Thomas William Hislop
Encyclopedia
Thomas William Hislop was the Mayor of Wellington
from 1905 to 1908, and had represented two South Island electorates in the New Zealand
Parliament.
, West Lothian
in 1850. His father, John Hislop, was the first secretary for Education in New Zealand. The family left Scotland in 1856 on the Strathmore and landed in Port Chalmers
. They settled in East Taieri. He was educated by his father until the age of twelve, and then attended John Shaw's Grammar School (Albany Street, Dunedin), Dunedin High School
and University of Otago
, where he studied law. He was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in 1871, only a few months after his teacher from Shaw's Grammar, Robert Stout
(who later became Premier
and then Chief Justice
). He practised as a lawyer in Oamaru (in a firm where he was a colleague of Stout ), in which town he resided until 1890. After the 1890 election defeat, he moved to Wellington
, where he became a partner in the legal firm of Brandon and Hislop (later Brandon, Hislop and Johnston) with Alfred Brandon
.
in the 1876 general election, and was re-elected in 1879
. He resigned on 28 April 1880 "for private reasons". He then represented Oamaru
from an 1885 by-election to 1889, when he resigned from his two ministerial portfolios (effective 10 September 1889) and his parliamentary seat (effective 4 September 1889) over the Ward–Hislop Affair. He won the resulting 1889 by-election, but was defeated by Thomas Young Duncan
at the next general election in 1890
. He contested the 1896 general election
in the Wellington Suburbs
electorate, but was defeated by Thomas Mason Wilford
, with 2194 to 1942 votes. An election petition was filed one month after the election, accusing Wilford of bribery, illegal practices and not being properly registered as a voter himself. Therefore, it was argued, that only Hislop was properly registered, and should thus be returned. Wilford's election was declared invalid, but a by-election was called. Hislop declared that he would not stand in the by-election in favour of the opposition candidate Arthur Richmond Atkinson
, who had come forth in the three-member Wellington electorate
. Charles Wilson
from the Liberal Party
narrowly defeated Atkinson in the 1897 by-election, though.
He was a member of the Atkinson
Ministry from 1887 to 1891, holding posts as Colonial Secretary
and Minister of Education
. The education portfolio filled Hislop with great pleasure, as he was thus following in his father's footsteps, as he had been the author of the Education Act. Hislop drafted the Fair Rent Bill, which was introduced by the fifth Atkinson Ministry, and passed through the Lower House. He also introduced labour bills, factory and shop hours, and employers’ liability bills, also building liens and the Truck Act, which, however, were not passed. He was successful in passing the Shipping and Seamen’s Act. He also affected some useful legal reforms, and introduced the Representation Bill, a measure based on the Hare system
, but this was withdrawn. Hislop’s political views were on the left of the spectrum.
As a minister, he was involved in the 1889 Paris Exposition
. For that, and for his services to education in general, he was honoured by the French Government with a Legion of Honour.
Hislop was Mayor of Wellington from 1905 to 1908.
He was a Member of the Legislative Council
from 1921 until his death.
Hislop married Annie Simpson on 18 February 1873 at Knox Church
in Dunedin
. They had two sons and three daughters. His first wife died in 1909. His son Thomas Charles Atkinson Hislop
was Mayor of Wellington from 1931 to 1944.
On 27 May 1922 at St Johns Church in Willis Street, he married Marguerite Estelle Louis Smith (known as Louis Smith) of Wellington.
Hislop died on 2 October 1925 at his residence. He was buried at Karori
Cemetery in Wellington on 5 October of that year. He was survived by his second wife and his children.
Mayor of Wellington
The Mayor of Wellington is the head of the municipal government of Wellington, New Zealand, and presides over the Wellington City Council. The Mayor of Wellington administers only Wellington City itself — other municipalities in adjacent areas of the Wellington Region such as Lower Hutt, Upper...
from 1905 to 1908, and had represented two South Island electorates in the 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...
Parliament.
Early life
He was born in KirknewtonKirknewton, West Lothian
Kirknewton is a village in West Lothian, Scotland. Its population is about 2200 . It lies south of the A71 from Edinburgh to Livingston, and north of the A70, the high-level road that runs along the north side of the Pentland Hills from Edinburgh to Carnwath and Lanark...
, West Lothian
West Lothian
West Lothian is one of the 32 unitary council areas in Scotland, and a Lieutenancy area. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Falkirk, North Lanarkshire, the Scottish Borders and South Lanarkshire....
in 1850. His father, John Hislop, was the first secretary for Education in New Zealand. The family left Scotland in 1856 on the Strathmore and landed in Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers
Port Chalmers is a suburb and the main port of the city of Dunedin, New Zealand, with a population of 3,000. Port Chalmers lies ten kilometres inside Otago Harbour, some 15 kilometres northeast from Dunedin's city centre....
