1896 New Zealand census

In 1895 the government considered holding censuses every 10 years instead of every five years. The next British census was due in 1901 and it was proposed that New Zealand cancel the upcoming 1896 census and instead take one in 1901, to fall into line with British census-taking.^[6] Members of Parliament debated the issue, concerned that population changes required changes in electoral boundaries. MP Alfred Newman stated that the population in the North Island had increased much more than that of the South Island, especially in Auckland due to a mining boom. He said that the South Island could end up with more representation than its population warranted.^[6] It was also argued that New Zealand's population was shifting and changing much more rapidly than the population in the United Kingdom.^[7] A bill to postpone the census was defeated,^[7] and it went ahead on 12 April 1896.

To carry out the census, New Zealand was divided into 33 enumerators' districts. The enumerators divided their districts into subdistricts, each with a sub-enumerator to distribute and collect household schedules. There were about 750 sub-enumerators in total. Each sub-enumerator was given a map of his district, marked into small blocks. The European population recorded in each block would help define electoral districts for the next general election.

Information collected about individuals included name, sex, age, marital status, birthplace, religion, occupation, education, whether British subject or alien, and state of health.^[8] Information about the size and construction materials of dwellings was collected, along with information relating to industries, places of worship, institutions and land use. The questions on the census form had been approved at a conference of statisticians in Hobart, Australia in 1890.^[8] Collection of information did not always go smoothly. The enumerator at Waipawa threatened to fine businesspeople in the counties of Waipawa and Pahiatua £20 for neglecting to send in their returns.^[9]

Once the completed schedules were returned, they were sorted with a card system. Printed cards were marked with the details of each person in the census; the cards could then be sorted by hand in various combinations according to the information required. The Hollerith electrical machine for punching, sorting and counting cards that was in use in the United States of America had been deemed unsuitable for countries like New Zealand with small populations.^[8][10]

The completed census for both Māori and non-Māori was submitted to Parliament on 26 April 1897.^[3]

Almost two thirds (62.85%) of the non-Māori population was born in New Zealand. Westland had the most foreign subjects (6.11%), and Marlborough had the fewest (0.59%).^[14] 'British allegiance' included everyone born in British possessions, naturalised British subjects and British subjects born abroad. Those who were born at sea or who had not specified a birthplace were deemed British if they had a British-sounding name.^[14]

There were 3,719 people born in China, of whom only 24 were female. This was a decrease of 16.8 % from the 4,470 Chinese-born people counted in 1891.^[15] Most Chinese (1,769) lived in Otago, with smaller communities in Nelson (721), Wellington (474), Westland (370), Auckland (192) and Canterbury (105).^[16]

Half of the Scottish-born population lived in Otago.^[16] Most Scandinavians (from Denmark, Sweden and Norway) lived in Wellington Province (1622), with other communities in Hawke's Bay (932), Auckland (751), Otago (555) and Canterbury (428).^[16]

The non-Māori census asked what occupations the population followed. 31 % of the male population over 10 years old was engaged in farm work (order 21 in the following table). The most common occupations for women were domestic roles (order 3) and dressmaking and millinery (order 15). Only 987 girls aged between 5 and 15 years old were in paid domestic employment,^[19] a sharp drop from the previous census in 1891 which showed 1,402 girls doing such work.^[20] Some unusual occupations recorded in the census include an ostrich farmer, a zymologist, 11 medical galvanists and 14 phrenologists.^[21]

Just over 58% of the population was described as "dependents". This category included wives and widows without an occupation; children at home or in orphanages or industrial schools; parents depending on adult children; patients in hospitals and asylums; and prisoners.^[19]

The census of Māori was held during February 1896. Circulars written in Māori were printed to explain the purpose of the census.^[22] Enumerators tried to appoint sub-enumerators who were Māori or who had good local knowledge and good relations with local people, and ideally could speak Māori, but there was sometimes difficulty finding suitable men who would do the work for the pay offered and in the face of Māori suspicion or opposition to the census.^[22] Enumerators travelled around their districts filling in blank forms with the details of the people in each locality.^[22] As enumerators filed their reports with the government, they commented on the living conditions, local epidemics, housing and farming in Māori communities.^[22]

The Māori population was calculated to be 39,854 people, almost all living in the North Island. The population included Māori women with European husbands, part-Māori living in Māori communities or tribes, and Moriori. Part-Māori living European-style were included in the main census. The population had decreased slightly from the 41,993 Māori recorded in the previous census in 1891.^[23] There were difficulties comparing numbers with the previous census. Population changes since then were partly explained by the mobility of the people, who had moved to work on the gum fields and railway works, or gone travelling to follow Te Kooti or for Land Court sittings.^[22] Enumerators commented that there were fewer children than expected, and believed that poor nutrition and bad sanitation had led to the younger generation being less healthy than the older people.^[22]

There were also difficulties taking the census. An enumerator in the Upper Waikato area reportedly travelled through two or three hundred miles of his district without enrolling a single person, because Māori refused to provide any information.^[24] Many Māori refused to provide their details because they feared it would lead to more taxation.^[25][26][22] In an area near Rotorua, the enumerator said that Māori in the previous census had given made up names, believing that "if the Government knew that a certain tribe only consisted of a few individuals they would got no concessions whatever. They considered that numbers would carry weight both in the native land court and in other matters". The enumerator used his personal local knowledge to ensure that fictitious names were not recorded this time.^[26]

The enumerator at Kihikihi stated that "the work of taking the census has not been by any means an easy task". People in areas ruled by the Māori King Mahuta Tāwhiao said that he had recently taken his own census, and they didn't see why they should provide information about themselves or their stock and crops to the government enumerators.^[22]