List of colonial governors of Samoa
List
(Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) On 1 January 1962, Western Samoa achieved independence following the passage of the 1961 referendum.

List of colonial governors of Samoa

Section Title: List
Table Section Text: (Dates in italics indicate de facto continuation of office) On 1 January 1962, Western Samoa achieved independence following the passage of the 1961 referendum.

Tenure	Portrait	Incumbent	Notes

In 1900, according to the Tripartite Convention and following the Second Samoan Civil War, the Samoan Islands were annexed by the German Empire, except for the part that is to become American Samoa.

Governors of German Samoa (1900–1914)

1 March 1900 to 19 December 1911	-	Wilhelm Heinrich Solf	Afterwards served as the Secretary of State in the Reichskolonialamt, between 1911–1918

19 December 1911 to 29 August 1914	-	Erich Schultz-Ewerth [de]	Acting to 19 June 1912

In 1914, as part of the Asian and Pacific theatre of World War I, an expeditionary force from the Dominion of New Zealand called the Samoa Expeditionary Force (SEF) captured and occupied the territory.

Administrators of Western Samoa (1914–1948)

29 August 1914 to 28 January 1919	-	Colonel Robert Logan

28 January 1919 to 16 March 1923	-	Robert Ward Tate

16 March 1923 to 8 April 1928	-	George Spafford Richardson	From 3 June 1925, Sir George Spafford Richardson

5 May 1928 to 3 April 1931	-	Stephen Shepherd Allen

18 April 1931 to 1935	-	Herbert Ernest Hart

25 July 1935 to 1946	-	Alfred Clarke Turnbull	From 1942, Sir Alfred Clarke Turnbull; acting to 1943

1946 to 10 March 1948	-	Francis William Voelcker

High Commissioners of Western Samoa (1948–1961)

10 March 1948 to 1949	-	Francis William Voelcker

March 1949 to February 1960	-	Guy Richardson Powles

February 1960 to 31 December 1961	-	John Bird Wright	Acting to June 1960

Sentence(s)

In March 1923, Richardson was appointed Administrator of Western Samoa.

final_sentence: In March 1923, Richardson was appointed Administrator of Western Samoa.