. They settled in East Taieri. He was educated by his father until the age of twelve, and then attended John Shaw's Grammar School (Albany Street, Dunedin), Dunedin High School
Dunedin High School
Dunedin High School is a high school in Dunedin, Florida, U.S.A. It is operated by the Pinellas County Schools school district. The school mascot is Freddie the Falcon...
and University of Otago
University of Otago
The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...
, where he studied law. He was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in 1871, only a few months after his teacher from Shaw's Grammar, Robert Stout
Robert Stout
Sir Robert Stout, KCMG was the 13th Premier of New Zealand on two occasions in the late 19th century, and later Chief Justice of New Zealand. He was the only person to hold both these offices...
(who later became Premier
Prime Minister of New Zealand
The Prime Minister of New Zealand is New Zealand's head of government consequent on being the leader of the party or coalition with majority support in the Parliament of New Zealand...
and then Chief Justice
Chief Justice of New Zealand
The Chief Justice of New Zealand is the head of the New Zealand judiciary, and presides over the Supreme Court of New Zealand. Before the establishment of the latter court in 2004 the Chief Justice was the presiding judge in the High Court of New Zealand and was also ex officio a member of the...
). He practised as a lawyer in Oamaru (in a firm where he was a colleague of Stout ), in which town he resided until 1890. After the 1890 election defeat, he moved to 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...
, where he became a partner in the legal firm of Brandon and Hislop (later Brandon, Hislop and Johnston) with Alfred Brandon
Alfred Brandon
Alfred de Bathe Brandon was a 19th century New Zealand politician.-Early life:Brandon was born in London in 1809; his father was Henry Brandon. He was educated as a lawyer...
.
Political career
He was first elected for the Waitaki electorateWaitaki (New Zealand electorate)
Waitaki is an electorate for the New Zealand House of Representatives that crosses the boundary of North Otago and South Canterbury towns on the East Coast of the South Island. The electorate was first established for the that determined the 5th New Zealand Parliament...
in the 1876 general election, and was re-elected in 1879
New Zealand general election, 1879
The New Zealand general election of 1879 was held between 28 August and 15 September to elect a total of 88 MPs to the 7th session of the New Zealand Parliament. The Māori vote was held on 1 and 8 September. A total number of 82,271 voters turned out to vote.The election came about when George...
. He resigned on 28 April 1880 "for private reasons". He then represented Oamaru
Oamaru (New Zealand electorate)
Oamaru was a parliamentary electorate in the Otago Region of New Zealand, during three periods between 1866 and 1978.-History:The electorate existed three times: from 1866 to 1870, 1881 to 1957, and then from 1969 to 1978....
from an 1885 by-election to 1889, when he resigned from his two ministerial portfolios (effective 10 September 1889) and his parliamentary seat (effective 4 September 1889) over the Ward–Hislop Affair. He won the resulting 1889 by-election, but was defeated by Thomas Young Duncan
Thomas Young Duncan
Thomas Young Duncan was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party.He represented the Waitaki electorate from 1881 to 1890 and then the Oamaru electorate from 1890 to 1911, when he was defeated by Ernest Lee.-References:...
at the next general election in 1890
New Zealand general election, 1890
The New Zealand general election of 1890 was one of New Zealand's most significant. It marked the beginning of party politics in New Zealand with the formation of the First Liberal government, which was to enact major welfare, labour and electoral reforms, including giving the vote to women.It was...
. He contested 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...
in the Wellington Suburbs
Wellington Suburbs
Wellington Suburbs was a parliamentary electorate in Wellington, New Zealand from 1893 to 1946.The electorate was represented by six Members of Parliament.-Members of Parliament for Wellington Suburbs:-References:...
electorate, but was defeated by Thomas Mason Wilford
Thomas Mason Wilford
Sir Thomas Mason Wilford, KC was a New Zealand politician. He held the seats of Wellington Suburbs then Hutt continuously for thirty years, from 1899 to 1929...
, with 2194 to 1942 votes. An election petition was filed one month after the election, accusing Wilford of bribery, illegal practices and not being properly registered as a voter himself. Therefore, it was argued, that only Hislop was properly registered, and should thus be returned. Wilford's election was declared invalid, but a by-election was called. Hislop declared that he would not stand in the by-election in favour of the opposition candidate Arthur Richmond Atkinson
Arthur Richmond Atkinson
Arthur Richmond Atkinson was an independent conservative Member of Parliament in New Zealand.He represented the City of Wellington electorate from 1899 to 1902 when he was defeated. He stood for Wellington East in 1908....
