New England Online > Geography > Administrative Divisions > Municipalities
Municipalities
New England is divided into XX municipalities, which are third in the tier of administrative divisions. There are two types of municipality in New England, with all being either Cities or Rural Districts. As with most administrative divisions in New England, the municipalities have no councils or governance body, and are instead subdivsions for the purposes of statistical gathering and indirect administration.
Despite their lack of power, municipalities have a strong connexion to most New Englanders. It is the municipality that most people identify as being where they live instead of higher or lower subdivisions. Such is the hold on the general imagination, a plethora of organisations use municipalities as their means of indentity, with examples including clubs, sporting teams and residents associations.
Municipal Divisions
Cities - There are fourteen cities in New England, all of which have had their status conferred by letters patent. The status does not automatically apply on the basis of any particular criteria, although certain tests must be met before city status would be granted. For example, all cities must have a population greater than 50,000 people and must be a contingeous urban settlement. Eleven cities have been created since independence, with Armidale (1869), Coffs Harbour (1987) and Grafton (1885), all being proclaimed before this time. Unusually, both Armidale and Grafton achived their city status by virtue of being a diocesan seat for the Church of England, despite their population being less than 5,000 at the time.
Rural Districts - Outside the cities, the rest of New England is divided into XX rural districts. The districts are often used as wards for county council elections, with one or more thegns being elected from a rural district. A large number of districts are based on historical local government areas that dissapered long before New England became indpendent, such as Lower Macintyre which uses boundries similar to the former Ashford Shire. Rural Districts are further subdivided into Towns or Hundreds, with the destinction being similar to that for used to determine cities.
Purpose & Functions
As with most tiers of geographic subdivision, municipalities have no political power. They are occasionaly used for county elections, especially in rural areas.
The primary purpose for municipalities is their use to build a sense of community
Rejected Cities
A smaller number of communities have had an application for city status rejected.
Tenterfield - In 2034, Tenterfield applied for city status on the basis that it was a county seat. The application was rejected because Tenterfield had a population of just 24,000, which is less than half the minimun population required for city status to be granted.
| Municipalities of New England |
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| Cities: Armidale · Coffs Harbour · Dangarsleigh · Dumaresq · Glen Innes · Grafton · Guyra · Inverell · Kempsey Laurieton · Port Macquarie · Uralla · Wauchope · Woolgoolga Rural Districts: XX |
| Administrative Divisions of New England |
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| Regions · Counties · Municipalities · Parishes |
