A second South Island gold discovery, this time in Westland, draws thousands more gold-seekers from Australia and North America.

Westland was originally a part of Canterbury Province, administered from Christchurch in the East coast.

The booming population as a result of the gold rush, together with the difficulty of travel and communication across the Southern Alps, had led first to the creation of a special "Westland County", then the formal separation of Westland from Canterbury to form the short-lived Westland Province (1873–1876).

Westland Province also includes what is now the southern portion of Grey District with the provincial boundary at the Grey and Arnold rivers.