1924 in New Zealand

Incumbents

Regal and viceregal

• Head of State – George V
• Governor-General – The Viscount Jellicoe GCB OM GCVO succeeded by General Sir Charles Fergusson Bt GCMG KCB DSO MVO

  Government

• Speaker of the House – Charles Statham
• Prime Minister – William Massey
• Minister of Finance – William Massey
• Chief Justice – Sir Robert Stout

  Parliamentary opposition

• Leader of the Opposition – Thomas Wilford.

  Main centre leaders

• Mayor of Auckland – James Gunson
• Mayor of Wellington – Robert Wright
• Mayor of Christchurch – James Arthur Flesher
• Mayor of Dunedin – Harold Livingstone Tapley

  Events

• Actinidia deliciosa 'Hayward', which was to become the main commercial cultivar of kiwifruit was first grown in 1924.

  Arts and literature

Music

Broadcasting

Film

• Venus of the South Seas

Sport

• See: 1924 in sports, :Category:1924 in sports.

  Athletics

• Arthur Porritt won the bronze medal in the Men's 100m at the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris. He also came 5th in the 200m.

  Chess

• The 33rd National Chess Championship was held in Wellington, and was won by S. Crakanthorp of Sydney.

  Golf

• The 11th New Zealand Open championship was won by Ernie Moss, with an aggregate of 301.
• The 28th National Amateur Championships were held in Auckland
• * Men: L. Quin
• * Women: Mrs ? Peake

  Horse racing

Harness racing

• New Zealand Trotting Cup – Sheik
• Auckland Trotting Cup – Locanda Mac

  Thoroughbred racing

• ARC Great Northern Derby – Ballymena

  Lawn bowls

• Men's singles champion – W. Carswell
• Men's pair champions – James Angus, J.A. Redpath
• Men's fours champions – W. Ure, H.S. Hill, C.G. Maher, Bill Bremner

  Olympic games

Rugby union

• An All Black team toured the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and Canada between September and February 1925. They won all 32 games on tour, and were nicknamed The Invincibles
• The Ranfurly Shield was held and defended by Hawkes Bay all season.

  Rugby League

• Great Britain toured New Zealand, losing the test series 2–1
• * 1st test, GB 31 – NZ 18, Dunedin
• * 2nd test, NZ 13 – GB 11, Wellington
• * 3rd test, NZ 16 – GB 8, Auckland

  Soccer

• 2nd Chatham Cup won by Harbour Board
• A Chinese Universities football team toured New Zealand, including four matches against the national team:
• * 16 August, Auckland: NZ won 2–1
• * 23 August, Wellington: draw 2–2
• * 6 September, Dunedin: NZ won 5–3
• * 13 September, Christchurch: NZ won 4–2
• Provincial league champions:
• * Auckland: Harbour Board
• * Canterbury: Sunnyside
• * Hawke's Bay: Whakatu
• * Nelson: Athletic
• * Otago: Seacliff
• * South Canterbury: Albion Rovers
• * Southland: Corinthians
• * Taranaki: Kaponga
• * Wanganui: YMCA
• * Wellington: YMCA

  Wrestling

• Ike Robin becomes recognised as New Zealand's first wrestling champion

  Births

January

• 5 January – Ivan Wyatt, cricketer
• 11 January – Rex Cunningham, rugby league player
• 13 January – Brian Barratt-Boyes, heart surgeon
• 15 January
• * Barbara Angus, diplomat, historian
• * George Lowe, mountaineer and explorer
• 21 January
• * Bill Andersen, trade unionist
• * Ronald Sinclair, actor, film editor
• 22 January – Ortvin Sarapu, chess player
• 27 January
• * Lyn Philp, boxer
• * Hector Wilson, rugby union player
• 28 January – Wharetutu Stirling, Ngāi Tahu leader, conservationist

  February

• 14 February
• * Bos Murphy, boxer
• * Reg Singer, association footballer
• 24 February – Jack Forrest, rugby league player
• 29 February – David Beattie, jurist, sports administrator, 14th Governor-General of New Zealand

  March

• 5 March – Nau Cherrington, rugby union player
• 6 March – Percy Murphy, politician, first Māori mayor
• 7 March
• * J.G.A. Pocock, historian
• * Brownie Puriri, public servant
• 9 March – Warren Sinclair, radiation science and medicine expert
• 10 March – Peter Stichbury, potter
• 22 March – Grace Gooder, cricketer
• 24 March – Norm Holland, jockey
• 29 March – Haydn Sherley, broadcaster
• 31 March – Joan de Hamel, children's writer

  April

• 1 April – John Morton, marine zoologist, theologian, conservationist
• 2 April – Lauris Edmond, poet and writer
• 3 April – Errol Brathwaite, writer
• 18 April – Tiny White, equestrian
• 30 April
• * Richard Giese, flautist
• * Mervyn Probine, physicist, public servant

