Between 1942 and 1973, mainland New Zealand’s inch-to-the-mile (1:63,360) topographic maps were created using the North Island Yard Grid and South Island Yard Grid projections. These were based on imperial units, including the yard (.9144 meters).
The New Zealand Yard Grid was established to provide a consistent and standardized way of mapping and surveying across the country. It was used for New Zealand Map Series 1 (NZMS1), a range of map sheets covering the country in areas of 1° latitude by 2° longitude.
The North Island Yard Grid and South Island Yard Grid projections were replaced when the metric system was introduced. They were superseded by New Zealand Map Grid (NZMG) and later New Zealand Transverse Mercator (NZTM2000).
The yard grids may still be referenced in older databases.
Find out more about projections
| Name | North Island Yard Grid |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | NIYG |
| EPSG number | 27291 |
| Projection type | Transverse Mercator |
| Reference ellipsoid | International 1924 |
| Datum | New Zealand Geodetic Datum 1949 (NZGD1949) |
| Origin latitude | 39° 00' 00" South |
| Origin longitude / central meridan | 175° 30' 00" East |
| False Northing | 400,000 yards North |
| False Easting | 300,000 yards East |
| Central meridian scale factor | 1.0000 |
| Name | South Island Yard Grid |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | SIYG |
| EPSG number | 27292 |
| Projection type | Transverse Mercator |
| Reference ellipsoid | International 1924 |
| Datum | New Zealand Geodetic Datum 1949 (NZGD1949) |
| Origin latitude | 44° 00' 00" South |
| Origin longitude / central meridan | 171° 30' 00" East |
| False Northing | 500,000 yards North |
| False Easting | 500,000 yards East |
| Central meridian scale factor | 1.0000 |