14 Facts About Edward Tregear

Edward Tregear was an architect of New Zealand's advanced social reforms and progressive labour legislation during the 1890s.

Edward Tregear was born in Southampton, England, on 1 May 1846, the son of Captain William Henry Tregear, a descendant of an old Cornish family.

Edward Tregear arrived in Auckland in June 1863 and took a position as a surveyor.

Poverty forced Edward Tregear to enlist in the Auckland Engineer Volunteers.

Edward Tregear saw action against the Maori in the Tauranga area and was awarded the New Zealand War Medal.

Edward Tregear frequently contributed articles on Maori anthropology to scholarly British journals, received fellowships of the Royal Geographical Society and the Royal Historical Society.

Edward Tregear was to repeat and refine his theory of the Aryan origin of Maori in many works during the succeeding two decades.

Edward Tregear was editor of the Journal of the Department of Labour.

In 1891 Edward Tregear published the Maori-Polynesian Comparative Dictionary which is regarded as his most important contribution to scholarship.

Edward Tregear completed a substantial work, The Maori Race in 1904.

Edward Tregear retired to Picton in the South Island where he died on 28 October 1931.

Edward Tregear was survived by his wife Bessie and their only daughter Vera.

Edward Tregear is regarded as an architect of the advanced social reforms which drew the world's attention to New Zealand.

Edward Tregear was a prolific writer in a range of creative writing genres including poetry, satire and children's fairy stories, besides scholarly papers of anthropology and sociology.