John Graham was a New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

 Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 for Nelson

Nelson, New Zealand

Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....

 in the South Island

South Island

The South Island is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand, the other being the more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman Sea, to the south and east by the Pacific Ocean...

.

Early life

Graham was born in Nelson in 1843, the eldest son of one of the earliest settlers of the region.

Member of Parliament

John Graham represented the Nelson electorate

Nelson (New Zealand electorate)

Nelson is a New Zealand Parliamentary electorate, returning one Member of Parliament to the New Zealand House of Representatives. From 1853 to 1860, the electorate was called Town of Nelson. From 1860 to 1881, it was City of Nelson...

 in the New Zealand House of Representatives

New Zealand House of Representatives

The New Zealand House of Representatives is the sole chamber of the legislature of New Zealand. The House and the Queen of New Zealand form the New Zealand Parliament....

 for 18 years from 1893

New Zealand general election, 1893

The New Zealand general election of 1893 was held on Tuesday, 28 November in the general electorates, and on Wednesday, 20 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 74 MPs to the 12th session of the New Zealand Parliament...

 to 1911

New Zealand general election, 1911

The New Zealand general election of 1911 was held on Thursday, 7 and 14 December in the general electorates, and on Tuesday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 80 MPs to the 18th session of the New Zealand Parliament...

, when he retired.

The 1893 general election was contested by four candidates in Nelson: Graham (1289 votes), Richmond Hursthouse

Richmond Hursthouse

Richmond Hursthouse was a 19th century Member of Parliament in Nelson, New Zealand, and a cabinet minister.He represented the Motueka electorate from 1876 to 1887 when he was defeated....

 (1011 votes), John Kerr

John Kerr (Nelson politician)

John Kerr was a 19th century Member of Parliament from Nelson, New Zealand.Following the resignation from Parliament of Joseph Shephard, who had been appointed to the Legislative Council, a Waimea by-election was held on 3 June 1885. It was contested by six candidates: Kerr , W. N. Franklyn ,...

 (910 votes) and William Lock

William Lock

William Lock was Mayor of Nelson from 1913 to 1915 and again from 1921 to 1927. Lock was an auctioneer, and a grain and produce merchant for 40 years. During his term as Mayor, HMS New Zealand visited Nelson in 1913...

 (74 votes). The 1896 general election

New Zealand general election, 1896

The New Zealand general election of 1896 was held on Wednesday, 4 December in the general electorates, and on Thursday, 19 December in the Māori electorates to elect a total of 74 MPs to the 13th session of the New Zealand Parliament...

 was contested by Graham and Jesse Piper

Jesse Piper

Jesse Piper was a Nelson City Councillor and Mayor.- Early life:Piper was born in 1836 at Hastings, Sussex, England. He went to sea as a youth. On the outbreak of the Crimean War joined the storeship HMS Apollo and sailed to Malta...

, who received 2061 and 1718 votes, respectively. Graham was thus elected with a majority of 343 votes.

Independent Liberal

In 1894, Graham successfully opposed the Midland Railway Bill insofar as it proposed to abandon the obligations of the company to provide a railway to Nelson.

As Chairman of the Banking Enquiry Committee of 1896, John Graham frequently came into conflict with the Premier Richard Seddon

Richard Seddon

Richard John Seddon , sometimes known as King Dick, is to date the longest serving Prime Minister of New Zealand. He is regarded by some, including historian Keith Sinclair, as one of New Zealand's greatest political leaders....

, the Minister of Lands, John McKenzie, and George Hutchison

Public offices

Graham was for some years chairman of the Town Schools' Committee. He was the first chairman of the Nelson Harbour Board and held that position for twelve years. He served on the Nelson Education Board, the Board of Governors of Nelson College

Nelson College

Nelson College is a boys-only state secondary school in Nelson, New Zealand. It teaches from years 9 to 13. In addition, it runs a private Preparatory School for year 7 and 8 boys...

 (1894) and Council of Victoria College in Wellington

Wellington

Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...

 (1899–1912). He was also a member of the Nelson City Council

Nelson City Council

Nelson City Council is a Unitary Authority that administers the Nelson Tasman or "Top of the South" region alongside Tasman District Council. Nelson City Council is one of only five Unitary Authorities in the country...

.

Death

Graham died in Feilding on 8 February 1926, after having lived in Nelson for practically all of his life.

Further reading