John Pascoe

• Name — John Pascoe • Birth Name — John Dobrée Pascoe • Born — 26 September 1908 • Birthplace — Christchurch, New Zealand • Died — 20 October 1972 • Place of death — Christchurch, New Zealand

Pascoe was born in Christchurch, New Zealand in 1908. His twin brother was Paul, who would later become a notable architect. John Pascoe received his education at Sumner School and Christ's College. He joined his father's law firm and studied the subject, but did not graduate.

Pascoe was bored with legal work, so he enquired with Joe Heenan, the under-secretary for the Department of Internal Affairs, whether there were employment opportunities. Pascoe was put on a team working on the 1940 centennial publications, and he thus moved to Wellington. Pascoe was appointed Official War Photographer in 1942. His photographs concentrated on social experiences of workers in wartime New Zealand; many became iconic representations of New Zealand's domestic experience of that war. After the war, Pascoe was the founding secretary of the National Historic Places Trust in 1955. In 1960 he was controller of the Wildlife Branch. As National Archivist, he convinced the government statistician to keep the 1966 census forms for future research. Unlike most other countries, New Zealand had never kept its census forms, and upon Pascoe's initiative, the 1976 and 1986 forms were subsequently also kept and are in secure storage.

Pascoe climbed extensively throughout the South Island of New Zealand. It is claimed he summited over 100 peaks, of which some 23 were first ascents. For his work on New Zealand mountaineering, literature, mapping and photography, he was made a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. In 1934, Pascoe led an expedition to the Garden of Eden Ice Plateau, giving the plateau its name and establishing the convention of biblical names for features in that area. Pascoe's name for the plateau was originally rejected by the New Zealand Geographic Board for its biblical origins, with the Board suggesting that it be given a name derived from classical mythology instead. Pascoe never climbed without his camera and notebook, records from which contributed to a stream of publications.

John Pascoe is recorded with the occupation photographer. Recorded as photographer, historian, archivist and mountaineer.