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Anglican Diocese of Nelson

anglican diocese in New Zealand

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General referenceInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionMay 25, 2026
Entity authorityQ4763501 ↗
Source-derived summary

The Diocese of Nelson is one of the 13 dioceses and hui amorangi (Māori bishoprics) of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The Diocese covers the northern part of the South Island of New Zealand, which is mostly the area north of a line drawn from Greymouth to Kaikōura.

The Diocese was founded in 1858 and the seat of the Bishop is at Christ Church Cathedral in Nelson.

On 31 August 2019, Steve Maina was ordained and installed as Bishop of Nelson.

Nelson Diocese is a noted Evangelical diocese, drawing similarities with the Anglican Diocese of Sydney, in Australia.

List of bishops

The following individuals have served as the Bishop of Nelson, or any precursor title:

Archdeaconries

In 1866, the sole archdeaconry – of Waimea – was vacant.

Archdeacon of Waimea

?–1859 (res.): Ven Robert B. Paul

1859–1874: vacant

1874–1880 (res.): Ven Thorpe

1880–1891: Ven Charles O. Mules-(Later Bishop of Nelson)

1898–1908: Ven Aldred C. Wright

1909–1915: Ven William Baker

1915–1926: Ven John P. Kempthorne

1926–?: Ven John Dart

1940–1949: Ven Oliver J. Kimberly

1949: Ven Thomas E. Champion

?-?

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Anglican Diocese of Nelson” as anglican diocese in New Zealand. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Anglican, Diocese and Nelson.

Editorial reviewA practical starting point whose main value is the path it opens into stronger specialist and primary sources. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1858, 2019, 1866, 1859—that can be checked directly. The selected authority fields contribute no independent date. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Anglican, Diocese and Nelson providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Anglican Diocese of Nelson”, the useful work is to connect “anglican diocese in New Zealand” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Vocabulary and entity names are the principal evidence signals here, because they determine the precision of every later search. The source revision retrieved here is dated May 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q4763501. Authority coordinates are -41.271, 173.286. 1 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1858, 2019, 1866 and 1859.

Critical limits

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Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.

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  2. Expand the search: follow Anglican Diocese of Nelson primary sources, Anglican Diocese of Nelson archive and Anglican research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Anglican Diocese of Nelson” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.