, who had come forth in the three-member Wellington electorate
Wellington (New Zealand electorate)
Wellington , was a parliamentary electorate in Wellington, New Zealand. It existed from 1853 to 1905 with a break in the 1880s. It was a multi-member electorate. The electorate was represented by 24 Members of Parliament....
. Charles Wilson
Charles Wilson (New Zealand)
Charles Wilson was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party.Thomas Wilford of the Liberal Party won the Wellington Suburbs seat in the 1896 election, but he was declared guilty of corrupt practices after an electoral petition and the election was declared void.At the...
from the Liberal Party
New Zealand Liberal Party
The New Zealand Liberal Party is generally regarded as having been the first real political party in New Zealand. It governed from 1891 until 1912. Out of office, the Liberals gradually found themselves pressed between the conservative Reform Party and the growing Labour Party...
narrowly defeated Atkinson in the 1897 by-election, though.
He was a member of the Atkinson
Harry Atkinson
Henry Albert "Harry" Atkinson served as the tenth Premier of New Zealand on four separate occasions in the late 19th century, and was Colonial Treasurer for a total of ten years...
Ministry from 1887 to 1891, holding posts as Colonial Secretary
Colonial Secretary (New Zealand)
The Colonial Secretary of New Zealand was an office established in 1840 and abolished in 1907. The position should not be confused with the Colonial Secretary of the former Colonial Office of the United Kingdom....
and Minister of Education
Minister of Education (New Zealand)
The Minister of Education is a minister in the government of New Zealand with responsibility for the country's schools, and is in charge of the Ministry of Education.The present Minister is Anne Tolley, a member of the National Party.-History:...
. The education portfolio filled Hislop with great pleasure, as he was thus following in his father's footsteps, as he had been the author of the Education Act. Hislop drafted the Fair Rent Bill, which was introduced by the fifth Atkinson Ministry, and passed through the Lower House. He also introduced labour bills, factory and shop hours, and employers’ liability bills, also building liens and the Truck Act, which, however, were not passed. He was successful in passing the Shipping and Seamen’s Act. He also affected some useful legal reforms, and introduced the Representation Bill, a measure based on the Hare system
Hare method
Hare method, named for Thomas Hare, may refer to two related voting systems:*Instant-runoff voting for single seat elections;*Hare method for electing multi-seat constituencies....
, but this was withdrawn. Hislop’s political views were on the left of the spectrum.
As a minister, he was involved in the 1889 Paris Exposition
Exposition Universelle (1889)
The Exposition Universelle of 1889 was a World's Fair held in Paris, France from 6 May to 31 October 1889.It was held during the year of the 100th anniversary of the storming of the Bastille, an event traditionally considered as the symbol for the beginning of the French Revolution...
. For that, and for his services to education in general, he was honoured by the French Government with a Legion of Honour.
Hislop was Mayor of Wellington from 1905 to 1908.
He was a Member of the Legislative Council
New Zealand Legislative Council
The Legislative Council of New Zealand was the upper house of the New Zealand Parliament from 1853 until 1951. Unlike the lower house, the New Zealand House of Representatives, the Legislative Council was appointed.-Role:...
from 1921 until his death.
Family and death
Hislop's last residence was Hayes Court in Aurora Terrace, Wellington. It was once described as the "most valuable residential property in the city of Wellington".Hislop married Annie Simpson on 18 February 1873 at Knox Church
Knox Church, Dunedin
Knox Church is a notable building in Dunedin, New Zealand. It houses the city's second Presbyterian congregation and is the city's largest church of any denomination. Situated close to the university at the northern end of the CBD on George Street it is visible from much of the central city.It was...
in Dunedin
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
. They had two sons and three daughters. His first wife died in 1909. His son Thomas Charles Atkinson Hislop
Thomas Charles Atkinson Hislop
Thomas Charles Atkinson Hislop was the Mayor of Wellington from 1931 to 1944.He was a Wellington City Councillor from 1913 to 1915, when he resigned to serve in the Wellington Regiment in World War I. He became a Councillor again from 1927 to 1931, and then Mayor from 1931 to 1945.He was the...
was Mayor of Wellington from 1931 to 1944.
On 27 May 1922 at St Johns Church in Willis Street, he married Marguerite Estelle Louis Smith (known as Louis Smith) of Wellington.
Hislop died on 2 October 1925 at his residence. He was buried at Karori
Karori
Karori is a suburb located at the western edge of the urban area of Wellington, New Zealand, some 4 km from the city centre.Karori is significantly larger than most other Wellington suburbs, having a population of over 14,000 at the time of the 2006 census.-History:Before the arrival of...
Cemetery in Wellington on 5 October of that year. He was survived by his second wife and his children.
List of honours
-
Officier de la Légion d'HonneurLégion d'honneurThe Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
(France)