Identity area
Reference code
AU PMB MS 1189
Title
Date(s)
- 1881-1993 (Creation)
Level of description
Collection
Extent and medium
11 reels; 35mm microfilm; Digital PDF
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
Born in Wellington, New Zealand, 23 October 1921, Sir Colin took a BA (1943) and MA (1945) at Canterbury University and a Diploma in Anthropology at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He served with the NZ army (1942-44) and with the British Solomon Islands Defence Force (1945).
Sir Colin was appointed in 1945 as an Administrative Cadet in the British Colonial Service and spent a brief training period in the Western District of Fiji. Transferred to the British Solomon Islands Protectorate (BSIP), he served first as District Officer Nggela, Western Solomons, then D.O. and District Commissioner Western (1946-1948), D.O. Choiseul and Ysabel (1948), D.O. Malu`u (1949) and finally District Commissioner Malaita (1950-1952) at the time of the Maasina Rule (also Maasina Ruru or Marching Rule). He was appointed by the High Commissioner of the Western Pacific to be Special Lands Commissioner on 10 July 1953.
In 1954 Sir Colin was seconded to the Western Pacific High Commission Secretariat as Senior Assistant Secretary, Finance and Development. Here Sir Colin completed the report of the Solomon Islands Special Lands Commission on 17 June 1957. He served as Secretary of the BSIP Agriculture and Industrial Affairs Board (1956-57), Chaired the BSIP Copra Marketing Board (1957-58) and represented the UK on the South Pacific Commission Research Council (1958).
In 1959 Sir Colin transferred to Port Vila where he was appointed Assistant British Resident Commissioner of the New Hebrides Condominium (1959-66) and then Resident Commissioner (1966-73). Sir Colin was appointed Governor and Commander in Chief of the Seychelles (1973-76) and then Governor of the Solomon Islands (1976-1978) at the time of their independence. He was the last High Commissioner of the Western Pacific. Sir Colin was knighted in 1977 and retired in 1978.
He died in New Zealand on 5 March 1993.
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Scope and content
Born in Wellington, New Zealand, 23 October 1921, Sir Colin took a BA (1943) and MA (1945) at Canterbury University and a Diploma in Anthropology at Magdalene College, Cambridge. He served with the NZ army (1942-44) and with the British Solomon Islands Defence Force (1945).
Sir Colin was appointed in 1945 as an Administrative Cadet in the British Colonial Service and spent a brief training period in the Western District of Fiji. Transferred to the British Solomon Islands Protectorate, he served first as District Officer Nggela, Western Solomons, then D.O. and District Commissioner Western (1946-1948), D.O. Choiseul and Ysabel (1948), D.O. Malu`u (1949) and finally District Commissioner Malaita (1950-1952) at the time of the Marching Rule. He was appointed by the High Commissioner of the Western Pacific to be Special Lands Commissioner on 10 July 1953.
In 1954 Sir Colin was seconded to the Western Pacific High Commission Secretariat as Senior Assistant Secretary, Finance and Development. Here Sir Colin completed the report of the Solomon Islands Special Lands Commission on 17 June 1957. He served as Secretary of the BSIP Agriculture and Industrial Affairs Board (1956-57), Chaired the BSIP Copra Marketing Board (1957-58) and represented the UK on the South Pacific Commission Research Council (1958).
In 1959 Sir Colin transferred to Port Vila where he was appointed Assistant British Resident Commissioner of the New Hebrides Condominium (1959-66) and then Resident Commissioner (1966-73). Sir Colin was appointed Governor and Commander in Chief of the Seychelles (1973-76) and then Governor of the Solomon Islands (1976-1978) at the time of their independence. He was the last High Commissioner of the Western Pacific. Sir Colin was knighted in 1977 and retired from his illustrious career in 1978.
Sir Colin had a close association with Professor Jim Davidson and other members of the faculty in Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies and the National Centre for Development Studies, having been a Visiting Fellow in the Australian National University for a time. His publications include Customary Land Tenure in the Solomon Islands, 1958, based on the report of the Special Lands Commission, Constitution Making in New Island States, 1982, and Solomons Safari, 1989.
Reel 1: PMB 1189/1-21 Sir Colin manuscripts and articles (with reviews), 1951-88; PMB 1189/22-23 Sir Colin’s speeches, 1967-84; PMB 1189/24 Sir Colin’s press articles about Marching Rule, 1945-51; PMB 1189/25 Sir Colin’s letters to editors re colonial administration, 1981-82; PMB 1189/100-107 Papers re the Solomon Islands, 1881-1980.
Reel 2: PMB 1189/108-125 Papers re the Solomon Islands, 1881-1980, cont.
Reel 3: PMB 1189/126-142 Papers re the Solomon Islands, 1881-1980, cont.
Reel 4: PMB 1189/143-159 Papers re the Solomon Islands, 1881-1980, cont.; PMB 1189/160-167 Papers re Vanuatu (New Hebrides), 1897-1993.
Reel 5: PMB 1189/168-183 Papers re Vanuatu (New Hebrides), 1897-1993, cont.
Reel 6: PMB 1189/184-196 Papers re Vanuatu (New Hebrides), 1897-1993, cont.
Reel 7: PMB 1189/197-216 Papers re Vanuatu (New Hebrides), 1897-1993, cont.; PMB 1189/217-218 Papers re general Pacific matters, 1944-1983.
Reel 8: PMB 1189/219-229 Papers re general Pacific matters, 1944-1983, cont.; PMB 1189/267-271 Papers on constitutional development in the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, including resettlement of Gilbertese in the Solomons, 1943-1987.
Reel 9: PMB 1189/272-273 Papers on constitutional development, cont.; PMB 1189/276-280, 285-291 Selected press cuttings, 1953-1989; PMB 1189/294 Selected printed material – Solomon Islands.
Reel 10: PMB 1189/295, 298, 301-303, 306-312 Selected printed material – Solomon Islands, cont.; PMB 1189/384-385, 388 Selected printed material – Vanuatu.
Reel 11: PMB 1189/394-397, 400 Selected printed material – Vanuatu, cont.
<B>See Finding aids for details.</B>
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Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Institution: Pacific Research Archives
Address: ANU Archives, 2 Menzies Place, Australian National University, Acton 2601 ACT
Country: Australia
Existence and location of copies
Access this title at PMB Member Libraries or by contacting the Bureau directly: http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/pambu/accessing.php
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Note
Not all items were copied onto microfilm from original papers but were listed. See reel list for full details. Original papers are now held in the Pacific Research Archives in the Australian National University Archives as Series ANUA 368.
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Description identifier
ms1189
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Dates of creation revision deletion
28 August 2024: Location of originals field updated from 'Pacific Manuscripts Bureau' to 'Pacific Research Archives'.
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Digital object metadata
Filename
Digital_reference_image.pdf
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Media type
Text
Mime-type
application/pdf