New Zealand Gazetteers


 * FamilySearch Places

Online Gazetteers

 * Land Information New Zealand
 * Gordon and Gotch, The Australian handbook and almanac for 1871, 1875, 1880, 1885, 1890, 1895, 1900 (Online images)
 * New Zealand Bradshaw A B C and guide, 1894, Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1974 (Online images)
 * Dollimore, Edward Steward, The New Zealand Guide, Dunedin, New Zealand : H. Wise & Co., 1962
 * H.Wise & Co., The New Zealand Index 1930, Cinderford, England : Archive CD Books, c2003
 * Shadbolt, Maurice, The Shell Guide to New Zealand, Christchurch, New Zealand : Whitcobe and Tombs, 1968
 * United States, Australia, New Zealand and Oceania, Official Standard Names Approved by the United States Board on Geographic Names., Washington, D.C. : Geographic Names Division, 1972
 * Bowden, Thomas Adolphus. Manual of New Zealand Geography, with Maps and Examination Questions, London, G. Philip and Son, 1872
 * Search the Archives of New Zealand using the term gazetteer to find additional resources.
 * World Gazetteers at Archive.org

Print Only Gazetteers

 * The New Zealand index annual, 1899
 * Discover New Zealand : a Wises guide
 * New Zealand. Department of Justice, Index of places and streets : showing electorates and no-licence districts, 1978
 * Wards, Ian, New Zealand atlas, Wellington, New Zealand : A. R. Shearer, 1976
 * H. Wise & Co., The New Zealand Index for Every Place in New Zealand for 1908, Auckaland, New Zealand : BAB Microfilming, 1988 (microfiche)
 * New Zealand Index to Places and Streets for Electoral Purposes, Wellington, New Zealand : Land Information New Zealand, 2005
 * Hargreaves, R. P., New Zealand, Former Town and Locality Names195-?
 * Whittleston, Edgar, Wise's New Zealand Guide : a Gazetteer of New Zealand, Dunedin, New Zealand : H. Wise & Co., 1969
 * Irwin, J., Checklist of New Zealand Lakes, Wellington, N.Z. : Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, 1975
 * New Zealand, Gazetteer of New Zealand Place Names, Wellington, 1968
 * Tūroa, Taimoana, Te Takoto o te whenua o Hauraki = Hauraki Landmarks, Birkenhead, Auckland : Reed, 2000.
 * The New Zealand Guide, Dunedin, H. Wise
 * Buchanan, J.D.H., The Maori History & Place names of Hawke's Bay, Wellington, Reed 1973
 * Search the Archives of New Zealand using the term gazetteer to find additional resources.

Why Use Gazetteers
A gazetteer is a dictionary of place-names. Gazetteers list or describe towns and villages, parishes, states, populations, rivers and mountains, and other geographical features. They usually include only the names of places that existed at the time the gazetteer was published. Within a specific geographical area, the place-names are listed in alphabetical order, similar to a dictionary. You can use a gazetteer to locate the places where your family lived and to determine the civil and religious jurisdictions over those places.

There are many places within a country with similar or identical place-names. You will need to use a gazetteer to identify the specific town where your ancestor lived, the state the town was or is in, and the jurisdictions where records about the person was kept.

Gazetteer Contents
Gazetteers may also provide additional information about towns, such as:


 * Different religious denominations
 * Schools, colleges, and universities
 * Major manufacturers, canals, docks, and railroad stations
 * The population size.
 * Boundaries of civil jurisdiction.
 * Ecclesiastical jurisdiction(s)
 * Longitude and latitude.
 * Distances and direction from other from cities.
 * Schools, colleges, and universities.
 * Denominations and number of churches.
 * Historical and biographical information on some individuals (usually high-ranking or famous individuals)