 | |
| Other | – | 3.3 | |
| Colony of New Zealand | 26,707 | 100.0 | |
Religion
Members of Christian denominations formed 93.35 per cent. of those who made answer to the inquiry at the census; non-Christian sects were 0.24 per cent.; whilst "other" religions constituted 6.41 per cent.[8][9]
| Denomination | 1851 Census | |
|---|---|---|
| Number | Percent (%) | |
| Christian | 24,930 | 93.35 |
| Church of England | 14,179 | 53.09 |
| Presbyterians | 4,124 | 15.44 |
| Methodists | 2,755 | 10.31 |
| Baptist | 400 | 1.50 |
| Totals, Protestants | 21,458 | 80.34 |
| Roman; Catholic | 3,472 | 13.00 |
| Jews | 65 | 0.24 |
| Other specified religions | 1,712 | 6.41 |
| Totals, New Zealand | 26,707 | 100.0 |
Showing the numbers of livestock in the possession of Europeans in the several settlements in 1851.[10]
| Settlement | Horses | Mules and Asses | Horned Cattle | Sheep | Goats | Pigs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auckland | 1,035 | 11 | 10,943 | 11,075 | 2,604 | 5,679 |
| New Plymouth | 68 | - | 1,395 | 2,700 | 83 | 1,165 |
| Wellington (incl Hawkes Bay) | 788 | 28 | 11,407 | 64,009 | 2,654 | 3,135 |
| Nelson | 532 | 13 | 5,838 | 92,014 | 5,842 | 2,609 |
| Canterbury | 224 | 7 | 2,043 | 28,416 | 356 | 1,255 |
| Otago | 243 | 1 | 3,161 | 34,829 | 582 | 2,371 |
| Totals | 2,890 | 60 | 34,787 | 233,043 | 12,121 | 16,214 |
- "Government Gazette 1851 An Ordinance for taking a Census of the Colony of New Zealand". paperspast. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- "Census Act 1851 (15 Victoriae 1851 No 8)". New Zealand Acts As Enacted. New Zealand Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 10 May 2023.
- "A history of census-taking in New Zealand Early population counts". stats.govt.nz. Archived from the original on 13 November 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- "Chapter 2 Early Statistical Sources 19th Century" (PDF). Statistical Publications. Archived from the original (PDF) on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- "Blue Books: Statistics Information 1840-1855". Archives New Zealand. Download: New Munster Population. p. 133. Archived from the original on 25 March 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2022.
- Bueltmann, Tanja; Gleeson, David T.; MacRaild, Donald M. (2010). Locating the English Diaspora 1500-2010. ISBN 9781846318191. Retrieved 27 March 2020.
- Blackstock, Allan; O'Gorman, Frank (2014). Loyalism and the Formation of the British World, 1775–1914. ISBN 9781843839125. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
- Early New Zealand Books | 1851
- Religion in New Zealand Census data
- "Appendix to the Journals of the House of Representatives of New Zealand 1851–1861 Census of New Zealand". p. 12. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