  May

• 1 May – Ted Johnson, rower
• 5 May – Frank Creagh, boxer
• 12 May – Malcolm Templeton, diplomat
• 22 May – Stella Casey, social campaigner

  June

• 2 June – Pat Evison, actor
• 3 June – Ken Armstrong, association footballer
• 7 June – Bob Tizard, politician
• 8 June – Ian Colquhoun, cricketer
• 9 June – John Scott, architect
• 14 June
• * David Ballantyne, journalist, writer
• * Miriam Dell, women's advocate

  July

• 7 July – D. P. O'Connell, barrister, legal academic
• 15 July
• * Bub Bridger, poet and short story writer
• * Brian Sutton-Smith, writer and play theorist
• 23 July – Betty Bourke, politician, health administrator
• 25 July
• * Jim Beard, architect
• * Peter Mann, Anglican bishop
• 26 July – Ces Renwick, cricketer
• 28 July
• * Eric Fisher, cricketer
• * William Fraser, politician

  August

• 1 August – Peter Smith, rugby union player
• 2 August – Ainsley Iggo, neurophysiologist
• 7 August – Alan Wilkinson, association footballer
• 13 August – John Rymer, Anglican cleric
• 22 August – Pat O'Connor, professional wrestler
• 23 August
• * Bahri Kavaja, association footballer
• * Doug Mudgway, amateur wrestler
• 28 August
• * Tony MacGibbon, cricketer
• * Janet Frame, writer
• 31 August – Don Beaven, medical researcher

  September

• 3 September – John Ingram, mechanical engineer, businessman
• 4 September – Lory Blanchard, rugby league player and coach
• 5 September – Nick Carter, cyclist
• 6 September – Hugh Poole, sailor
• 8 September – Frank Holmes, economist
• 15 September – Rex Challies, cricketer
• 17 September – Les Watt, cricketer
• 24 September – Sammy Guillen, cricketer
• 27 September – Louis Johnson, poet
• 30 September – Trevor Hatherton, geophysicist

  October

• 5 October – Victor Brooker, cricketer
• 11 October – Arthur Hughes, rugby union player, businessman, horse racing administrator
• 19 October – Keith Gudsell, rugby union player
• 30 October – Roy McLennan, politician

  November

• 2 December – Gerald O'Brien, politician
• 5 November – Geoff Smale, sailor
• 23 November
• * Doug Coombes, mineralogist and petrologist
• * Doug Dillon, jurist
• 28 November – Colin McLachlan, politician

  December

• 2 December – Brian Poananga, sportsman, military leader, diplomat
• 5 December – Gavin Downie, politician
• 7 December – Jimmy Haig, rugby union and rugby league player
• 12 December
• * Neill Austin, politician
• * Brown Turei, Anglican archbishop
• 23 December – Len Castle, potter
• 26 December – Leonard Kent, cricketer
• 28 December – Loo-Chi Hu, marine equipment designer, t'ai chi teacher
• 29 December
• * Eve Poole, 41st Mayor of Invercargill
• * Bob Vance, cricket player and administrator
• * Ivan Walsh, association footballer, cricketer
• 30 December – Joe Phillips, rugby league player

  Deaths

January–March

• 5 January – Mary Player, midwife, feminist, social reformer
• 6 January – Henry Hill, cricketer
• 19 January – Frances Parker, suffragette
• 24 January – Acton Adams, politician
• 27 January – William Gardiner, cricketer
• 2 February
• * Daniel Claffey, cricketer
• * John Duncan, politician
• 11 February – Arthur Lomas, cricketer
• 17 February – James Tibbs, schoolteacher
• 22 February – Mary Dawson, farmer, environmentalist
• 24 February – Joseph Borton, cricketer
• 1 March – Elizabeth Parsons, singer
• 4 March – Gilbert Carson, politician
• 6 March – Grace Joel, artist
• 10 March – George Bourne, photographer
• 17 March – Martin Chapman, cricketer, barrister, politician

  April–June

• 3 April – Alfred Newman, politician
• 19 April – Charles Louisson, politician
• 7 May – Alfred Luttrell, architect and building contractor
• 9 May – James Mason, doctor, bacteriologist, public health administrator
• 19 May – Joseph Pabst, cricketer

  July–September

• 17 July – William Davidson, pioneer of refrigerated shipping
• 19 July – Sir Walter Buchanan. politician
• 25 July – Lawrence Birks, electrical engineer
• 10 August – Edward Wakefield, politician
• 19 August – Alfred Baldey, politician
• 17 September – Richard Vincent, cricketer
• 19 September – Sir John Salmond, legal academic, public servant, jurist
• 27 September – Thomson Leys, journalist, newspaper editor and proprietor, philanthropist

  October–December

• 18 October – Walter Mason, cricketer
• 23 October – Eparaima Te Mutu Kapa, politician
• 13 November – Charles Boxshall, cricketer
• 27 November – Joseph Grimmond, politician
• 15 December – Paratene Ngata, Ngāti Porou leader, politician
• 19 December – William Maslin, politician